The Complete Guide and Outline to the CFA Examination

The Complete Guide and Outline to the CFA Examination

The CFA Program is a world renowned finance program that makes way towards a lucrative financial career. A person opting for the exam works on having strong foundation for real-world investment analysis and portfolio management skills. The CFA program involves deep analysis of important aspects of financial management and investment management. It focuses on the ethical and professional standards while giving a good platform to candidates who want to enhance their education and skills to aim at better career opportunities related to finance and investment management.

Benefits of the CFA credential

The CFA credential offers a wide variety of career opportunities and a candidate who has earned CFA credential can aspire to be:

  • Research Analysts
  • Financial Strategists
  • Financial Advisers
  • Portfolio Managers
  • Private Bankers
  • Relationship Managers
  • Cost Accountant
  • Staff Accountant
  • Treasurer
  • Chief Financial Officer, etc.

Eligibility Criteria

A candidate must fulfill the following eligibility criteria in order to appear for the CFA examination and earn CFA credential:

  • The candidate must have a bachelor’s or any equivalent degree, or be in the final year of the bachelor’s degree program.
  • The candidate must have a professional work experience of at least 4 years, or have a total of 4 years of experience of the combination of education and work.
  • Moreover, the candidate must be a member of the CFA Institute from where he can simply apply for membership online.

The examination

The CFA examination is a series of examination that incorporates three levels I, II, III and a candidate needs to clear all the levels one-by-one to earn CFA credential. It is required for the candidate to have basic knowledge of English language as the exams are offered in English language. Two sessions of three hours each are conducted for all the three levels of examination. One session is conducted in the morning and one in the afternoon.

Now that you know the benefits, eligibility criteria, and exam pattern of CFA exam, you can enroll yourself for the program and prepare for it. Additionally, you can also enroll yourself for financial training in CFA prep courses to prepare for the exam. As CFA examination requires a tremendous amount of hard work, one must study well in order to clear the examination in the first attempt itself.