UK
Figures just out from the CFA Institute confirm what has long been known to be the case: the CFA Level 1 exam is no pushover.
A mere 35% of candidates who took the exam last December passed it, down from 39% in 2007.
Could it be that rather than succumbing to the dumbing down prevalent elsewhere in education, the CFA is actually making its exams harder? Or is it simply that more and more (low calibre) people are taking them?
We suspect it’s the latter. Between 2007 and 2008 alone, the number of people sitting Level 1 rose 25% to 36k, and candidates have increased 45% since 2003. With so many more entrants, the pass rate needs to remain low if the CFA is to retain any cachet. Expect it to fall even further in future.
As Robbie Williams famously crooned on the song Rock DJ… “Pimpin’ ain’t easy…..”
I literally know a dozen people who this afternoon passed, and not a single person who failed. Furthermore several got over 70% in every single module, the others almost there. All my friends work in the front office though, and are from good unis, so this is expected. I would ignore the 35% pass mark – clearly this includes low quality people working in back office trying to break into front but clearly not being good enough, so are deservedly back office.
I got over 70% in every module doing barely any work. The CFA was below year 1 undergraduate Economics standard.
Can’t believe 65% fail it, they must be in 3rd tier banks or Operations people.
I got over 95% in every module doing no work at all, and I laugh at and scorn people who obtained a mere 70% (looking at you Xing)
King of CFA, making yourself look very silly as the module scores only tell you if you scored over 70%, not 95%. How pathetic of you.
People who take the CFA who work in a revenue generating area found it very difficult this year due to the insanity of their work load.
The people in Mid / Back office or outside of the industry probably had more time to focus on the exams.
Thats an observation i’ve made on it this year
I got the top mark in the country (got a special letter from the examiners and everything). I snigger at those pathetic 95% people.
I guess one of the reasons why the pass rate is so low is that in these statistics they also include people who don’t even turn up for the exams although they are signed up. So I would say the real pass rate (i.e. people who have done a good amount of studying) is much higher.
Cant really remember from when I did the CFA but I think they dont show whether u r above 95% or not (looking at you King of CFA)…
Xing – why dont you get yourself a girlfriend?
@Blue – No shows are excluded from calculation, as are people who don’t turn up for the second session.
Why you all are crying/scraming on 70% or 95%. (King , Xing etc..) Whatever % u got and whatever u do even after level 2 & 3.. U won’t be able to get a good job in this market..
CFA’s have gone the way of MBA’s. No one is really that interested anymore.
Wow, what arrogant pr*cks posting comments here.
Probably the first test in my life, but I failed this. And you know the reason why – it was simply that I didn’t have time to study for this test. I have an MBA in Finance and undergrad in Econ from one of the best schools in the U.S. and currently work with corporate finance/investment banking/valuation projects with multi-billion dollar firms. So, not back office or whatever you people are talking about.
Anyone who studies sufficiently will pass this test. So shut up and stop acting all arrogant. Be happy that you passed.
Earning the CFA doesn’t demonstrate superiority, but it does show commitment and some logical thinking Having a full time time job in banking and doing it requires sacrificing a pub crawl or some chill out time with your significant one. This alone should show that those of us who have earned it and have worked our a***s of to do it will be able to do the same in our roles.
Those silly comments about 95% marks and personal letters are surely coming from CFA wannabes who lack the skill to do it!
I sat CFA levels I, II & III concurrently and averaged 99.9% in all three papers. I also work in FO and executed the largest M&A deal in the City last year and my girlfriend is a supermodel.
King Ping, u are a real genius!! This year I expect you to execute triangular merger deal between US,UK.and Iran u jacka**………
Ray speaks the truth. CFA is played out.
I’m definitely ditching Efinancial after reading this article. As a financial services publication you should know the CFA is a global qualification so many people who don’t have English as their first language take the exam in English, which skews the results. In addition, people who did not study economics or any other relevant degree take the CFA, so probably don’t score as highly as other candidates. There are also a high number of front office people who simply don’t have time to study for the exam and other employees who have been signed up to the CFA by their firm but are not particularly motivated to study.
Shhhh…..
I marked the CFA papers this year!!!
@King Ping you killed it with the last comment…you da man…LOL….To be honest CFA is for plonkers. The MBA is far more prestigious!!!
Nabeel – for someone who does not have time to study for the exam because of the workload with multibillion firms – what on earth you are doing on this website. And by the way, you are fired.
Not bad, King Ping. Did you also convince the investors about the worth of subprime some years past?
I sat CFA levels I,II & III at the same time answering questions with a pencil in either hand and a third in my mouth. I got 100%. I work in FO and my desk is on a small platform making it 3inchs higher than everyone elses. I am also very handsome.
King Ping, you’re such a loser.
I also sat all three simultaneously, did no preparation work, got drunk before the exam and still managed 100%. Not only that, but I received a letter of congratulation from Bono himself, as well as a substantial, anonymous cash donation in the 8 figure range. I am planning to use this money to seed my own hedge fund, just as soon as I announce my resignation to the board of Goldman (Wharton MBA at 16 yrs, grad scheme at 18, MD at 20, PMD and head of the prop desk at 23, oh yeah!). I hope that this will allow me to spend more time indulging my polyamorous domestic arrangements with a broad range of supermodels, A-list Hollywood stars and ‘musicians’. If you are interested in investing in my fund (expected returns of 500% p.a.) or would like more information about how I became such a winner, please feel free to email me at handsome.b.wonderful@gs.com
Remember kids, Impossible is Nothing!!
