4 Study Tips for Wall Street Exam’s Daunting Economics Section from Jane Vessey, CFA, Test Instructor, Author of ‘ExamWise for Chartered Financial Analyst Workbook'
Friendswood, TX (PRWEB) November 29, 2014 -- Expertly "reading the economic tea leaves” during turbulent times is now a must for professional investment managers/ advisors.
Fortunately, the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) exam-- a famously grueling three-level, four-year marathon that bestows Wall Street’s most coveted professional credential – puts 10% weight on understanding the economic underpinnings of international stock markets. To pass the Economics section of the Level I exam coming in December, Candidates must master over 500 pages of curriculum covering microeconomics, macroeconomics, and global issues.
London-based Jane Vessey, CFA instructor and author of the popular ExamWise Q&A workbooks for CFA Level I, says, “The Economics section poses a real conundrum for many CFA Candidates. Is it a good use of time to rigorously study the complete curriculum when it accounts for 10% of total exam weighting?"
She notes that Candidates who’ve studied economics before won’t find the content so challenging, but it can be daunting for those who haven’t. On the plus side, the curriculum is interesting. It makes the academic practical and helps Candidates understand the turbulence in markets caused by economic uncertainties of all kinds.
Based on her CFA exam prep courses and books, Vessey offers these 4 study tips for mastering the Economics section:
1) In Study Session 4 the Reading Assignments focus on key issues in Microeconomics. Candidates first need to get a good grasp of the basic principles of demand and supply analysis and consumer/producer surpluses before moving to other topics. Mastering the graphs in the Exhibits is a good sign they understand the key points.
2) Study Session 5 is important and covers key issues in Macroeconomics – economic growth and changes in levels of output, employment, and prices. Candidates initially need to define and explain how main economic indicators are measured, including aggregate demand and supply, the business cycle, inflation, and unemployment. Then, Candidates can tackle a key part of this Session -- how government policy can affect price stability and economic growth, both short and long term.
3) Study Session 6 is relatively short and focuses on Global Issues, including international trade and exchange rates. Candidates need to master terminology, explain concepts, and perform calculations, but should find the material relatively straightforward compared to previous study sessions.
4) Overall, Candidates must focus on the key points in the Economics curriculum and not get lost in detail. Unless they have prior knowledge, they may need to accept a lower mark on this topic and compensate with strong marks in other areas.
Jane Vessey's two volumes of CFA Level I practice questions are available from Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, Books-a-Million, and other booksellers: ExamWise 2014 CFA Level I Volume 1 - The Candidates 450 Question And Answer Workbook For Chartered Financial Analyst Exam and the companion volume 2.
The Publisher, TotalRecall Publications, offers CFA candidates free mock exams via a test engine download at http://www.FinancialExams.com.
Jane Vessey, CFA, graduated in Mathematics from Oxford University and is a CFA charterholder. She manages a training company in the United Kingdom specializing in financial analysis and investment. After 20 years in the investment management business in London, Tokyo, and Indonesia, she now lectures at leading business schools and trains investment practitioners in top financial firms. She has developed online training programs for students taking the CFA examinations and teaches CFA preparatory courses at a number of universities.
Located in Friendswood, TX, near Houston, TotalRecall Publications, Inc. was founded in 1998 by Bruce Moran, a former NASA IT professional who transitioned into computer instruction and educational materials. In 2005, the company launched study guides accompanied by a donwloadable test engine. These include the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) exams for Levels I and II. In addition to the ExamWise Q&A workbooks, the company also publishes the comprehensive CFA study guide A-Plus Study Notes CFA Level I Certification: A Complete Course of Study for Chartered Financial Analyst, by Samuel J. Gottlieb, CFP, CFA. Gottlieb also writes a similar book for Level II. TotalRecall publishes more than 200 non-fiction and fiction titles, all distributed worldwide through book retailers and wholesalers and via eBook databases such as ebrary, EBSCO, and Books24x7.com.
Terri Mitchem, TotalRecall Publications, Inc., http://www.totalrecallpress.com, +1 352-596-1192, [email protected]
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