CFA Institute Says Record Number to Take Exams This Weekend

(Bloomberg) -- A record 250,000 people are registered to take this weekend’s Chartered Financial Analyst exams.

Registrants increased 11% from a year ago, with the exam being proctored at 348 test centers, up from 286, the CFA Institute said in a statement Thursday. The exam will be conducted in 95 markets globally on June 15 and 16.

Fewer than one in five candidates passes the three-level test, which is popular among bankers seeking new jobs or higher salaries. Successful candidates study an average of 300 hours for each exam, and usually complete all three within four years, according to the CFA Institute.

This year, there were 10 additions made to the exam’s 9,000-page curriculum, including readings on ethics in financial technology, professionalism in investment management and machine learning.

Last year, almost 50,000 people who registered for the exam didn’t end up taking it. The first level of the test is proctored in December and June, while the the final two parts are administered only in June.

To contact the reporters on this story: Jenny Surane in New York at jsurane4@bloomberg.net;Elizabeth Rembert in New York at erembert@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Michael J. Moore at mmoore55@bloomberg.net, Daniel Taub

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