One word. David's questions rock!!!! unfortunately i did not practice them as throughly as I should have. But hope I dont have to practice them again. This exam was as tough as BT standard. i agree last 15 20 questions in my question paper set were sitters(compared to the questions at the beginning of the paper). I guess there are 3-4 sets prepared where they change teh sequence of the questions. I hope no one got a set where the initial questions were the easy ones and the later ones were the lengthy ones. That would have been a disaster. I guess anyone getting 60 answers corect will pass in this paper
FRM May2012 L1 exam feedback
- Thread starter AG
- Start date
I finished it in just before the 3.5 hour mark and could leave the hall exhausted..hi everyone
i think this paper was easier than nov 2011 paper. this time there were to many direct questions but few were very difficult. i got a set of paper wherein first 50 question were difficult one n it took too much of time and thn was in hurry to finish the paper , this exam really test ur skills.
i think this paper was easier than nov 2011 paper. this time there were to many direct questions but few were very difficult. i got a set of paper wherein first 50 question were difficult one n it took too much of time and thn was in hurry to finish the paper , this exam really test ur skills.
Aleksander Hansen
Well-Known Member
I will give GARP some credit for making some of the questions more nuanced, and less 'straightforward' to interpret:
That is, some of the questions, were not just, "here's a question identical to ones you have seen, solved and memorized: please just plug in the numbers to arrive at the answer." I like that because it weeds out the "memorizers" who rely on the "recognize-the-question" approach; it thus gives you credit for understanding the concepts.
However, there were plenty of memorize questions as well and questions and answer choices copied verbatim out of some of the practice exams, e.g., the question about ERM/firm wide risk. If you had done the mocks, then those questions took about 15 seconds and no mental effort.
That is, some of the questions, were not just, "here's a question identical to ones you have seen, solved and memorized: please just plug in the numbers to arrive at the answer." I like that because it weeds out the "memorizers" who rely on the "recognize-the-question" approach; it thus gives you credit for understanding the concepts.
However, there were plenty of memorize questions as well and questions and answer choices copied verbatim out of some of the practice exams, e.g., the question about ERM/firm wide risk. If you had done the mocks, then those questions took about 15 seconds and no mental effort.
Hi,
I agree also that the first 30+ questions was harder than the rest and definitely harder than the last 10-20 question i even was reading some questions twice just to make sure they did not include a hidden trick or something, i remember a question was asking about the kind of test statistics whether it is t statiscs or z statiscs or .... any one remember this question???? was it real ??? what was the answer!!!!!!!!!!!!
I agree also that the first 30+ questions was harder than the rest and definitely harder than the last 10-20 question i even was reading some questions twice just to make sure they did not include a hidden trick or something, i remember a question was asking about the kind of test statistics whether it is t statiscs or z statiscs or .... any one remember this question???? was it real ??? what was the answer!!!!!!!!!!!!
Aleksander Hansen
Well-Known Member
Wasn't it whether it was t, z or F for joint null of factor loadings, and whether to accept or reject? I'm not great at recalling the questions though...
Aleksander Hansen
Well-Known Member
Again, I'm not great at recalling questions but if it's the one I'm thinking about it was A- or greater
David Harper CFA FRM
David Harper CFA FRM
Thank you everybody for the input/feedback on this thread, especially sharing the specific concepts tested (I think it's helpful to future candidates).
I can confirm what Hend wrote above about past exam questions. She is correct. When candidates were implying they somehow had access to prior ACTUAL exam questions, I corresponded with Kristina at GARP as she assured me (8/29/2011), and i was assured this extends to any questions in the FRM Handbook:
With respect to practice question difficulty, while I am not (at all, zero) surprised that GARP's mock exams may perceived as less difficult than the exam (i.e., not predictive), I am again encouraged, and really appreciate the feedback, that our work to write *difficult* questions might be justified. I never know what will be the actual exam difficulty, but my natural bias is for more difficult questions because (i) I think it promotes an understanding that is more robust to variations, including superficial variations and (ii) it's much more fun/fulfilling to engage with the (n+1) concepts than try to be an exam technique forecaster (if it gets to that, kindly shoot me?). So, I really really appreciate the implicit support for the hard work of writing hard questions. Thanks,
I can confirm what Hend wrote above about past exam questions. She is correct. When candidates were implying they somehow had access to prior ACTUAL exam questions, I corresponded with Kristina at GARP as she assured me (8/29/2011), and i was assured this extends to any questions in the FRM Handbook:
... as it is imperative that all training providers "play on a level playing field," it makes sense to me that nobody has access to any actual prior exam questions (as we certainly never had access to them).