The pass rate if for the people that actually took the test. The “no show” people are not included. That is what the CFA official site says. I passed it, but I dedicated much more than 300 hours of study, and I am not dumb (I have a PhD in Physics and 30 papers in peer reviewed journals).
I work in the BO, passed all 3 levels first time, come from lower tier uni but most importantly earn a decent wage and pack in normal hours.
thank you King Ping!! now everyone will shut up and we can talk some serious business! how does a CFA compare to an ACA in this market? is it worth doing an MBA afterwards, and what chance does a back office player have of moving “up” after getting a CFA?
Being a CFA charterholder myself, I would say that level 1 exam is VERY easy compared to later stages. While passing level 2 and level 3 requires a lot of studying, level 1 doesn’t. Of course if you didnt study at all you will likely fail, but if you have good financial background, 50 hours of studying will be enough for sure. For level 2 and 3, on the contrary, 250+ hours per level recommended by the CFA Institute is not a joke or exaggeration, by any means.
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This blog is surely against CFA codes of ethics.
After executing multi-billion dollar M&A deals, I sleep with a different chick every night. Sometimes more than one at a time. So I’m smart, loaded and hot. How’s that for ya King Ping?!
i knew ppl with 1st Class Hon from Oxbridge or GPA3.5+ from Ivey cant pass Level 1 after repeated attempts. Prep is more importatn than intelligence for US-style MC exams
I was disappointed by the standard of the CFA exam. A year ago I passed the FRM exam which is of a much higher standard.
After all this..can anyone tell me what the benefits of CFA are? I am struggling to find the motivation to study for Level I at the moment given what is happening in the market, and need to find a new job on top of that. Do I actually NEED IT or am I wasting my time? I was in sales, and then moved to DCM/Syndicate. The only thought of having to then do 2 and 3 just kill me. What would I use it for??? Is it more focused for buy side??? Help!!!
Blue wrote – I guess one of the reasons why the pass rate is so low is that in these statistics they also include people who don’t even turn up for the exams although they are signed up.
Check the CFA Institute website – they don’t.
Arjun and Xing on the first page of comments – assuming you weren’t just being facetious what arrogant tw*ts you are. So you if someone is in back or middle office this makes them ‘less able’ when it comes to the CFA exam? Unbelievable. There are plenty of more than capable people away from the FO – I’ve worked in BO/MO roles since uni (a good one, with a better degree than Economics by the way) and I’m perfectly happy with my situation away from the ‘floor’. And for your info. there are plenty of people that didn’t go to ‘good unis’ that are undoubtedly smarter than both of you. Bear that in mind.
CFA like many designation are given to people working in certain areas of Capital Markets, Investment Banking and Brokerage because of the money and clout these on Wall Street have to give status and recognition(founded or unfounded) to designation and for Marketing this to their clients. If you had a 35 pass rate on CFA for front office Wall Street people the designation would cease to exist or be dumbed down like Risk Management and Regulatory compliance has been over the past 10 years.
u guys are nuts.. i know the questions r quite straight forward but… stuff like ethics were hit and mis 4 me.. but glad i passed …FYI here in sri lanka where scope for cfa is very narrow ppl jut read the text and hope for the best.. most of my friends who are mainly accontants have not been suscessful. so 35% is a high for us..
Xing – I’m amazed at your simple minded response on the first page… I don’t think you are even close to understanding what the 95% was getting at… taking things too literally made you sound really dense!
Its amazing the pompous attitude that is displayed by some peoples comments here.Speaking as someone who hasnt taken the CFA;whether or not you are front office , back office or even out of work credibility should be give to those who passed and those who worked their backside off trying to pass but unfortunately didn’t. Since when does it matter what back ground, university or previous education some one has had to take these exams. Surely, everyone has the right to atleast try and better themselves if thats what they feel to do when they wake up every morning, and hey, you never know until you try, and those who want anything bad enough always get there in the end, whether it be a cfa or the love of your life lol .So my final comment is whether its CFA or a GSCE you go and get it if you want it bad enough and just have absolute tunnel vision.
Quick one: when you walk into the testing area, you see that AT LEAST 20% of the applicants don’t even show up. When you add the fact that this is a global exam and people that were not educated in English have a hard time with all the technical terms, it is very safe to assume that at least another 10% (probably much more) are note competitive candidates at all. So, if you eliminate these 30%, you’re left with 70%, meaning that the 35% pass rate is actually 50%. This makes it a binary case: if you’re a joker, no pass; if you actually study, you’ll pass.
To the above post:
please be informed that no shows are no included in the pass/fail calculation. It’s been stated on the CFA institute website.
Sure I can spot a bunch arguing about nothing. Particularly you Xing who displays no ethics even after passing the exam.
I’ve never seen such a pathetic string of comments… I passed level III this year and couldn’t care less about my individual pass rates – what matters is the PASS when you look up the result! Or has any employer EVER asked you how you scored on every individual module and what your estimated pass rate was ???
all u ppl are retarded, u think working in front office makes u got but sorry sweety ure all ordinary. 95pc, 70pc, top mark in the country. you probably sit and study all day and entertain urselves at night, thats y you have to post ur marks on these forums. my suggestion- you all go get urselves laid to fill out the insecurities and need to impress ppl u have or will never meet. bye dolface
I passed all 3 levels whilst reading these comments