Imarticus Learning
India’s leading professional education institute, offering certified industry-endorsed training in Financial Services, Investment Banking, Business Analysis, IT, Business Analytics & Wealth Management
The CFA Program course of study includes the Candidate Body of Knowledge (CBOK), the curriculum content, learning outcome statements (LOS), and the topic area weights. Updates to the course of study are informed by our ongoing practice analysis, which includes feedback from practicing investment professionals, security market regulators, university faculty, and policymakers. The course of study is organized into three levels and each level requires passing a six-hour exam. The program curriculum increases in complexity as you move through the three levels: Level I: Focuses on a basic knowledge of the ten topic areas and simple analysis using investment tools as mentioned below: CBOK Topic Areas I. Ethical and Professional Standards A. Professional Standards of Practice B. Ethical Practices II. Quantitative Methods A. Time Value of Money B. Probability C. Probability Distributions and Descriptive Statistics D. Sampling and Estimation E. Hypothesis Testing F. Correlation Analysis and Regression G. Time-Series Analysis H. Simulation Analysis I. Technical Analysis III. Economics A. Market Forces of Supply and Demand B. The Firm and Industry Organization C. Measuring National Income and Growth D. Business Cycles E. The Monetary System F. Inflation G. International Trade and Capital Flows H. Currency Exchange Rates I. Monetary and Fiscal Policy J. Economic Growth and Development K. Effects of Government Regulation L. Impact of Economic Factors on Investment Markets IV. Financial Reporting and Analysis A. Financial Reporting System (with an emphasis on IFRS) B. Analysis of Principal Financial Statements C. Financial Reporting Quality D. Analysis of Inventories and Long-Lived Assets E. Analysis of Taxes F. Analysis of Debt G. Analysis of Off-Balance-Sheet Assets and Liabilities H. Analysis of Pensions, Stock Compensation, and Other Employee Benefits I. Analysis of Inter-Corporate Investments J. Analysis of Business Combinations K. Analysis of Global Operations L. Ratio and Financial Analysis V. Corporate Finance A. Corporate Governance B. Dividend Policy C. Capital Investment Decisions D. Business and Financial Risk E. Capital Structure Decisions F. Working Capital Management G. Mergers and Acquisitions and Corporate Restructuring VI. Equity Investments A. Types of Equity Securities and Their Characteristics B. Equity Markets: Characteristics and Institutions C. Equity Portfolio Benchmarks D. Valuation of Individual Equity Securities E. Fundamental Analysis (Sector, Industry, Company) F. Equity Market Valuation and Return Analysis G. Closely Held Companies and Inactively Traded Securities H. Equity Portfolio Management Strategies VII. Fixed Income A. Types of Fixed-Income Securities and Their Characteristics B. Fixed-Income Markets: Characteristics & Institutions C. Fixed Income Portfolio Benchmarks D. Fixed-Income Valuation (Sector, Industry, Company) and Return Analysis E. Term Structure Determination and Yield Spreads F. Analysis of Interest Rate Risk G. Analysis of Credit Risk H. Valuing Bonds with Embedded Options I. Structured Products J. Fixed-Income Portfolio Management Strategies VIII. Derivatives A. Types of Derivative Instruments and Their Characteristics B. Forward Markets and Valuation of Forward Contracts C. Futures Markets and Valuation of Futures Contracts D. Options Markets and Valuation of Option Contracts E. Swaps Markets and Valuation of Swap Contracts F. Credit Derivatives Markets and Instruments G. Uses of Derivatives in Portfolio Management IX. Alternative Investments A. Types of Alternative Investments and Their Characteristics B. Real Estate Valuation C. Private Equity/Venture Capital Valuation D. Hedge Fund Strategies E. Distressed Securities/Bankruptcies F. Commodities and Managed Futures G. Alternative Investment Management Strategies X. Portfolio Management and Wealth Planning A. The Investment Policy Statement B. Modern Portfolio Management Concepts C. Behavioral Finance D. Management of Individual/Family Investor Portfolios E. Management of Institutional Investor Portfolios F. Investment Manager Selection G. Economic Analysis and Setting Capital Market Expectations H. Tax Efficiency Strategies I. Asset Allocation J. Portfolio Construction and Revision K. Risk Management L. Execution of Portfolio Decisions (Trading) M. Performance Evaluation N. Presentation of Performance Results
We at Imarticus learning offer CFA training programs which guarantees you to pass the CFA level 1 certification at the 1st attempt. We have an extremely comprehensive set of questions and mock tests with an extensive library of over 3,000 sample CFA exam questions. Up to 3 mock tests can be taken online. Upon completion, we also provide answers and detailed feedback. Source: CFAinstitute
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Pursuing a career in a fast paced, in-demand field, such as business analysis, may not seem like a challenge; however, competition for business analyst positions is pretty tough.