With respect to practice question difficulty, while I am not (at all, zero) surprised that GARP's mock exams may perceived as less difficult than the exam (i.e., not predictive), I am again encouraged, and really appreciate the feedback, that our work to write *difficult* questions might be justified. I never know what will be the actual exam difficulty, but my natural bias is for more difficult questions because (i) I think it promotes an understanding that is more robust to variations, including superficial variations and (ii) it's much more fun/fulfilling to engage with the (n+1) concepts than try to be an exam technique forecaster (if it gets to that, kindly shoot me?). So, I really really appreciate the implicit support for the hard work of writing hard questions. Thanks,
Hi David,
While I appreciate your modesty, I will state it more directly: the single most important service you provide to your Bionic Turtle FRM subscribers are the difficult practice questions. There’s no other way to say it: your practice questions are the only study material I’ve encountered that even comes close to replicating the exam difficulty. In fact, I’d even say your questions relatively closely replicate the difficulty of the actual exam, though I found your questions to be somewhat more difficult than the real thing (and that’s a good thing).
To give you an idea of my personal experience regarding my exam preparation (and, to be clear, I don’t recommend doing what I did), I started out using the Schweser material as my primary source for reading material. I exclusively read Schweser for the Foundations and Quantitative topics and practiced with the Schweser and Bionic Turtle questions. Around the time that I finished the Quantitative material, I heard from an FRM member who passed the exam about 5 years ago {when the FRM program consisted of one exam} that the FRM Handbook was “the best source for practice questions” {this may have been true five years ago but my experience after having taken the exam is that this isn't the case anymore}. The combination of hearing very positive things about the FRM Handbook and the fact that it was taking me a long time to get though all of the Bionic Turtle practice questions resulted {unfortunately} in me moving away from using the Bionic Turtle practice questions and moving toward the FRM Handbook as my primary source for both practice questions and reading material. The fact that the practice questions in the Handbook referenced, for example, “2008 FRM Exam Question #27” led me to believe that these questions were like the real thing. That was a very poor assumption, as I only now know after having taken the exam.
I have a generally good perspective on Bionic Turtle’s main competitors’ products, having used the FRM Handbook and Schweser books, and I would say FRM candidates using those materials exclusively are being “short-changed”. In hindsight, the Handbook seems to not cover all of the material and their practice questions are only somewhat helpful. The Schweser books are average {not very good} for the qualitative material, poor for quantitative-type material and… for practice questions? I would say the ones provided by Schweser are abysmal {there's not even a hint of hyperbole in that comment}. They don’t even come close to replicating what one will see on the exam {as a side note, I have no idea how Schweser acquired a reputation as being a "leader" in the financial education field - maybe their CFA material is good but their FRM material isn’t}.
If I had to go back to January and start over again from the beginning, I would read the raw material GARP suggests and exclusively use the Bionic Turtle practice questions. It’s the only way to ensure you’re truly prepared for the exam. It’s not impossible to pass having only used the Handbook and Schweser but I think candidates who do that are taking a risk {having spent months of preparation and not passing the exam}.
It’s a shame every future candidate won’t read this post. They’d save themselves 6 weeks’ worth of anxiety if they practiced with Bionic Turtle’s questions and read the raw material from GARP.
While I appreciate your modesty, I will state it more directly: the single most important service you provide to your Bionic Turtle FRM subscribers are the difficult practice questions. There’s no other way to say it: your practice questions are the only study material I’ve encountered that even comes close to replicating the exam difficulty. In fact, I’d even say your questions relatively closely replicate the difficulty of the actual exam, though I found your questions to be somewhat more difficult than the real thing (and that’s a good thing).
