I’ve Moved!!!

Check out my NEW blog at www.passthecsc.com

Mailbag: Repeat Exam Takers – Tips & Strategies

hi steve
i read your csc experience on facebook recently, and found it helpful…wish i had read it earlier, beacuse i recently did my first attempt on the csc vol 1, and failed…i was wondering if you could give me some advice on how to pass it this time…i found it really hard, and i know u wrote it while ago, but if u remember anything about it that could help me it would be greatly appreciated

cheers

…(read more)

UPDATE: CSC Certificate Arrives

Sorry about the glare, forgot to turn off my flash.  I just threw this guy in a frame I had lying around, I will be going out to get a better frame for my CSC & CPH certificates in the near future.

Advantages of Taking the CSC

Hello all,

I just ran across this video at BNN’s video site, its about the advantages of taking the CSC.  It’s only 2 minutes and its pretty informative.

Check it out.

Hard Link: (http://watch.bnn.ca/friday/clip144412#clip144412)

The Conduct & Practices Handbook

I will be leaving this blog open for future reference as I am now complete the CSC and moving on to the Conduct & Practices Handbook (CPH) course offered by the Canadian Securities Institute (CSI).  I am also documenting this process on a seperate blog that you can check out here:

CONDUCT & PRACTICES HANDBOOK (CPH) BLOG

I’m Officially Done the CSC

I just received my second exam results back, did much better on the second exam then the first one.  I have to say it was a sight of relief when I saw the “Complete” underneath the registration tab on my personal menu.  It’s just another thing complete, and it does feel good to have done.  I contacted CSC to see how long the certificate normally takes to ship out.  The estimated time was between 4 and 6 weeks, so I’m guessing around mid-April.  For those of you who may be ordering frames from CSI, you may be interested to know that they don’t ship with the diploma.  The CSI representative told me that the frames ship separately from the certificate, and the time frame for a frame to delivery is roughly 2 weeks.  They are charging around $70 for a $30 frame, not including shipping.

I am waiting until late June when I register for the Wealth Management Essentials (WME) course to order the updates CSC text.  There is a small story behind this.  I found out that CSC was finalizing a updated textbook to be released late January, early February.  These dates were way to late for me, so I studies off the online textbook instead, and decided to order the hard copy book when I signed up in later courses.  I like having reference materials in hard copy format, and the low cost of a book compared to printing it myself seems worthwhile.  I made sure to get the updated 2009 hard copy CPH materials, which I am currently going through.

Overall, I found the CSC to be an excellent introductory course into finance, that exposed me to a variety of different sections in the financial services industry.  While this was an advantage for those seeking general knowledge of the industries primary component, I also found this approach to be quite arbitrary, vague and narrow in scope.  The first volume of the book had essential components that will be required throughout your studies, and with the exception of chapter 12, were all extremely useful to me.  I did find that separating chapter 12 from 13 and 14 was perplexing, given that they both speak to the same specific component; financial statement analysis.  Also I found the second volumes chapters to be stretched out, as if they were trying to fill the information in to make it worthwhile.  The chapters on segregated funds and mutual funds could have easily been placed into a larger chapter with more streamlining of contents.  The same goes for hedge funds and other managed products.  I found a lot of this information was repetitive, or simply just taking up space.

Overall I did find the second exam easier than the first, but probably not in the way you think.  What did it for me was, by the time I had taken 1 CSC exam and read the first 12 chapters, I was way more acquainted with the CSC writing style and testing style, than I was the first go around.  So although the material was similar in difficulty throughout most of the key chapters, I think my technique improved causing me to believe the second exam was easier.  Overall, I think both exams are challenging and require a good degree of comprehension.

My advice for those enrolled or planning on enrolling in the Canadian Securities Course (CSC) is to focus on understanding the key concepts, and worry less about calculations and memorization of definitions.  The materials in the bonds and financial statement sections were pivotal to success in the second half of the course.  Furthermore, I felt economics for the time required of study, was far to undervalued on the exam and not worth considerable time.  Overall, if you commit to a study routine and exam content comprehension, you will have no trouble passing this exam.  Don’t confuse comprehension with the basic concept of “easy”, that is thrown around far to often in relation to this course.

Be diligent, prepared and focus on the material at hand and you will find that, although the exam is challenging, you can excel if you have prepared properly.  I highly advise against straight memorization or trying to “game” the exam.  This will just cost you time and money in the end.  I hope this blog can be of some use to people taking this exam in the future, as I have tried to pack as much content and information in here as I could in the short time I took this course.  I will now be moving over to the CPH blog (link in the sidebar) for two short weeks, at which point I will then move to a more permanent home on my CFA blog (link in sidebar).

