86,000 People Worldwide Sit for CFA, China Inland Candidates Grow 145%

The last weekend turned out a strained one for the 86,421 white-collar financial analysts scattering in all over 74 countries, for they had to sit for the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) exam. It is one of the world most extensive professional programs, which was administered simultaneously at 210 examination sites worldwide at 9am, local time of Virginia, the United States.

In order to get the long-dreamed-of certificate, many Asian candidates had to enter into exam rooms at mid night. Although there were only 389 candidates from China's inland, ranking the 10th in Asian countries and regions, its growth rate reached 145 percent as compared with that of last year.

CFA is an annual event of a global acceptance set up by Association for Investment Management and Research (AIMR) in the US. Its first exam was held in 1963, in which only 278 male candidates and 6 female participated. Now it has turned out a world program with the fastest growing candidate number.

It's no easy job to obtain a CFA certificate. Candidates are required to pass three level exams of total 6 hours within three years, including assets evaluation, economics, portfolio management and professional integrity. Each subject usually demands 250 hours study and questions are put in the form of case study, essay, multiple-choice and item-set.

By PD Online staff member Li Heng

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