Even the most senior business analysts, the ones who qualify for the CBAP based on their years of experience across multiple knowledge areas, would probably qualify for less than the 50% of the business analyst job roles available in the job market today. They simply don’t have all the required skills. If you are making a career transition, the stakes go even higher. Don’t expect to qualify for more than 20% of business analyst job roles. At first this might sound hopeless. But let it sink in. Doesn’t that take the pressure off just a little? If one or two jobs stand out to you as, “I’m qualified to do that!”, then consider it your best working option in the short term. Lets not lose sight of the fact that there are multiple paths leading to business analysis. Your professional experience counts in this career transition and the sooner you can move towards building relevant career experiences, the closer you will be to reaching your business analyst career goal. If you are currently unemployed, watch out for roles that best match your current qualifications. In the short term, these will be easier to crack into. Since getting work experience is probably the biggest factor in successfully transitioning to a BA role, any job you take on gives you more opportunities than you have now. If you are currently working, first consider whether or not you are already in a transitional role and can build on your BA experience and skill set by taking on relevant BA responsibilities. If you are employed but lacking meaningful opportunities to practice BA tasks, then look at roles you are confident you could do, but that are also a bit of a stretch. These stretch roles will further expand your business analyst skills and give you more responsibilities, which you can then showcase to potential employers as relevant BA experience. One of the best ways to differentiate yourself from the competition is to get trained and certified in business analysis. Imarticus Learning offers short term certification courses in Business Analysis, that culminate with an industry endorsed Business Analysis certificate. The program also prepares you to clear the CBAP exam, which is the gold standard for experienced Business Analysts. To learn more, please click here. Dear Reader,
Sound advice. You'd be forgiven to think this set of principles came from some dusty old philosophy manual. You'd be wrong. Believe it or not, this is an excerpt found on the FAQ page of the popular programming language, Python. The Zen of Python is a collection of 20 software principles that influences the design of Python Programming Language. Long time Pythoneer Tim Peters succinctly channels the guiding principles for Python's design into 20 aphorisms, only 19 of which have been written down. The 20th is left to your imagination. The whole story behind Python is rather playful and whimsical. Guido van Rossum, the Dutch founder of the language, gave Python its name because he was reading the published scripts from Monty Python Flying Circus! Van Rossum was looking for a name that was short, unique, and mysterious, so he decided to call the language Python. Oh, and he developed the programming language during the Christmas holidays because he had nothing better to do. Python is based on the English language - focused on simplicity. If C, C++ or Java would take 20 lines to implement something, Python takes around 3 - 4 lines to achieve the same thing. No weird symbols for simple code or variables, no need for semi colons, and code is always nicely spaced. Python enforces clean, structured programming techniques and borrows freely from other languages. It doesn't enforce a single model or approach to solving a problem (so Zen-like!). No wonder Python is snaking it's way into programmers hearts -- It is currently the second most popular programming language globally, after Java, and used by the likes of NYSE and Google. Imarticus Learning offers online python certification. This is 100% Career Assistance program, our team provides a rigorous industry mentoring process that is customised to your needs. Additionally, the team conducts interview preparation sessions, resume building workshops, 1-1 mock interviews while also providing you access to our extensive corporate network and recruitment teams. Source: https://imarticus-learning.blogspot.in/2016/06/the-zen-of-python.html Many of our Imarticus Financial Analyst Program (IFAP) students go on to appear for Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) exams, spurred on by what they have learnt in the IFAP program here at Imarticus. We often get asked for book recommendations from students who want to appear for the CFA exam. When you register for the CFA, you will already receive a lot of recommended readings and study notes to help you prepare. These are the materials you need to read on priority. Having said that, below are a few books we can recommend, should you be so inclined:
Kaplan CFA Basics: The Schweser Study Guide to Getting Started Bruce Kuhlman: As the title suggests, this book is aimed at starters that have not taken the CFA level 1 yet - it is ideal for students and other non-finance professionals who are getting into studying finance and accounting for the first time. This book is very easy to follow, and provides a very good overview of the main concepts of the CFA so that you do not get totally lost before starting your study. This book is rather expensive and if you have previously studied Finance or have experience working in Finance, we suggest you skip this book. Schweser Studynotes for 2011 CFA Level 1 Exam (Volume 1-5 Plus Quick Sheet) Kaplan Schweser: These study notes are the most widely used and most effective to prepare you for the Level 1 exam; they also include notes for Levels 2 and 3. They are superb for reviews after you go through all the CFA study materials. 2010 Stalla CFA Level 1 Study System (Study Guides, Lecture Notes, Passmaster Cd, Multimedia Lecture Disc, Flashcards) Stalla Review for CFA Exams Stalla is a CFA study provider that offers preparation courses for the CFA exam, and publishes quite good study guides to prep you for your CFA exam. The USP of the Stalla books is the software that comes with it. Some people may find reading easier, while others favor the use of more "interactive" ways of studying. If you are in the "other" category, these books are for you. They also have level 2 and level 3 books. Equity Asset Valuation (CFA Institute Investment Series) Jerald E. Pinto, CFA: This is a very important and rather popular book covering the four important features of equity valuation: DDM (dividend discount model), free cash flow models, price multiples, and residual income. It is not only good to help CFA study (level 2 in particular), but is also a reference book for valuation as it is done in the investment management industry. This book also stands out among its peers for having clear, worked-out examples to further help you understand. Quantitative Investment Analysis (CFA Institute Investment Series) Richard A. DeFusco, CFA: This book is worth mentioning because it does a brilliant job explaining and simplifying the statistics portion of the CFA exam. It also delves into the other CFA subjects such as statements analysis, time value of money, etc. but goes much deeper into the statistics area for those who are interested in this area in particular. |
About ImarticusImarticus Learning is a education institute based in Mumbai. We offer certified industry-endorsed training in Financial Services, Investment Banking, Business Analysis, IT, Business Analytics & Wealth Management. Archives
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