Should CFA and CPA apply for exams at the same time, or should they prepare at the same time?

Many students want to take these certificates in order to help their future career. In fact, CPA and CFA, even FRM and ACCA, are not helpful to your career: at most, they are icing on the cake for the strong (salary increase, faster promotion, priority for various places), and will not give you help in the snow for the weak.

Even if you don't have these certificates, it doesn't matter, all the doors of work are open for you. These exams are more of a stepping stone to employment. For example, science and engineering students want to enter the financial industry. If they have CFA exam certificates, it is easier to get written tests and interviews. But whether you can get this job opportunity in the end depends on your own ability and the matching degree of this job. According to the experience of friends around you, the recruitment company pays more attention to your internship experience and education than a qualification certificate on your resume.

Of course, for college students who have more free time, it is strongly recommended to take one or two vocational qualification examinations according to their career development plan. Preparing for these exams is also a good way to systematically study and sort out professional knowledge, which is very helpful for the integration of professional knowledge.

Let's talk about the basic situation and preparation methods of CFA and CPA first.

Second, CFA exam

1, basic situation

Time required to obtain a certificate: long

Test difficulty: higher.

Examination fee: very high. Assuming that all three levels are passed at one time without any remedial classes, it will cost at least $2,440 (equivalent to RMB15,000 yuan).

Gold content of the certificate: there is no signature right, but it is very helpful to pass the resume screening of the financial industry (especially the securities analyst)

Applicable people: the buyer's portfolio manager is mainly useful, but not useful to the analysts in the investment banking department.

CFA exam is the abbreviation of Chartered Financial Analyst. It is a professional qualification title in the field of securities investment and management sponsored by the American Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts.

For students who are interested in entering the securities investment industry, CFA exam is a good choice, which can help you quickly establish a knowledge system of financial analysis in review, and many brokerage research departments or investment funds have stated CFA priority in recruitment requirements. But to be honest, considering the high exam cost of CFA, this certificate will definitely not help you find a job as much as you think. After all, the enterprise will never give you an offer just because you have a third-class CFA certificate. It depends more on your past internship experience, education and performance in the interview.

2. Examination process

CFA exam is divided into three levels, from 1 to level 3. In the end, if you want to get the CFA certificate, you have to pass the three-level exam, get four years of relevant work experience, and then be verified by CFA Association. But then you can add the title of "CFA" after the name.

Except for 1, these three-level examinations are held once a year in June and1early February, while the second and third levels are only held once a year in early June. So in terms of time, the exam can be completed in one and a half years at the earliest (that is, 65438+February in the first year, June in the second year, and June in the third year). In theory, there is no limit to the slowest time, because CFA Institute does not set the validity period of test results, nor does it limit the number of times you retake the test.

3. About exam registration

Those who are still in school can take the 1 grade in June before graduation. This happens to make full use of the less busy time last semester to review.

There are also impatient friends, who got the grade of 1 in June of their junior year or in February of their senior year, and got the grade of 2 in June of the following year. However, I would like to remind you that according to official regulations, CFA College does not allow undergraduates to take the Level 2 exam. You will find that you have to prove that you have graduated before you can continue to apply for the second grade. Although you can fill in that you have graduated, there are certain risks, and it will be more troublesome if you are investigated in the future. But I haven't encountered such a situation so far, so I don't know if there will be any serious consequences.

If you are a graduate student, there is no limit. Don't worry, you can take the second grade exam. In short, 1 level can be selected twice a year, but levels 2 and 3 are once a year, so we should plan the time well. After all, CFA exam still covers a lot of content, which takes a certain amount of time and energy.

4. About the examination fee

Compared with CPA, CFA is definitely a very expensive exam. However, if you register in time, you can save a lot of money, because the earlier you register, the cheaper it is. Basically, registration can be started one year before the official examination date, and the examination fee can be paid in three deadlines, such as the following two exams:

The difference between early registration and late registration can be as high as 600 yuan, so you should plan the exam well in advance. It is worth noting that you need to pay the registration fee of 450 yuan for the first time, and then you don't have to pay it again (whether it's retaking the exam or the next level).

5. About the content of the exam

CFA exam covers a wide range, because financial analysts are too general, and all kinds of businesses in the financial industry will be involved. Basically, from the first level to the third level, the content scope has not changed, but the first level has gradually deepened, changing the proportion of different topics. Topics include:

professional ethics

Mathematical method

economics

Financial statement analysis

corporate finance

property rights

Fixed income securities

financial derivatives

Alternative investment products

Asset management and wealth planning

From the above topics, we can know that the examination covers almost all aspects of the financial field. But don't worry too much, because after all, it is too wide to cause too technical problems, so it is not a big problem without the background of mathematics, finance and accounting.

The first and second levels are multiple-choice questions, and the third level has multiple-choice questions and simultaneous questions. 1 attaches great importance to the analysis of financial statements, so students with accounting background will have an advantage. The second level attaches importance to financial statement analysis and portfolio management, and needs to strengthen the mastery of financial and investment knowledge. There are many questions in the third-level composition, emphasizing financial management.

