Chartered Financial Analyst

Chartered Financial Analyst

Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) is an international professional designation offered by the CFA Institute (formerly known as AIMR) to financial analysts who complete a series of three examinations. In order to become a “CFA Charter-holder” candidates must pass all three six-hour exams, possess a bachelor’s degree and have 48 months of work experience in the investment decision making process. CFA charter-holders are also obligated to adhere to a strict Code of Ethics and Standards governing their professional conduct.

Requirements:

The basic requirements for participation in the CFA program include holding or being in the final year of a university degree (or international equivalent), or having four years of qualified, professional work experience in an investment decision-making process.

The CFA Curriculum

The curriculum for the CFA program is based on a Candidate Body of Knowledge established by the CFA Institute. For exams in 2008 onwards candidates automatically receive the curriculum readings from CFA Institute when they register for the exam. There is no possibility to register for the exam without receiving the curriculum. There is also no possibility to order the curriculum separately. If the student fails an exam and has the possibility to re-sit in the same year, the CFA Institute offers a slight rebate and will not send the curriculum again (the curriculum only changes from one year to the other). However if the student resits in another year as the year of failure, he will receive the curriculum again as it may have been subject to changes. For the test, only two types of calculators are allowed (the Hewlett Packard 12C and the Texas Instruments BA II Plus).

The curriculum includes:

• Ethical and Professional Standards
• Quantitative Methods (such as the time value of money, and statistical inference)
• Economics
• Financial Reporting and Analysis
• Corporate Finance
• Analysis of Investments (stocks, bonds, derivatives, venture capital, real estate, etc.)
• Portfolio Management and Analysis (asset allocation, portfolio risk, performance measurement, etc.)

For more information on exams, schedules, requirement and fees please contact the American Certifications Center