CP1 in September

[lk1988]

Hey,

It used to be that people always recommended doing CP1 in April (because its a longer course so you want to try and sit it over the "longer" sitting). Is this still the case?

Thanks

 

[RedCoat]

Passing CP1 in September is entirely possible and realistic. Hundreds of people do it every year! But yes, it is a long course and you might prefer to save it for the winter sitting, especially if you have an alternative exam pairing you could do in in September or if you know you'll have a heavy workload over the summer.

 

[Dar_Shan0209]

Hi,

Hey,

It used to be that people always recommended doing CP1 in April (because its a longer course so you want to try and sit it over the "longer" sitting). Is this still the case?

Thanks

The syllabus has not changed substantially from YoY since the 2019 curriculum. You can sit for the September 2021 exams provided you commit yourself to study hard. There are almost 38 chapters and the sheer size of the notes is huge. I started revising preparing for CP1 in April to sit for September. This was feasible because i forsook all my weekends in studying hard. The online classroom helped me in going through the notes and the ASET helped me understand the exam technique required.

Best wishes.

 

[lk1988]

Thanks both.

My only other option is to do SA4 in September hence why I was considering if CP1 is the best route to go!

 

[dazz101]

It's definitely doable in September. I started studying in June, sacrificing all my weekends from July and I felt prepared. But in saying this, I would recommend starting in May as it's not easy to sacrifice all weekends over summer.

The key is to go through the notes as quickly as possible. I focused on core reading only (in bold) which saved a lot of time, and then I spent 2.5 months just doing ASETs, including a few practices under exam conditions.

 

[N_Exam]

Dar_Shan0209 & dazz101

Any tips on how to tackle this written exam- this is my first written exam.

There are also so many past papers, 4 per year. Did you go through all the papers? (Must have taken ages).
If not, what was your technique so that you understood the material and how to answer the questions without doing ALL past papers.

Kind regards

 

[N_Exam]

Hi,

The syllabus has not changed substantially from YoY since the 2019 curriculum. You can sit for the September 2021 exams provided you commit yourself to study hard. There are almost 38 chapters and the sheer size of the notes is huge. I started revising preparing for CP1 in April to sit for September. This was feasible because i forsook all my weekends in studying hard. The online classroom helped me in going through the notes and the ASET helped me understand the exam technique required.

Best wishes.

Any tips on how to tackle this written exam- this is my first written exam.

There are also so many past papers, 4 per year. Did you go through all the papers? (Must have taken ages).
If not, what was your technique so that you understood the material and how to answer the questions without doing ALL past papers.

Kind regards

 

[N_Exam]

It's definitely doable in September. I started studying in June, sacrificing all my weekends from July and I felt prepared. But in saying this, I would recommend starting in May as it's not easy to sacrifice all weekends over summer.

The key is to go through the notes as quickly as possible. I focused on core reading only (in bold) which saved a lot of time, and then I spent 2.5 months just doing ASETs, including a few practices under exam conditions.

Any tips on how to tackle this written exam- this is my first written exam.

There are also so many past papers, 4 per year. Did you go through all the papers? (Must have taken ages).
If not, what was your technique so that you understood the material and how to answer the questions without doing ALL past papers.

Kind regards

 

[Viridian]

I went through ASET by topic first, and then moved to full past papers (I did about 2 years worth). Also did the mock exam and got it marked - found that pretty helpful.

 

[Dar_Shan0209]

Hi @N_Exam,
I did attempt all the questions starting from 2005 to 2020 (when I passed it). IMO past examination questions are your friends and the more questions you do, the better you are prepared for any question that may come. Obviously, the syllabus has changed from YoY and there are questions that are no more applicable. Please see here for the latest relevant questions: April 2021 question practice | Actuarial Education (acted.co.uk)

Perhaps, do have a read at something i mentioned here, it might be useful to you: SAR for Sept 2020 | Actuarial Education (acted.co.uk)

Best of luck in your preps. I assure you it will be all worth it when you see the "P" in your result letter for CP1.

 

[N_Exam]

Hi @N_Exam,
I did attempt all the questions starting from 2005 to 2020 (when I passed it). IMO past examination questions are your friends and the more questions you do, the better you are prepared for any question that may come. Obviously, the syllabus has changed from YoY and there are questions that are no more applicable. Please see here for the latest relevant questions: April 2021 question practice | Actuarial Education (acted.co.uk)

Perhaps, do have a read at something i mentioned here, it might be useful to you: SAR for Sept 2020 | Actuarial Education (acted.co.uk)

Best of luck in your preps. I assure you it will be all worth it when you see the "P" in your result letter for CP1.

Thank you!