CFA Level III Study Plan

• In order to take the CFA Level III exam, you must have a bachelor’s degree or equivalent education and have passed the CFA Level I and II exams.
• The exam format consists of a combination of item set questions and constructed response questions.
• The Level III exam focuses heavily on Portfolio Management and Wealth Planning.
• The most recent pass rates for the CFA Level III exam are around 39%.
• Wiley’s Level III CFA Program Study Guide will help you understand the material, retain what you have learned, and pass the exam as your last major hurdle to becoming a CFA charterholder.

Your study schedule is one of the most important pieces of your strategy to pass the CFA Level III exam. The schedule you’ve employed to pass the first two exams provided the foundation as you worked towards your goal, and it will be no different for this final leg. You may need to make some adjustments to your schedule as you get started, so remain flexible with a focus on your goal.

CFA Level III Exam Prep Routine

The routines and schedule that helped you pass the first two exams will be helpful to you again as you create your CFA Level III exam prep routine. Stay organized and pace yourself and remember that the biggest difference in this exam is the amount of essay writing you’re responsible to complete. This stage is meant to help prepare you for what employers will expect once you’re working as a CFA.

With around 340 hours of study in mind, if you begin your routine within six or more months, you’ll need to allot around 13 hours per week of studying. Of course, the earlier you get started, the less cramming and stress you’ll have to deal with as the exam date nears.

Stay consistent, whether you’re setting aside time every day to study or you’re just doing intensive sessions on weekends. Sticking to the same days and times as you prepare can be helpful, and don’t forget to tend to your mental and physical health throughout. Surround yourself with a group of family and friends that are aware of your plan and are ready to support you each step of the way.

Prepare with Wiley’s popular CFA Study Guides to master the Level III CFA Program Curriculum.

A 2019 survey conducted by the CFA Institute showed that CFA Level III candidates spent an average of 344 hours studying for the Level III exam. You’ll need to set aside anywhere from 6-9 months to prepare.

• With 9 months to prepare, you should aim for just over 9 hours of study per week
• With 6 months to prepare, you should aim for about 14 hours of study per week

Customize those hours to best fit your schedule. Plan an hour or more into each day or map out longer weekend sessions if finding time during the workweek is difficult.

And if you’re choosing to start studying closer to the exam date, it’s wise to plan a series of 3- to 4-hour sessions to help you reach your goal without burning out. No matter what path you choose, Wiley’s CFA Level III Study Guides are a trusted resource worth exploring.

Below is a sample study planner timeline for your CFA Level III exam. Customize based on your own personal strengths and weaknesses.

Month 1: Focus on Portfolio Management and Economics and review both thoroughly.
Month 2: Additional work on Portfolio Management and plan to cover Derivatives as well.
Month 3: Focus your study sessions this month on Fixed Income and do a thorough review.
Month 4: Equity Investments can be your target this month.
Month 5: Focus on Alternative Investments along with some more work on Portfolio Management.
Month 6: Even more Portfolio Management study along with lots of practice questions and mock exams.

Note that there is no Quantitative Methods or Financial Statement Analysis (formerly Financial Reporting & Analysis) topic area on the Level III exam.

4-6 Months Before Taking CFA Level III Exam

You should step into study mode for the Level III exam with confidence. And yet, there are a lot of things that are different on your third and final CFA exam. That doesn’t mean you need to change your consistent habits. But it does mean that you’ll need some new focus heading into this period of the journey. Prepare to focus on Portfolio Management and essay-style questions. With that in mind, when you begin to dig in on practice questions, be sure to create a time limit per question to ensure you’re able to have time to tackle each one. You can achieve this by writing succinct, to-the-point answers.

Be prepared for all types of questions on the Level 3 CFA exam. Study with our popular CFA Test Bank to ensure you’re ready on exam day.

2-3 Months Before Taking CFA Level III Exam

Stick to your study plan. The healthy habits that have carried you this far will continue to serve you well on your journey. Economics, Derivatives, and Fixed Income are demanding a lot of your attention now, with plenty of review on the largest focus of Level III: Portfolio Management. Alternate between more and less difficult topics to stay alert and confident, tapping into Wiley’s Level III CFA Program study material throughout. And don’t neglect plenty of sleep and eating right so you stay fully ready for each session.

1 Month Before Taking CFA Level III Exam

It’s crunch time and you are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Hopefully, you’re mostly focused on review at this stage, with a focus on Ethics and Alternative Investments. Stay diligent with practice exams under timed constraints and make summary notes on the things you’re struggling with during the process. And don’t forget to make sure your typing skills are locked and loaded for the computer-based format, which is a recent addition to the CFA Level III exam.

