The evenings are getting brighter and the temperature is rising.  For some this means looking forward to summer barbeques and evenings out.  But for CFA candidates it’s a sign that the June exams are approaching. With only a few weeks left, it’s important to refocus your energies, consolidate your knowledge and give yourself that final boost to make the best use of the time that remains. Here are a few tips:

Immediate priorities

• Build a study plan Look at exactly how much time you will have over the next few weeks and plan around this.  Decide what you will be studying and approximately how long you will spend; remember not to spend a disproportionate amount of time on topics that are not heavily weighted.
• Take stock of your progress.  Some of you may have already covered the bulk of the CFA Program curriculum.  If not, it is not too late. Be positive and commit yourself to covering the remainder of the curriculum and clarifying ambiguous areas.  
• Do questions. The more exam style questions you do the better.  Question practice helps in identifying strengths and weaknesses, filling knowledge gaps as you review answers and developing good exam technique in terms of accuracy and speed in answering questions.

The night before the exam

Don’t make it a late night.  Be realistic, you have invested a lot of time and effort over the past few months.  A good night’s sleep will achieve a great deal more than a few hours of panicked cramming.  Check that you have your ID, printed exam docket, pencils (and pens for LIII), calculator, eraser and pencil sharpener. Go to sleep feeling positive and set your alarm!

The exam day

Make sure that you give yourself more than enough time to get to the exam centre.  Get there early so that you can get yourself appropriately situated. Depending on your exam centre, there may be thousands of people milling around.  Find your place of calm. Once in the exam, be confident and calm. Read your questions carefully and answer what is asked. If you know it, do it; if not, move on and come back later.  But do not leave any blank spaces. Guess if you have to. For the CFA LIII exam, ensure that your answers in the morning paper are written in the appropriate sections, are laid out logically and you justify your points.  All the sacrifice and hours of work will pay off if you remain calm, confident and follow your instincts; your brain knows what to do.

After the exam

Forget all about it. Relax, unwind and get that well deserved rest.  As a hardworking CFA candidate, you deserve it!