Two College of Business Recent Alums Move on to Level III of CFA Exam

Last year, four Montana State University (MSU) students in finance and economics started pursuing their Char­tered Financial Analyst (CFA) certification. Three of four graduates had passed the first level and the College of Business (CoB) is pleased to announce that two of the three graduates who passed Level I have passed Level II of the CFA exam.

Cairn Clark and Austin Owens, both CoB finance option graduates, were noti­fied of their success at the end of July. They have only one more level to pass before attaining their CFA certification.

According to the CFA Institute’s website, the pass rate for the June Level I exam was 42%, while the pass rate for Level II was 39%.The CoB students passing the exam are testaments to the high qual­ity education they’ve received in the CoB, at MSU, and the hands-on nature of the faculty.

 

Clark said it best when he was preparing for the first of the grueling three-level exam: “While other schools boast name recognition, we had access to something different. We had five finance professors that were willing to develop personal rela­tionships with their students outside of the classroom and simultaneously create an excitement and passion for finance. There is no better motivator than knowing you have a great set of mentors behind you every step of the way, especially when you are devoting a large chunk of your life to studying for exams that many people consider life ruining.’ I’m hoping that the obsession with finance that I picked up on the fourth floor of Reid will take me a lot farther in my career than having an Ivy League stamp on my resume.”

 

The CFA Program, a graduate-level self-study program, combines a broad-based curriculum of investment principles with professional conduct requirements. It is designed to prepare CFA students for a wide range of investment specialties that apply in every market all over the world. Investment industry employers around the world recognize the CFA designation as the gold standard for professional excellence. Completing the CFA Program places our graduates in elite company, confirming their mastery of the program’s rigorous curriculum and their commitment to the formidable challenge of passing all three examination levels.