How to Study for the CFA Level III Exam in 6-9 months

If you’re looking to pace yourself a bit more and have more than six months to study, you have some solid options at your disposal. With as much as nine months of prep, you may be able to cover the material twice as you prepare for the CFA Level III exam. Just be aware that you can start too early and run the risk of burnout. Regardless of your timetable, Wiley’s 2022 study materials are ready to help you every step of the way.

How to Study for the CFA Level III Exam in 3 Months

Many consider the Level III exam to be the most difficult, so only taking three months to prepare is not recommended. That said, many have overcome this disadvantage and done well on the exam, so, if this is your choice, be sure to not push yourself too hard. And even though Wiley’s 2022 study guides are not specifically designed for short-term study, they will still be a valuable resource as you speed through the materials on your way to exam day.

As you map out your order of study for the CFA Level III exam, it’s important to understand how to prioritize topic areas based on how they are weighted, as well as your own personal areas of strength and weakness.

The curriculum for Level III of the CFA exam covers 7 different topics. The topics and weights change regularly, and the CFA Institute recently shared the details of the 2022 curriculum to help you prioritize.

Understand the CFA Exam Level 3 Question Format

The question format for the CFA Level III exam is one of the biggest differences between it and the Level II exam. The questions are open-ended and require constructed, essay-style answers, making it harder to gauge your progress. The CFA Institute describes this format as “varying structures and point values [that] typically have several parts related to a case study that describes an investment challenge.” This means your answers will require a higher degree of specificity.

CFA Level 3 Exam Curriculum 2022

The curriculum for Level 3 of the CFA exam covers 7 topics. Although the topic names and weights change regularly, these are the most recent topics and weights shared by CFA Institute for the 2022 exam:

The topics covered, with their exam weights, are:

• Economics: 5–10%
• Derivatives: 5–10%
• Fixed Income: 15–20%
• Equity Investments: 10–15%
• Alternative Investments: 5–10%
• Portfolio Management and Wealth Planning: 35–40%
• Ethical and Professional Standards: 10–15%

At Level III, the economics material will tend to focus on developing capital market expectations that can then be used for asset selection and portfolio construction and management.

The topics and weights change regularly, but Wiley always has the latest details of the 2022 Program Curriculum and topic weights to help you prioritize.

Prioritizing Topics Areas

The topics and weights listed above should help as you prioritize areas and orders of study for the Level III exam. The main area of focus on the third and final exam is Portfolio Management and Wealth Planning. Don’t forget to take into account your personal strengths and weaknesses as you prioritize and be sure to employ Wiley’s Study Materials to help you earn your CFA charter. Here’s one way to prioritize topic areas as you prepare.

• Fixed Income is not only the second most heavily weighted topic area, but it’s also been updated significantly for the 2022 exam. This makes it an ideal choice as the first topic to tackle.
• Equity carries a 10-15% topic weight with sessions that dive into active equity investment strategies and portfolio construction. It’s also a lighter lift than Fixed Income making it a natural follow-up.
• Take on Economics next, which is focused on capital market expectations and is weighted 5-10% of the syllabus.
• Derivatives can be next in line. You’ll learn how derivatives are utilized in a variety of ways to address needs within a portfolio. This section is challenging for most, so be sure to take the time to fully understand it before moving on.
• Alternative Investments can be your next area of study. This section can be paired with more work in the Portfolio Management arena with a focus on Private Wealth Management.
• There’s plenty more Portfolio Management & Wealth Planning to cover, so dedicate some more time to this heavily weighted topic. You’ll cover six readings with an important chapter on Institutional Investors IPS. Next are readings that present case studies, giving you a chance to apply what you’ve learned in a practical way.
• Ethics & GIPS round out your study topics. There should be plenty of familiar material here, along with the Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS). Guidance on Standards I-VII will be an important element.

No matter how many hours you’ve committed to preparing for the Level III exam, if you aren’t regularly reviewing all of the material, you lessen your chances to succeed.

With over 5,000 exam-style practice questions and over 90 hours of lectures from some of the best professors on earth, Wiley’s Level III CFA Program 2022 curriculum will ensure that you understand, retain, and earn a passing score on exam day. Our materials are proven with students in over 100 countries and include unique features like an adaptive review that customizes your studies based on your aptitude level.

There’s no better time than now to begin preparing for the Level III CFA exam. And there’s no better way to prepare than with Wiley. Our 2020 SIIA CODiE award-winning best-in-class platform is geared towards your learning style and helps you study and retain more in shorter time frames.

We also have a team of world-renowned expert instructors who bring their subjects alive, inspiring you to not just learn but understand. You’ll even be able to identify the areas you need to study the most and gain confidence for exam day with our reliable predictive score range.