It’s been fun,

– Steve

My Personal Educational Goals

I have set out a 6 year educational time-line for which I want to complete a number of objectives.  Immediately, the skeptic in most people come out when they here 6 years.  Most people can’t stick to a 2 week diet, so that is understandable.  However, if you understood the nature of the finance industry and some of its more prestigious goals, you wouldn’t be all shocked to hear someone mention a 6 or even a 10 year educational goal layout.  Consider the fact that the minimum amount of time to achieve a CFA designation is 2.5 years.  However, the Level 2 and 3 exams are only offered once every year.  Which means to achieve the 2.5 mark, you have to complete Level 1 In December, and Level 2 6 months later.  This is usually a takes most people don’t have to much luck with, though it’s not impossible by any means. Furthermore, the CFA requires at a minimum, 4 years of related work experience.  So just for one program, and three letters you need to complete three extremely hard exams and have 4 years work experience.  Putting it all together you are likely to spend 3 – 4 years completing this program, assuming you don’t fail any of the tests which is highly probable that you will (pass rates are 35% and falling).  This is just one designation, although a very respected one at that.  What if you wanted two? Why would you want two?  Well, without getting into a whole post about the importance of educational diversification, lets just say two is better than one.  We don’t have to argue about not enough experience anymore, since most respected programs require minimum work experience of 2 years and up.

This is the best way I can put it.  If you understand how hard it is to obtain a CFA Charter, with all the requirement, how impressive would if be if a person, while obtaining relevant work experience had both the CFA and another equally difficult designation.  What about a person with three.  Would you say this person was knowledgeable? Able to manage strict time constraints, deadlines and projects while achieving multiple objectives? I would say an individual who is under 30 and has a CFA charter among other credentials and experience is a very talented individual indeed.  My opinion aside, I plan to follow a sequantial path to obtain a broad array of educational designations so that I am able to move between job functions within a company and gain practical experience ina variety of financial functions.

My 6 year plan is a little to detailed to put down here, so I will go over the first two years, and list the remaining designations in bullet form.  Year one involves completing of the introductory courses Canadian Securities Course (CSC) and Client and Practices Handbook (CPH).  This qualifies me to be registered as an Investment Adviser, if I so choose.  Also, the CSC is one of the prerequisite courses for both the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and the Canadian Investment Manager (CIM) designations.  The CPH is both a regulatory requirement, and a prerequisite to the Fellowship of CSI (FCSI).  So in two short courses that are minimum requirements for entry into the financial services arena, I have also satisfied some course requirements for three separate designations.  If you do some in-depth research, you will realize that a lot of these courses are linked together across different certifications.

In June of 2009, I will write my first CFA exam, which I foresee as being extremely difficult.  After the CFA exam I have a short 6 months to complete the Wealth Management Essentials (WME) course offered by CSI as well as the WME – Financial Planning Supplement offered by the CSI.  The combination of these two courses with the CSC qualify me to write the Certified financial Planner final examination in June of 2010.  After June of 2010, I will be writing either the CIAI, or FRM exam in December.  Series 2 and three follow the two consecutive June’s after that.

Other designations I am looking to obtain over time:

• Ch.P
• CIM
• DMS, FCSI
• CAIA
• FRM
• MTI – Taxation Program

Of course, we are looking at 6 – 8 years before I have these, but if you can dedicate yourself to a long term goal much like post grads do for med school, you can achieve a highly impressive combination of education and experience. I am also aware that a plan is only as good as the actions supporting it.  I am also aware anything ambitious or above what the next guy is doing in a highly competitive industry such as this, will be frowned upon and judged.  Which I am fine with, as completing a plan like this is not an easy task. For me, personally, I think those who are willing to work for the opportunities presented to you, will be able to realize benefit above and beyond those who just settled for the norm.  Just my opinion, and it is, like everything else, likely to change and evolve over time.  I hope this post has been helpful in understanding my approach to continuing education in my career, and possibly given you some insights into your own goals and objectives.

Good luck,

Steve

Why Multiple Designations is NOT a Waste of Money/Time

I thought that, before I wrapped up this blog with my final post I would leave you with an overview of where this is all going.  The CSC is just one of many, many courses that I plan on taking over the next couple years as I continue my education in finance.  I’m reluctant to post this information, as many people coin the term “chasing letters” all to often.  The term chasing letters refers to individuals who, instead of gaining experience, gain education. The argument against these individuals is that there enormous breadth of knowledge is useless because they have no ability to apply this knowledge in a  real world situation.  As for my own opinion, I believe that there are multiple sides to this story.  Firstly, there are the individuals who seem to be envious of those with higher credentials and greater job prospects then them, so they feel the need to categorize they people as over-educated and under-qualified individuals.  The second is that, there are those individuals who think amassing an array of letters under there name but not acquiring the practical skills and networks needed for success in the workplace, will give them an added advantage.  Trying to put either in black and white terms seems to be kind of childish and irrelevant to the broader picture.