6. About exam review

I remember CFA's official review suggestion is to prepare for at least 300 hours for each level exam, but I feel that this is mainly for people who already have a certain financial knowledge base. For friends who have never been exposed to the financial industry, it may take more time to literacy. In order to avoid too much pressure in the later review, or too much forgetting in the earlier review, it is suggested to start reviewing about two months before the exam.

The electronic version of CFA official textbooks is bundled at the time of registration, and the electronic version can be downloaded after registration. However, because there are too many teaching materials, some difficult knowledge points are rarely tested, so it is generally recommended to look at Schweser Notes (available in a treasure) produced by Kaplan, the world's largest CFA training institution. Although it can only cover about 90% of the knowledge points, it is more than enough to pass the exam.

Because CFA involves so many topics, it is impossible to fully grasp every topic. Therefore, it is suggested to invest time according to the test score weight of each topic when reviewing. For example, the following is the weight table of the 20 15 exam for your reference.

Third, the CPA exam

1, basic introduction

Time required to apply for a permit: not often ~ long.

Test difficulty: it is relatively high and requires high memory, but the test contents are all from textbooks and outlines.

Examination fee: irregular ~ irregular ~ low, professional stage1* * 6 subjects, each subject is about 70 yuan (the fee varies from place to place), comprehensive stage 130 yuan (relative to CFA, it is cabbage price).

Gold content of the certificate: it is very high and has the right to sign. Many financial-related jobs require certified public accountants (many brokers require certified public accountants to be preferred when recruiting interns).

Applicable people: very extensive. If you are doing finance or accounting, you'd better take this certificate.

In all kinds of certificate examinations, certified public accountants can be said to have the lowest cost, but the biggest gain:

Certified public accountants only hang out their certificates, and they also earn tens of thousands of dollars a year;

Many domestic investment banks and brokerage research institutes give priority to certified public accountants and teacher examinations when recruiting people;

Certified public accountant is a necessary condition for major accounting firms to enter the management level.

CPA says it's cheap and good quality. Although my exam fee was low, I spent a lot of time. Therefore, friends who decide to take the CPA exam must consider whether they have the perseverance to devote their spare time to CPA for at least three consecutive years. When reviewing, don't be half-hearted and spend time like many students.

2. Subject configuration of CPA preparation.

There are six courses in the professional stage of certified public accountants, which are required to pass within five years. According to the experience of admitted Daniel, it is best not to delay too long, and try to solve it within two or three years, usually three years (two courses a year) or two years (three courses a year).

Matching of two doors every year:

There are many ways to match, but it is easier to review which two doors are combined with which two doors.

The recommended combination scheme is as follows:

The first year "accounting+financial management"

The second year of "Audit+Strategy"

In the third year, "tax law+economic law"

Among them, accounting and financial management will involve some report items, which have certain relevance, so it is best to review them together. Both audit and strategy involve internal process control, which is also highly related. Needless to say, both laws are legal, and it is easier to remember them together.

The collocation of three doors every year:

If you can pass the professional stage in two years, you won't forget the integration in the third year too much.

Matching methods adopted within two years:

The first year "accounting+financial management+strategy"

In the second year, "audit+tax law+economic law"

Of course, friends who intend to pass the exam two years later can also match themselves according to the difficulty of different subjects. Personal feelings from difficult to easy are as follows: audit >; Accounting > tax law > financial management > strategy > economic law, among which, the difficulty of strategy has shown an upward trend in recent two years, and financial management has shown a downward trend.

3. CPA review skills

If you are tired of reading 500-600 pages of lecture materials at a time, and feel that you can't stand it, or forget it after reading it, you are definitely not alone. For CPA, a long and difficult exam, try to adopt a "three-stage" review method, and the time allocation for each stage is about 7:2: 1.

First stage

It is simple and rude to read textbooks and listen to the courseware of basic classes in online schools. At this stage, we don't seek to write down or understand all the knowledge points completely. It is mainly to be familiar with the test sites and establish a complete knowledge framework. For example, listen to 3-4 classes at the rate of 1.5 times a day, and draw the key points on the online school handout while listening, so it will be more efficient to follow the teacher's ideas. When drawing handouts, you actually bring out the key knowledge points to facilitate the review in the second stage.

In addition, in the first stage, the counseling materials that need to be matched are recommended by Dongao "Yitongyi". Generally, after each chapter, the handouts, examples and real questions in this chapter are well done. This part is very similar to the handout of the basic course, in order to strengthen memory. Don't do the review questions at the back of each chapter. There are many topics. Pay attention to speed in the first stage and leave them to the second stage.

stage Ⅱ

Mainly to review the knowledge points of each chapter again. Generally, I will go through the basic course handouts and do the final review in the chapter "Yi Yi Yi Yi". At this stage, we must dig deep. It is suggested to take notes at this stage and sort out the important knowledge points of each chapter. If there is anything you don't understand, you must master it thoroughly during this time. By the end of the second stage, "Easy Pass One" should have been basically completed.

The third stage

It is the stage of "actual combat+leak detection". What is needed is the "last six sets of questions" of Dongao, about three weeks to one month before the exam. According to the time of the exam, there is a three-day cycle, one day to do the paper and the other two days to review the key knowledge points. We should also pay attention to taking the time to study the real questions in previous years' computer exams and be familiar with the ideas and skills of answering questions.