CFA stands for Chartered Financial Analyst. It is one of the most globally recognised professional designations, and the CFA Institute, headquartered in Virginia, United States, offers this designation. Basically, the CFA Institute conducts exams to certify the integrity and competence of financial analysts. Candidates taking this exam must pass three levels covering topics like accounting, economics, money management, and security analysis.
A CFA certification helps you to become a high earner, gives you global recognition, and gives you versatile career opportunities. This certification has also become very popular in India in recent years. Many institutes offer CFA coaching in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, and other major cities in our country.
CFA is a highly competitive exam requiring much hard work and dedication to complete this certification.
If you are considering pursuing a CFA, you will learn about the CFA exam’s three levels in detail in this article.
CFA Levels
Below are the three levels of CFA that you will be required to clear in order to get your certification.
- Level 1: The main focus at this level is financial analysis. The other areas of focus are quantitative methods, economics, corporate finance, and others. The exam is conducted in a multiple-question pattern and has to be completed within 4 hours and 30 minutes.
- Level 2: The second level of the certification focuses on the valuation of assets and emphasises the application of investment tools and concepts. The questions are based on the International Financing Reporting Standards. The level 2 exam has 22 mini-case studies with 88 multiple-choice questions.
- Level 3: This level focuses on portfolio management and wealth planning. During this level, candidates are taught how to combine all concepts and all the analytical methods learned from the entire curriculum. In this exam, you need to answer 11 item sets and 11 essay questions within 4 hours and 24 minutes.
If you clear these three levels, you will earn your CFA certification.
Conclusion
The CFA certification is a tough exam. Out of the three levels, there isn’t a single one that could be said to be easy. To complete this exam, you need to be highly motivated and dedicated.
There are many centers offering CFA coaching in Delhi that you can get admitted to for guidance and support. CFA coaching will help you gain the skills and knowledge required to score good marks in the certification exam. As A CFA certification holder, you will get better job prospects, higher salaries, and a lot more career paths. You might also get opportunities to work overseas.
To be eligible for the CFA exam, you should be a graduate. If you are an undergraduate, you should take your exam 23 months before your graduation month. For the level 3 exams, you need to have accumulated 4000 work hours. Make sure you get in touch with the best centres that can offer you targeted training.