The point here is that neither extreme is very beneficial to either party.  A degree of balance and hard work does, however, set you apart from a large number of people.  Setting realistic goals and obtaining knowledge AND experience will allow you to be successful in any career.  This is why it bothers me when people believe a PhD or a MBA is just a waste of money.  Again, at 22 or even 24, a MBA in business doesn’t make a lot of sense.  But what about graduate studies for law, philosophy, medicine and so on.  What about for a up and coming executive.  Companies make 5, 10 and 15 year plans and start working slowly on them now.  Individuals who do the same have a better chance of succeeding at those objectives. Think of it this way.  A lot of experience when your older is almost a given, but a lot of education when your older is not.  The same is true if we flip this scenario; A lot of education when your younger is a given, but a lot of experience when your younger is not.

So you tend to be more educated and less experienced when you are younger, and more experienced and less educated when you are older.  This is not to say that you become less knowledgeable as you grow older, but taking all things aside, typically experience grows more then education as time goes on.  Therefore, when you reach career milestone ages like 30, 40 and even 50 your experience is growing at a steady pace while your education is not.  So if you can remove yourself from the scenario and understand that, at some point, those certifications,designations, degrees and diplomas will have value in your later years, you now understand the concept behind aggressive educational pursuits.

What I’m trying to say here is that, investments in education can truly pay off with the right combination of experience.  For me, giving up either one makes little to no sense.  If I am able to achieve needed experience in a variety of fields, make connections with a variety of people and do my time in my early years at work, while also significantly increasing my educational experience and qualifications on the side, I have now positioned myself as an asset to a company, or a set of companies.

Amassing the letters that accompany the enrollment in a recognized financial designation should not be a primary outcome, rather a consequential one.  Taking a course such as the CFA forces you to comprehend the material in relation to Financial Analysis in such a way not possible with general experience.  This also offers you opportunities to practice those new found skills in areas of increasing responsibilities.  I just wanted to type this  post out to illustrate my thoughts on the continuing education goals me and some of my other colleagues have set for ourselves.  I think it is unfair to discount the usefulness of a broadly based educational background coupled with an increasing level of work experience in your related field.

With that being said, I am going to post my study plans next, to give you an idea of what I’m talking about and what you can do after completion of the CSC.

What’s Up Next?

Well I actually completed my biggest mass upload of posts yet.  This blog is now packed full of my opinions on the CSC, which I hope you will find useful,  Keep in mind, these are my opinions and I am not claiming that any of them represent a 100% factual guarantee.  I just wanted to provide an overview of my experiences with the CSC.  Although it panned out differently then I would have thought, I have enjoyed it.  I will be leaving a final post here once I receive my exam marks from the Canadian Securities Institute.  If there are any further questions or requests for posts, feel free to leave a message on this post and i’ll do my best to accommodate it.

For those of you interested in following me through my experiences with the Client & Practices Handbook and the Certified Financial Planner programs, the links to those blogs are in the blogroll.  Good luck to those of you who are currently writing or looking to write the CSC exams.  Feel free to contact me anytime at smzachary@gmail.com.

Thanks,

Steve

Done the CSC? What’s Next for You?

So you polished off the CSC, and now you have many different options.  A lot of people choose to polish off the Client & Practices Handbook course, which is another regulatory requirement to trade stocks and bonds (see IIROC‘s website).  You have to ask yourself in which direction you want to go.  I would recommend signing up for and completing the CPH, as it is smaller and more common sense then the CSC.  It should increase your value in the hands of the employer, and increase your knowledge.

I would also give some though to a long term goal like the CFA, CFP, CAIA….etc.  These designations truly set you apart from the crowd, but be diligent in your approach to these courses, as they are no cake walk.  As for me, well I write my CPh exam in under 12 days.  I start studying tomorrow, so if your interested, head on over to the CPH blog I have set up.  A link to it is in the sidebar.  I hope to provide a similar experience on tat blog as I have here, just more consistently.  Take the time to ask yourself questions of where you want to be in the short and long term, and address these needs now.  Proactive planning can do a lot for your financial future.

– Steve