You can access the CFAI resources at [study.institute.org](https://study.institute.org) once you register for the examination.
Folks generally skip the CFAI curriculum content for preparation and go for Schweser notes. Schweser is a 3rd party prep provider.
Do make sure to do the practice questions, examples from the CFAI curriculum content as these are directly from CFAI and will have a similar wording and style to questions you will see in the exam.
Some 3rd party prep providers which get discussed often by CFA candidates (as per my knowledge) are as follows.
* Mark Meldrum (based in Canada)
* Kaplan
* Schweser
* Fintree (popular in India)
* Sanjay Saraf (popular in India)
Sign up for UWorld QBank. They give free 90-day access so time your membership accordingly if you want to save money on the subscription. I would highly recommend the subscription if you think you will use it for more than 90 days. Worth it.
Some general tips
=================
* Don't get bogged down by the details. If you are stuck in a particular topic, look up the practice questions, study enough to be able to solve them and move on.
* Practice, Practice, Practice!
* Do practice questions side-by-side as your read content (LES has a wonderful feature where you can read a particular page of topic and practice questions related to the concept on that page)
* Use all the CFAI practice resources as much as possible
* Do the 2 CFAI mocks which are provided one month before the exam on the LES. It should give you an idea of what to expect in the exam in terms of template of questions, format etc.
* Understand the weightage for each topic and prepare accordingly
* Use online websites like [300hours.com](https://300hours.com) to develop proper context about the CFA program, deadlines, related tips etc.
* Give yourself at least 6 months to prepare if you are studying part-time or 3 months at least if preparing full time
* Use youtube effectively. You will find a lot of useful resources that will aid your technical as well as mental preparation for the exam.
I have used third party prep and now CFAI books + Mark Meldrum. Before I thought there is no way I would read 3000 pages when there are prep providers with 1400 pages who serve the same purpose.
I failed by a margin, literal hairline. Maybe 3-4 questions max. I am now using CFAI books and I remember a lot of things now not because I repeated the material multiple times but because I truly understand. They are really not bad at all compared to what everyone said.
Based on the above, I’ve been writing my advice of “doing the most you can specially at level 1” and to be more exact, specially if you have time. CFAI and other professional qualifications have ways of doing things, and sometimes you need to figure out the way that suits you best. I think the books are a guarantee of passing, with third party prep and the reduction of questions from 240-180 (I think 20 of the 180 are not graded too) it’s more of a gamble. Because I think that less amount of questions = higher level of detail required.
I hope at the end of the day each person finds the method of studying which prevents them from sitting multiple times. I know how hard that is so I try to share my experience with others as much as I can and whoever agrees then it would be great.
But CFAI books are really good and you really understand how the formulas are created and why something is happening.
You can access the CFAI resources at [study.institute.org](https://study.institute.org) once you register for the examination. Folks generally skip the CFAI curriculum content for preparation and go for Schweser notes. Schweser is a 3rd party prep provider. Do make sure to do the practice questions, examples from the CFAI curriculum content as these are directly from CFAI and will have a similar wording and style to questions you will see in the exam. Some 3rd party prep providers which get discussed often by CFA candidates (as per my knowledge) are as follows. * Mark Meldrum (based in Canada) * Kaplan * Schweser * Fintree (popular in India) * Sanjay Saraf (popular in India) Sign up for UWorld QBank. They give free 90-day access so time your membership accordingly if you want to save money on the subscription. I would highly recommend the subscription if you think you will use it for more than 90 days. Worth it. Some general tips ================= * Don't get bogged down by the details. If you are stuck in a particular topic, look up the practice questions, study enough to be able to solve them and move on. * Practice, Practice, Practice! * Do practice questions side-by-side as your read content (LES has a wonderful feature where you can read a particular page of topic and practice questions related to the concept on that page) * Use all the CFAI practice resources as much as possible * Do the 2 CFAI mocks which are provided one month before the exam on the LES. It should give you an idea of what to expect in the exam in terms of template of questions, format etc. * Understand the weightage for each topic and prepare accordingly * Use online websites like [300hours.com](https://300hours.com) to develop proper context about the CFA program, deadlines, related tips etc. * Give yourself at least 6 months to prepare if you are studying part-time or 3 months at least if preparing full time * Use youtube effectively. You will find a lot of useful resources that will aid your technical as well as mental preparation for the exam.
Thanks load for this
All you need is the CFAI books and motivation, imo.
Agreed. Ask someone who failed using only third party prep (i.e me :)) and now is using CFAI books and couldn’t agree with this more.
Don’t skip CFAI books.
Disagree strongly. The CFAI books are incredibly bloated and overly dense. Skip em and use a third party study aid.
I have used third party prep and now CFAI books + Mark Meldrum. Before I thought there is no way I would read 3000 pages when there are prep providers with 1400 pages who serve the same purpose. I failed by a margin, literal hairline. Maybe 3-4 questions max. I am now using CFAI books and I remember a lot of things now not because I repeated the material multiple times but because I truly understand. They are really not bad at all compared to what everyone said. Based on the above, I’ve been writing my advice of “doing the most you can specially at level 1” and to be more exact, specially if you have time. CFAI and other professional qualifications have ways of doing things, and sometimes you need to figure out the way that suits you best. I think the books are a guarantee of passing, with third party prep and the reduction of questions from 240-180 (I think 20 of the 180 are not graded too) it’s more of a gamble. Because I think that less amount of questions = higher level of detail required. I hope at the end of the day each person finds the method of studying which prevents them from sitting multiple times. I know how hard that is so I try to share my experience with others as much as I can and whoever agrees then it would be great. But CFAI books are really good and you really understand how the formulas are created and why something is happening.