The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Program is a professional credential offered by the CFA Institute (formerly AIMR) to investment and financial professionals. A candidate who successfully completes the program and meets other professional requirements is awarded a "CFA charter" and becomes a "CFA charterholder".
The CFA designation
The CFA charter is a qualification for finance and investment professionals, particularly in the fields of investment management and financial analysis of stocks, bonds and their derivative assets. The program focuses on portfolio management and financial analysis, and provides a generalist knowledge of other areas of finance. Additionally, the CFA charter has experienced increasing relevance and demand within corporate finance.
The CFA designation was first awarded in 1963. As of March 2012, CFA Institute has about 107,000 members in 138 countries around the world, including about 98,000 CFA charterholders.
The CFA designation was first awarded in 1963. As of March 2012, CFA Institute has about 107,000 members in 138 countries around the world, including about 98,000 CFA charterholders.
Requirements
To become a charterholder a candidate must satisfy the following requirements.
- Have four years (48 months) of qualified work experience (or a combination of education and work experience acceptable by the CFA Institute). However individual level exams may be written prior to satisfying this requirement
- Complete the CFA Program (mastery of the current CFA curriculum and passing three six-hour examinations)
- Become a member of the CFA Institute and apply for membership to a local CFA member society
- Adhere to the CFA Institute Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct
Independent of any other requirements for becoming a charterholder, the CFA Program takes an average of four years for candidates to complete.
History
The predecessor of CFA Institute, the Financial Analysts Federation (FAF), was established in 1947 as a service organization for investment professionals in its societies and chapters. The earliest CFA charter holders were "grandfathered" in through work experience only. Then, the series of three exams was established along with requirements to being a practitioner for several years to qualify to take the exams. In 1990, in hopes of boosting the credential's public profile, CFA Institute (formerly the Association for Investment Management and Research or AIMR) was created from the merger of the FAF and the Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts (ICFA). The CFA program began in the United States but has become increasingly international with many people becoming charter-holders across Europe, Asia and Australia. By 2003 fewer than half the candidates in the CFA program were based in the US and Canada, with most of the other candidates based in Asia or Europe. India and China have shown some of the highest growth from 2005 to 2006 with increases of 25% and 53% respectively in the total number of charterholders.
Process
The basic requirements for participation in the CFA Program include holding or being in the final year of a university degree (or equivalent as assessed by CFA Institute), or having four years of qualified, professional work experience in an investment decision-making process. To obtain the charter, however, a candidate must have completed a university degree (or equivalent) and four years of qualified, professional work experience, in addition to passing the three exams that test the academic portion of the CFA program, as discussed below.
Candidates take one exam per year over three years (assuming a pass on the first attempt). Fees as of December 2009 for each exam range from $710 to $955, depending on the date on which the candidate registers to take the exam, plus an additional $400 to $480 for program enrollment for new members. Exams are challenging, with 38% passing the Level I, 42% passing Level II, and 52% passing Level III exam in June 2012. It should be noted that level 2 and 3 pass rates apply to candidates that must have already passed the prior level.
All three exams are administered on paper on a single day; the Level I exam is administered twice a year (usually the first weekend of June and December). The Level II and III exams are administered once a year, usually the first weekend of June. Each exam consists of two three-hour sessions. Level I has 240 independent, multiple-choice questions - all information required to answer the question is contained in the question. Level II has 120 multiple-choice questions, organized as 20 six-question item sets, each set having its own vignette of facts. To answer each question, the candidate must refer to the vignette as there is insufficient information in the question stem. Level III consists of a session of constructive response, essay-type questions, and a session of 10 six-question item sets as in the Level II exam. On the multiple-choice/item set sections, there is no penalty for wrong answers. For the test, only two models of calculator are allowed (the Hewlett Packard 12C including the HP 12C Platinum, and the Texas Instruments BA II Plus including the BA II Plus Professional).
Candidates who have taken the exam receive a score report that is intended to be fairly unspecific: there is no overall score for the test, only a Pass/Fail result, and a range within which his or her performance for each topic area falls: below 50%, between 50% and 70%, and above 70%. Additionally, failing candidates are informed of their decile rank within the body of failing candidates. The passing grade for the exams had been defined as 70% of the top percentage of exam papers until 1989; since then, the grading method is not explicitly published and the minimum passing score is set by the Board of Governors after each exam. The Board of Governors reviews the results of the standard setting process and input from psychometricians.
Standard setting is a process that defines the passing score of the exam. The CFA exam utilizes the modified Angoff method which is a commonly used approach to setting standards for certification and licensure examinations. Subject matter experts review the exam and recommend a minimum passing score for the "just-qualified candidate". The minimum passing scores are presented to the Board of Governors in a report. The Board of Governors is not bound by this recommendation, but does recognize it as very important information.
Candidates take one exam per year over three years (assuming a pass on the first attempt). Fees as of December 2009 for each exam range from $710 to $955, depending on the date on which the candidate registers to take the exam, plus an additional $400 to $480 for program enrollment for new members. Exams are challenging, with 38% passing the Level I, 42% passing Level II, and 52% passing Level III exam in June 2012. It should be noted that level 2 and 3 pass rates apply to candidates that must have already passed the prior level.
All three exams are administered on paper on a single day; the Level I exam is administered twice a year (usually the first weekend of June and December). The Level II and III exams are administered once a year, usually the first weekend of June. Each exam consists of two three-hour sessions. Level I has 240 independent, multiple-choice questions - all information required to answer the question is contained in the question. Level II has 120 multiple-choice questions, organized as 20 six-question item sets, each set having its own vignette of facts. To answer each question, the candidate must refer to the vignette as there is insufficient information in the question stem. Level III consists of a session of constructive response, essay-type questions, and a session of 10 six-question item sets as in the Level II exam. On the multiple-choice/item set sections, there is no penalty for wrong answers. For the test, only two models of calculator are allowed (the Hewlett Packard 12C including the HP 12C Platinum, and the Texas Instruments BA II Plus including the BA II Plus Professional).
Candidates who have taken the exam receive a score report that is intended to be fairly unspecific: there is no overall score for the test, only a Pass/Fail result, and a range within which his or her performance for each topic area falls: below 50%, between 50% and 70%, and above 70%. Additionally, failing candidates are informed of their decile rank within the body of failing candidates. The passing grade for the exams had been defined as 70% of the top percentage of exam papers until 1989; since then, the grading method is not explicitly published and the minimum passing score is set by the Board of Governors after each exam. The Board of Governors reviews the results of the standard setting process and input from psychometricians.
Standard setting is a process that defines the passing score of the exam. The CFA exam utilizes the modified Angoff method which is a commonly used approach to setting standards for certification and licensure examinations. Subject matter experts review the exam and recommend a minimum passing score for the "just-qualified candidate". The minimum passing scores are presented to the Board of Governors in a report. The Board of Governors is not bound by this recommendation, but does recognize it as very important information.