It is with great pride that I announce I have passed the Level III CFA® exam. I am elated to add that on my journey I have passed all three levels consecutively, with the caveat that my Level III exam sitting was postponed 3 times due to COVID-19 restrictions here in Nova Scotia. I also scored in the top 10% of candidates globally for the Level I CFA® exam.

 

Many people have completed this journey, but it makes me no less proud to say that I have done it. My motivation to enroll in this program, dates back at least to 2008 in my Grade 10 Entrepreneurship class. I then  wrote a paper outlining my aspirations of obtaining the CFA® designation. My father has worked in finance his entire life and expressed to me his thoughts on earning both the CFP® and CFA® credentials (I have not yet earned the CFA® credential), I took our conversation and ran with it.

 

After my Commerce Degree at Mount Allison University, (side note, I must give them a shout out for creating a course that allowed me to prepare for my CFA® journey in my fourth year), I was scheduled to write Level I in June 2015, a month after completing graduation at MTA. It was a very rude awakening, but I failed CFA Level I the first time I attempted it.

 

This has been my motivation ever since. After writing that exam, I went to Ottawa to begin my career in Wealth Management at CIBC Private Wealth.  While there, I printed off my test results from my failed Level 1 attempt, and every time I waivered in my studies, I always looked at it and that reminder was  all the fuel I ever needed.

 

I had a lengthy list of education requirements for my employment contract, so I had to table my CFA® dream. A little background on my educational journey below.

 

2015

 

May - Graduated MTA on Dean’s List

Class Valedictorian

 

June – Wrote Level I CFA® exam & failed

 

July – Passed Canadian Securities Course 1 (administered by CSI Global)

 

July – Passed Canadian Securities Course 2 (administered by CSI Global)

 

August – Passed Conduct and Practices Handbook (administered by CSI Global)

 

December – Passed Investment Advisor Training Program (administered by CSI Global) and Earned IIROC® License

 

 

2016

 

February – Passed LLQP (Life License Qualified Professional) exam (administered by CSI Global)

 

April – Passed Nova Scotia Life Insurance License Exam and earned life Insurance License.

 

July – Passed Wealth Management Essentials 1 (administered by CSI Global)

 

July – Passed Wealth Management Essentials 2 (administered by CSI Global)

 

September – Passed Financial Planning Supplement (administered by CSI Global)

 

 

2017

 

January – Passed DFOL (administered by CSI Global) and Earned Derivatives License

 

June – Passed FPSC Level 1 and earned FPSC® Certificate (administered by FP Canada)

 

September – Passed CSI Capstone Course (administered by CSI Global)

 

 

2018

 

January – Passed CFP® Exam and earned CFP® credential

 

 

Safe to say I was elated after passing the CFP® exam, it was the other credential on my educational goals list. After that, my contract obligations were fulfilled, and I was able to once again pursue the CFA® designation.

 

With the feeling of the failure of the first time as the primary source of my motivation I studied like crazy. I was rewarded for the effort by not only passing Level I CFA ® but scoring in the top 10% of candidates globally.

 

June – Passed Level I CFA® exam and scored in the top 10% of candidates globally

 

After a little break, I began studying for my Level II CFA® exam for the next June sitting (this was when candidates were only able to challenge Level II & Level III exams once a year). I was pumped when I got my passing results just after my wife and I got married and right before we left for our honeymoon.

 

2019

 

June – Passed Level II CFA® exam

 

September – Named as a Commissioner of Oaths for the Province of Nova Scotia

 

Here is the final piece of adversity along this journey. I am not complaining about this part but rather  adding context to it. Many people have been negatively impacted by the pandemic, and tests are very insignificant relative to what many have lost because of this tragedy.

In February 2020, I had just begun to really ramp up my studies for CFA Level III® when reports of this virus originating from China, were starting to cause the stock market to decrease and everyone was becoming unsettled. Not giving it enough stock, I didn’t think about the sweeping implications or length of time we would be impacted.

 

We received notification that the June 2020 sitting for CFA® exams were cancelled. Then we were rescheduled to write in late November 2020. Due to the second wave starting to impact Nova Scotia, the November 2020 CFA® exams were cancelled in Nova Scotia 4 days before we were scheduled to write. That was an incredibly difficult piece of news to get. So much work had gone into preparation, and you couldn’t let the thought of not writing creep into your head or you may not have prepared adequately. A very similar occurrence for our scheduled sitting in May 2021, the exams were cancelled roughly 2 weeks prior to our scheduled time to write.

 

2021 has been an incredible year for me and our family, a lot of challenges but also a lot of very positive things happened.Most notably the arrival of my wife Hailey and I’s first child, our daughter Avery. She has brought so much joy to our lives but also presented a completely new way of life to adapt too. My goal was always to complete all my formal education prior to having children so I would not have to study and take time away from being with them, but as you now know, external circumstances prevented that from happening.

 

As I really dragged my feet before restarting my study process for the fourth time, all I kept reminding myself was how far I had come and how close I was to the final goal. The thought of not having to formally study again was that vision that I clung to as the extra boost I needed. Avery was born in June, so this was the first time I had to structure my studies with the consideration of my family time as being a very important factor. The schedule I ended up sticking to was I would study ever night from 9pm to 12 or 1am allowing me to work, spend some time with my family and then study. I truly don’t know where this extra gear came from, but I am certainly happy I found it, and was able to do enough to pass the Level III CFA® exam.

I must finish this by thanking the people that made this journey possible for me. I love these people more than words will ever describe. All the adversity faced, the amount of time, effort and sacrifice that has gone into obtaining this goal would never have come to be, if not for these people. The first is my wife, Hailey, the number of times she has seen me second guess my preparation, felt underprepared and needed to be reassured, was a literal zombie because my brain was in full informational processing mode,  given me all the time I ever needed to study, celebrated my wins and supported me through my losses. Like everything in my life, I owe a great deal to her and I cannot thank her  enough for everything she gave me. Especially for this final exam, the amount of time she took Avery all on her own and gave me the time necessary to prepare, words will never express my gratitude. To my family who have ALWAYS believed in me, given me all the tools I needed to take on any goals I set my sights on. They have always been there, to support me in whatever capacity they know I needed. Mom, Dad, Dre Dre, I can’t thank you enough for all your support through this incredibly long but rewarding process. I remember talking to you all on the phone after getting that first failing grade and all you did was remind me that I could do it, not to worry about this and that if I really wanted this, I could get it, and I’m so proud that I proved you all right. I love you all so much.

 

2020

 

June – Level III CFA® exam postponed

 

November – Level III CFA® exam postponed

 

2021

 

May – Level III CFA® exam postponed

 

November – Passed Level III CFA® exam