How difficult is the Certificate In Impact Investing Exam?

If you have landed on this page, you are likely considering taking this certification and are eager to understand how difficult is the Certificate in Impact Investing Exam (CFA UK IIC Exam).

Launched in 2024 by CFA UK, the CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing (CFA IIC) is crafted to boost your understanding in the expanding realm of impact investing.

Topics covered in this article:
1) The CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing Exam Format
2) Looking at CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing Pass Rates and Pass Mark
3) How difficult is the Certificate in Impact Investing exam?
4) Strategic Timing: Exam Dates, Registration, and Deadlines
5) Version or Edition cycles and their cut-off period
6) Mastering the Material
7) How to Prepare for the CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing?

Alma Mundus is a CFA Institute Prep Provider, and a leading organization offering both CFA ESG and CFA IIC study solutions.

The CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing Exam Format

The CFA IIC exam comprises 65 standard multiple-choice questions, with candidates required to choose one of the three options provided for each question. The exam must be completed within 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Candidates have the flexibility to schedule their exam at any time during the twelve-month registration period. They can opt to take the exam at a test center, remotely from home, or in an office setting.

CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing Type of Questions

The CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing Exam comprises 65 multiple-choice questions.

CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing Time to Complet the Exam

The Exam should be completed in 1 Hours and 30 minutes.

CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing Exam

Testing is conducted through Prometric Online Testing (Pro-Procter) or Prometric Test Centers.

CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing Anytime

Candidates can choose the day and hour of their exam within the 12 months registration period.

The exam is structured around the six chapters of the CFA IIC book, with each chapter being allocated a specific number of questions based on its importance. For instance, Chapter 1 will feature between 4 to 8 questions in the exam, while Chapter 5 will have 16 to 20 questions.

In this article, we will explore the details of the book by examining each chapter in terms of its number of pages, relevance in the exam, difficulty level, and content.

Question Allocation Breakdown per Chapter

Chapter	Question allocation
1. Introduction to impact investing	4 to 8
2. Impact investment philosophy, strategy, and implementation	14 to 18
3. Asset classes and products in private and public markets	8 to 12
4. Impact investing, sourcing, and due diligence	4 to 8
5. Impact measurement, management, monitoring and reporting	16 to 20
6. Investor contribution and stewardship	2 to 6

Source: CFA UK

Looking at CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing Pass Rates and Pass Mark

The pass rate for the CFA IIC Certificate ranges between 65% and 80%.

In order to ensure consistency in exam difficulty, CFA UK follows a standardized procedure. For the CFA IIC exam, the passing threshold varies from 60% to 70%. Thus, exams with more challenging questions will have a lower passing score, whereas those with easier questions will necessitate a higher score for passing.

How difficult is the Certificate in Impact Investing exam? Understanding the Level of Difficulty

The CFA Institute is a global professional organization that offers finance education to investment professionals. They provide a range of certificates with varying levels of difficulty.

The CFA designation is widely acknowledged as prestigious. To attain the CFA designation, candidates must successfully pass three successive examinations known as CFA L1, L2, and L3.

In terms of difficulty, the CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing is categorized at level 4 according to the CFA Institute’s ranking system. When compared to other CFA Institute Certificates, the CFA IIC is comparable to the CFA ESG Investing Certificate (CFA ESG) and the Investment Management Certificate (IMC) but is generally considered to be less challenging than the CFA L1.

Unlike the CFA L1 exam, the CFA IIC exam does not entail calculations to answer the 65 questions and necessitates less extensive reading. However, it is crucial to emphasize that the CFA IIC Certificate upholds the CFA’s rigorous standards and still demands a comprehensive study plan to guarantee success.

Comparison of different certifications based on their level of difficulty

Strategic Timing: Exam Dates, Registration, and Deadlines

Candidates have the flexibility to select their exam date within a 12-month period upon registration. This enables them to effectively manage their study time and accommodate their personal and professional commitments. Additionally, candidates should be mindful of the edition/version cycle.

Version or Edition cycles and their cut-off period

Each edition or version of the CFA IIC Exam signifies an updated iteration of the preceding one. Annually, an updated edition of the CFA IIC book is published, incorporating additional content and addressing any notable corrections or amendments from previous versions.

The CFA IIC Edition 1 commenced on March 1, 2024, and will run until February 28, 2025. The CFA IIC Version 2 was launched on March 1, 2025.

Mastering the Material: Breaking down the syllabus, recommended study time, and strategies for tackling different sections

The recommended study time is 130 hours.

These figures should be viewed as guidelines, as the actual study time required may differ based on an individual’s background and circumstances.

The exam is structured around the CFA ESG book, which consists of nine chapters outlined below. We provide a detailed breakdown of each chapter in terms of the number of pages, relevance to the exam, and difficulty level. This breakdown emphasizes the key areas that candidates should prioritize. Among these chapters, three, seven, and eight stand out as the most crucial and challenging, with chapter seven being deemed the most pertinent for the exam.

CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing Study Materials

Chapter	Number of pages (1)	Question allocation (2)	Potential distribution of questions in the exam (3)	Page per Question Ratio (4)
1. Introduction to Impact Investing	67	4 to 8	8	8
2. Impact Investing Philosophy, Strategy and Implementation	64	14 to 18	14	4
3. Asset Classes and Products in Private and Public Markets	39	8 to 12	12	3
4. Impact Investing, Sourcing and Due Diligence	43	4 to 8	8	5
5. Impact Measurement, Management, Monitoring and Reporting	72	16 to 20	18	4
6. Investor Contribution and Stewardship	31	2 to 6	5	5
	288		65

Notes:
1. Number of content pages per chapter. The CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing Book has 366 pages. We are only including content/study pages. It excludes black pages, reference pages, assessment questions and answers, and the glossary of terms.
2. CFA question allocation guidelines.
3. Potential distribution based on CFA question distribution guidelines.
4. Number of pages divided by the number of questions in the exam.

It is important to note that the CFA IIC book consists of approximately 370 pages. The 288 pages mentioned in our table specifically refer to pages containing relevant content.

Road to Success: How to Prepare for the CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing

The CFA IIC Certificate is categorized with a difficulty level of 4 by the CFA Institute. If you still have questions about the difficulty of the CFA IIC exam, please continue reading.

The challenge primarily lies in consolidating the extensive amount of content rather than the complexity of the material. To effectively manage this challenge within the recommended 130 hours of study time, successful candidates concentrate their efforts on utilizing active learning tools such as practicing questions, reviewing questions, asking questions, and reading the book.

Study process (recommended)

While we acknowledge that each candidate’s study process may differ, we advocate for an active learning approach. Drawing from the features of the CFA IIC Certificate and the feedback from successful candidates, this approach aims to improve study time efficiency and boost candidates’ success rates in the exam.

Certificate in Impact Investing Study Process

CFA UK Certificate in Impact Investing Resources

Alma Mundus is grateful for the opportunity to support CFA IIC Candidates since its inseption, after helping thousands of CFA ESG Candidates from over 140 countries throughout their study journey since Edition 2 (2020/21). This experience has allowed us to constantly improve our Academy with CFA IIC and CFA ESG Materials and study solutions. Check out our CFA UK Impact Investing Study Solutions.

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