Tuesday, October 8, 2019

CFA Investment Foundations Program

I recently completed the Investment Foundations Program developed by CFAI. This involved:

  • Completing approximately 1,400 practice questions
  • Passing 100-question exam
Topics covered by the program include:
  • Ethics and Investment Professionalism
  • Regulation
  • Microeconomics
  • Macroeconomics
  • Economics of International Trade
  • Financial Statements
  • Quantitative Concepts
  • Debt Securities
  • Equity Securities
  • Derivatives
  • Alternative Investments
  • Structure of Investment Industry
  • Investment Vehicles
  • Functioning of Financial Markets
  • Investors and Their Needs
  • Investment Management
  • Risk Management
  • Performance Evaluation
  • Investment Industry Documentation
The program is free and available on the CFA website and probably takes 40-80 hours to complete depending on the student's prior exposure to the material or lack thereof.

Truth be told, the program is not level appropriate for a 9th year corporate attorney with an MBA, but I completed it in order to cooperate with my employer, who will support my effort to pass the CFA Level I exam next year.

I'm under the impression that this program was created for back office financial services staff, but think it would be equally useful (and I would recommend it) for a law student headed into an investment management or fund formation practice without prior industry experience.