To give you an idea of my personal experience regarding my exam preparation (and, to be clear, I don’t recommend doing what I did), I started out using the Schweser material as my primary source for reading material. I exclusively read Schweser for the Foundations and Quantitative topics and practiced with the Schweser and Bionic Turtle questions. Around the time that I finished the Quantitative material, I heard from an FRM member who passed the exam about 5 years ago {when the FRM program consisted of one exam} that the FRM Handbook was “the best source for practice questions” {this may have been true five years ago but my experience after having taken the exam is that this isn't the case anymore}. The combination of hearing very positive things about the FRM Handbook and the fact that it was taking me a long time to get though all of the Bionic Turtle practice questions resulted {unfortunately} in me moving away from using the Bionic Turtle practice questions and moving toward the FRM Handbook as my primary source for both practice questions and reading material. The fact that the practice questions in the Handbook referenced, for example, “2008 FRM Exam Question #27” led me to believe that these questions were like the real thing. That was a very poor assumption, as I only now know after having taken the exam.
I have a generally good perspective on Bionic Turtle’s main competitors’ products, having used the FRM Handbook and Schweser books, and I would say FRM candidates using those materials exclusively are being “short-changed”. In hindsight, the Handbook seems to not cover all of the material and their practice questions are only somewhat helpful. The Schweser books are average {not very good} for the qualitative material, poor for quantitative-type material and… for practice questions? I would say the ones provided by Schweser are abysmal {there's not even a hint of hyperbole in that comment}. They don’t even come close to replicating what one will see on the exam {as a side note, I have no idea how Schweser acquired a reputation as being a "leader" in the financial education field - maybe their CFA material is good but their FRM material isn’t}.
If I had to go back to January and start over again from the beginning, I would read the raw material GARP suggests and exclusively use the Bionic Turtle practice questions. It’s the only way to ensure you’re truly prepared for the exam. It’s not impossible to pass having only used the Handbook and Schweser but I think candidates who do that are taking a risk {having spent months of preparation and not passing the exam}.
It’s a shame every future candidate won’t read this post. They’d save themselves 6 weeks’ worth of anxiety if they practiced with Bionic Turtle’s questions and read the raw material from GARP.
I got the same answer t statics, regarding the credit rating it was asking for 95% and above I do not recall my answer but I remember the approach I was adding the prob. for each level, maybe it was A- or A+ I am not sure but I remember that it was higher than B + as the total sum of possibilities.for B+ was less than 95% (85% plus 2.x ...)
Hi David, lot of people are asking you for estimate of the cutoff's and I will do the same. But maybe we take a VAR like approach (on a lighter note). What do you think is the minimum score below which the cutoff cannot be? Ditto for what would be the max above which the cutoff canoot be.
varun34by02
Member
Hi All,
This is my 1st post in the forum. I took the exam last saturday.... It was not as simple as the questions from Schweser or for that matter even GARP.... I think its high time that the practice questions should be updated.. GARP is not doing justice by giving us such simple question in practice and shooting us during main exam
.. I was scoring 95% + in all practice exam and now not even sure of a 60% on main exam !!
Can we have David's comment on correct answers of the question posted...
This is my 1st post in the forum. I took the exam last saturday.... It was not as simple as the questions from Schweser or for that matter even GARP.... I think its high time that the practice questions should be updated.. GARP is not doing justice by giving us such simple question in practice and shooting us during main exam
.. I was scoring 95% + in all practice exam and now not even sure of a 60% on main exam !!Can we have David's comment on correct answers of the question posted...
Suzanne Evans
Well-Known Member
Hi Chris,
Thank you for your comments. I'd like to point it out that you can change your username from your email address. I'd recommend that you do so for added privacy protection. See this link here for instructions: http://www.bionicturtle.com/news-an...mend-you-change-your-screen-name-in-the-forum
Thanks,
Suzanne
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