Frequently Asked Questions

Either of the 3 criteria can be satisfied to be eligible for the CFA Program. The criteria should be met at the time of registration:

• Graduate in any discipline
• Work experience of more than equal to 4 years
• Combination of 4000 hours of higher education and/or work experience that was acquired over a minimum of three sequential years and not overlapping.

Check the lecture on the Eligibility Criteria for Working Professional for CFA

For undergraduates:

• You may take the CFA Level 1 exam 23 months before your graduation month.
• CFA Level 2 can be taken 11 months before your graduation month.

Check the lecture on the Eligibility Criteria for Undergraduate Students for CFA

You can take the Eligibility Test

Professional work experience does not need to be investment-related. Internships/articleships are accepted if they are paid. Work experience with your own business or your family business will qualify only if it is professional experience for which you are paid.

For more details, check Institute Website

For CFA Level 1&2:

• Ethical and Professional Standards
• Quantitative Methods
• Economics
• Financial Statement Analysis
• Corporate Issuers
• Portfolio Management
• Equity Investments
• Fixed Income
• Derivatives
• Alternative Investments

For CFA Level 3:

70% of Core Curriculum:

• Asset Allocation
• Portfolio Construction
• Performance Measurement
• Derivatives and Risk Management
• Ethical and Professional Standards

30% of Specialized Pathways: (candidate need to choose any one while registering for level 3 exam)

• Portfolio Management Pathway
• Private Market Pathway
• Private Wealth Pathway

The CFA Level I exam consists of 180 multiple-choice questions, split between two 135-minute sessions (session times are approximate). There is an optional break between sessions.

The CFA Level II exam consists of 22 item sets comprised of vignettes with 88 accompanying multiple-choice questions. It will be 4 hours and 24 minutes, split into two equal sessions of 2 hours and 12 minutes, with an optional break in between.

The CFA Level III exam consists of item sets and constructed response (essay) sets divided into two sessions of 132 minutes each.

For CFA Level 1:

Each session consists of 90 multiple-choice questions. Each multiple-choice item consists of a stem (a question, a statement, and/or table) as well as three answer choices (A, B, or C).

Two basic formats are used:

• Sentence completion with three unique choices
• Questions with three unique choices

Please check the Institute Website for more details.

For CFA Level 2:

22 item sets comprised of vignettes with 88 accompanying multiple-choice questions. Made up of 11 item sets for each session, for a total of 22 on the exam. Twenty scored, and two not.

Please check the Institute Website for more details.

For CFA Level 3:

Mixed format with vignette-supported essay questions and vignette-supported multiple choice questions. 11 item sets and 11 essay sets. Made up of either 6 item sets and 5 essay sets or 5 item sets and 6 essay sets.

Please check the Institute Website for more details.

For CFA Level 1:

The exam takes place four times a year - February, May, August, and November.

For CFA Level 2:

The exam takes place three times a year - May, August, and November.

For CFA Level 3:

The exam takes place two times a year - February and August.

The results are generally out within 5-7 weeks of taking the exam and completion of the Practical Skills Module.

A Practical Skills Module (PSM) develops your practical skills through a combination of videos, multiple-choice questions, guided practice, and case studies. You will be required to complete at least one PSM at each level to receive your exam result. You may begin your PSM topic at any time after registration. Each PSM takes 10-20 hours to complete.

You can check the lecture on CFA Program | Curriculum Changes 2024

Refer to the FAQ section on PSM for more details.

Over the past 10 years, the average pass rate for the CFA exams has been approximately 41% for Level 1, 46% for Level 2, and 51% for Level 3.

CFA exams are only offered in English. Exams require English proficiency for reading comprehension and formulating answers to complex financial scenarios.

Candidates are permitted to take the exam a maximum of two times per calendar year (when applicable) but not in consecutive windows or windows that are less than six months apart. There is a maximum of six attempts per exam level.

There is no minimum eligibility requirements to write the exams.

Even an undergraduate is eligible to give the FRM Part 1.

You can take the FRM Part 2 only when you complete the FRM Part 1 exam.

You can refer to the lecture: How to Register for FRM

For FRM Part 1, the subjects include:

Foundation of Risk Management

Quantitative Analysis

Financial Markets and Products

Valuation and Risk Models

For FRM Part 2, the subjects include:

Market Risk Measurement and Management

Credit Risk Measurement and Management

Operational Risk and Resilence

Liquidity and Treasury Risk Measurement and Management

Risk Management and Investment Management

Current Issues in Financial Market

The FRM Part 1 exam consists of 100 multiple-choice questions, while the FRM Part 2 exam consists of 80 multiple-choice questions.

Both FRM Part 1 and FRM Part 2 are offered three times a year�in May, August, and November.

FRM exams are only offered in English. Exams require English proficiency for reading comprehension and formulating answers to complex financial scenarios.

There are no limits on the number of attempts.

The results are generally out within 6 weeks of taking the exam.

Over the past 10 years, the average passing percentage for the FRM Part 1 exam is approximately 45%, while the average passing percentage for the FRM Part 2 exam is approximately 53%.