The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Program is a universally-recognized graduate-level professional program that provides a strong base for real-world portfolio management and investment analysis skills combined with the practical knowledge that any individual needs to survive and prosper in today’s investment industry. CFA certification is a globally acknowledged credential in finance.
A CFA holder in the United States has the scope of earning more than $100,000 annually. It is offered by the American-based CFA Institute internationally to financial and investment professionals. The program covers a wide variety of topics relating to financial analysis, investment management, bonds, stocks, and derivatives, and provides a general knowledge of other areas of finance.
After successful completion of the program and satisfying all other professional requirements, the candidate is awarded the “CFA Charter” title and becomes a “CFA Charterholder“. To become a Charterholder, the candidate needs to go through a three-level rigorous examination process.
Currently, there are almost 1.5 lakh Charter Holders present around the world. It takes an average of four years to successfully complete the Chartered Financial Analyst program and become a CFA charter. According to the CFA Institute, the success percentage of candidates taking up the CFA program is only 20%, that is, only 2 out of 10 candidates who begin the program receive the CFA Charter. The top employers of CFA Charterholders globally are UBS, Bank of America, RBC, JP Morgan and Wells Fargo.
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CFA Programme Syllabus
The CFA program is divided into three levels:
Level I: It emphasizes on general knowledge of ten topic domains and simple analysis using investment tools. The ten topics include:-
- Ethical and Professional Standards
- Portfolio Management
- Final Reporting and Analysis
- Corporate Finance
- Economics
- Quantitative Methods
- Equity Investments
- Fixed Income
- Derivatives
- Alternative Investments
Level II: The second level of examination focuses on the application of investment tools and concepts with the emphasis on the valuation of all the assets. This level also contains ten subject domains in the syllabus which are:-
- Ethical and Professional Standards
- Quantitative Methods
- Economics
- Financial Reporting and Analysis
- Corporate Finance
- Equity Valuation
- Fixed Income
- Derivative Investment
- Alternative Investments
- Portfolio Management
Level III: This level of the program emphasizes on applying all the methods and concepts learned previously in the curriculum for effective wealth planning and portfolio management. This level includes seven subject domains in its syllabus which are:-
- Ethical and Professional Standards
- Behavioural Finance, Individual Investors, and Institutional Investors
- Capital Market Expectations
- Asset Allocation
- Fixed Income and Equity Portfolio Management
- Alternative Investments, Risk Management, and the application of Derivatives
- Global Investment Performance Standards and Portfolio Execution, Evaluation and Attribution.
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Chartered Financial Analyst Exam Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible for the CFA first level exam, the candidate must possess an international travel passport. The candidate needs to possess four years of work experience or a combination of work experience and education that totals at least four years or, in another scenario, the candidate needs to be a graduate or a final year bachelor’s degree student. (The bachelor’s degree program should be completed before registration for Level II exam).
To further continue the CFA program to become a charter holder, the candidate must satisfy the following requirements:
- Candidate should have 48 months (four years) of qualified work experience (or CFA Institute approved a combination of work experience and education). However, individual-level exams may be taken prior to satisfying this requirement;
- Complete the CFA Program (mastery of the current CFA curriculum and passing three levels of the program examinations);
- Become a member of the CFA Institute
- Adhere to the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct.
Chartered Financial Analyst Exam Pattern
The exam for each level is six-hour long divided into two three-hour slots, the morning and afternoon sessions, respectively. There are a total of 240 multiple choice questions to be solved with each exam session consisting of 120 questions. Appearance in both sessions is mandatory to clear the examination. The test does not carry any negative marks for the wrong answer and each question carries same mark weightage.
CFA Exam 2018 Schedule, Exam Centers, and Fee Structure
A one-time enrollment fee payable is US$ 450, followed by US$ 930 exam fee before the standard deadline and US$ 1210 before late fee deadline. The total cost for the exam comes out to be US$ 1380 before standard fee registration deadline or US$ 1660 after late fee penalty, that too before the late registration fee deadline. There are total four CFA test centers in India, which are Mumbai, New Delhi, Kolkata, and Bangalore.
February 01 – Awareness Scholarship application deadline.
February 14 – Standard registration fee deadline.
March 14 – Late registration fee deadline.
March 19 – Final deadline for alternate date requests for religious or disability reasons to be received.
April 17 – Test center change request deadline.
June 23 – Day of Exam.
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