How To Pass CFA Level 1 In 2 Weeks? | Free CFA Test Prep

The curriculum for the Level I CFA® Program seems to include a daunting amount of information. With more than 3,000 pages spread across six CFA level 1 books, it takes a lot of work to get through the content. If you want to get through it all and recall enough information to pass the exam, you’ll need a method. Setting aside enough time to study the subject matter could be the initial step.

How to pass CFA Level 1 in 2 weeks, though? We know, it sounds insane.

Certainly, cramming at the last minute won’t allow you to complete all of this. Candidates should dedicate 250–300 hours of study time in order to adequately prepare for the CFA exam. But two weeks before D-day? If you truly have no other option and have two weeks to prepare, we’ve done it for you here!

All you need to do to get ready for CFA Level 1 in just two weeks is covered in this post. With these free CFA Level 1 practice questions, let’s get started on passing the test!

First Thing You Need To Do

You now have just two weeks to absorb and memorize all of the information that would typically take four months to study. As a result, you will surely recognize the significance and urgency of studying for the exam.

That must be a painful experience for you during the entire 2 weeks. Now you should do some things as follow before getting into the crazy study:

• Build your strict study plan and determine to do exactly what you have set out
• It may be tough, but you must sacrifice your entire day to study and study. Don’t waste time on things that aren’t required, except for eating and cleaning
• If possible, limit communication, and make sure everyone knows you’ll be studying for two weeks to avoid unnecessary distractions.

We think you should ensure you are willing to do the three things above before beginning your tough time. Maybe there will be more strict rules you can set out by yourself so as to study the most effectively.

Now we will go through the things you should do during 2 weeks of preparation.

Scott’s Story: 2 Weeks Of Crazy Studying

This is the story of Scott who passed CFA level 1 in only 2 weeks of study. Let’s find out what he did during that 2 weeks.

In fact, he got 10 days for preparation for all. That is a challenge and a hard time for him, and he learned 3 important things after that time.

#1 He began by taking as many practice tests as he could

Starting with exam papers helped him to have a general idea of what sections he needed to study further and what topics he could skip.

After that, he masters 4 papers under actual exam situations by the end of two weeks. He speed-read roughly 6 additional papers to scan the question and instantly went through the model solutions.

Practice examinations helped him fine-tune his learning, and he would suggest them to everyone, regardless of time constraints.

#2 He put out a few topics outright

He strongly advises current CFA Level 1 candidates to avoid this.

However, aside from the practice problems in the tests, he skipped the following three topics:

• Economics: test weighting was light, and he was able to wing it a little based on what he had learned in school
• Corporate Finance had a low weighting in the exam, and he had some work experience that benefited him
• Derivatives: a low weighting in the test, and he found the exam questions to be quite difficult and time-consuming.

In terms of areas to study for Level 1, he prioritized correctly, but he can’t really comment because he doesn’t know otherwise. Of course, he would only recommend binning subjects if you had no other choice and needed to prioritize.

He particularly regrets not providing himself a strong foundation in derivatives; his CFA Level 2 performance deteriorated, and he was forced to return to Level 1 and re-learn a lot of material.

#3 He saved Ethics for last

This was based on the recommendation of his coworker.

Because the CFA curriculum includes Ethics, it was the only subject about which he had no prior knowledge or expertise.  He had a good idea of what to study up on based on the questions he’d seen in the practice examinations he’d taken so far, so he left it until the final few days before the exam.

And, because CFA Level 1 Ethics requires a lot of memorizing, he decided to study it closer to the exam.

5 Lessons Gained: How To Pass CFA Level 1 In 2 Weeks

1. With so little time left to study, we don’t think anyone can say with certainty that they will pass the CFA test. Perhaps luck has a significant role.
2. Passing with only two weeks of preparation is basically out of the question if you’re new to finance concepts and materials. Scott was lucky to have a career that was extremely relevant to multiple CFA subjects, as well as an economics background to back him up. Although you’ll still need to complete practice examinations to familiarize yourself with the question structure, it successfully allowed him to skip past the majority of the time needed to study the material.
3. Passing CFA Level 1 with a poor grasp of the topic has ramifications in Levels 2 and 3. In the latter levels, Scott struggled with a lot of stuff. To comprehend what was going on with most of the Level 2 topics, he had to relearn a lot of the foundations from Level 1. If you’re serious about passing and becoming a CFA Charterholder, you should start with CFA Level 1 and develop a solid foundation and study schedule.
4. If you find yourself in this scenario, following Scott’s lead will offer you the best chance of succeeding. If passing is your main priority, however, starting early and having a study plan is the best approach to increase your chances.
5. At the end of the day, Scott finally did pass the exam after only two weeks of preparation. But he feels he was really lucky. Instead of waiting for the next exam, he prepared hard and attempted to pass it.

Final Thought

Having read Scott’s story in this post, you now understand how to pass CFA level 1 in 2 weeks. Nonetheless, it is much better if you set aside enough time to prepare before reading to take it.

A great technique to tell if a candidate is prepared to take the CFA examination is to pay close attention to the outcomes of mock practice exams. We consider candidates to be exam-ready regardless of how many hours they have spent studying if they consistently achieve scores on each curriculum item of a CFA mock practice test above 75%.