how did everyone find todays exam ? I found it extremely difficult. None of the standard numerical, derivation, or bookworky questions - how frustrating !
Today's Exam I thought it was really tough too. Non of the questions seemed standard. The graph was non-standard, the binomial tree was non-standard, the black scholes model was non-standard. I didnt even answer the last part of the interest rate question where it asked to complete the table as it was asking to produce numbers that seemed to be already there, I was very confused. Overall, I think I will be lucky to get 50% !!!! I could do all the past papers no probs so this was a shock!! xxx
some questions What do you think will be the passing mark for this exam. Does any one remember the answer for the swap rate was it 0.9%? What were the reasons to go for nth-to-default rather then CDO tranche. Were the Radon Nikodym derivative the Q probs / P probs or vice versa. what was the hedge in investment gaurentee question
What a strange exam.... I have a feeling that the examiner was showing off at how innovative he/she was....
The worst ST6 ever!! This was my third time sitting, had an FB and a FA previously. I thought I knew the course inside out this time. I looked trough all the past papers, did all the Q&A, all the assignments, read Hull and Baxter like three times each!! But guess what, the examiner found some way of putting an exam that just stumped me. It was probably doable for someone who works in the industry, but for the rest of us....well I can only speak for myself, but I thought it was a nightmare of an exam . Looks like I'll be redoing it in Sept!!
I've heard something like the same examiner writes the paper for the April and Sept sitting... If so I might give the next sitting a miss!
ST6 April 2009 I think it was mainly just the fact that none of it resembled the existing papers which we have probably all become so comfortable at doing. The exam was very practical so the questions were very wordy...and topical, for example valuing an equity release product using a put option. If you had not worked with equity release before then this would require quite alot of thought as it is not explicitly in the notes or in any past paper. Fair enough we should be able to adapt our knowledge but under exam conditions it is difficult to have o work out what you are working with before you can even pin point it to a specific part of the course and start any calculations. Saying that, that question was one of the more generous of questions. Many of the questions were like reading a story book before you even got down to the actual question i.e. a whole page of descrition about index-linked guarantees or equity release! It was very hard to do in the time. The more technical bits were mainly concentrated on discrete processes and the 5 step process which is not discussed as much as the continuous case in general in the notes, the tutorials, the past papers. So when it came up, it throws you off! There was no nice question on using Ito integral and showing drifts etc. That is normally a given in the past papers. Just generally non-standard and hard!!!!!!
Time to get ASET?? I had the misfortune of trying out this paper yestreday under exam conditions and can say it was EXTREMELY DIFFICULT FOR ME, nearly every question was application, like every question. Getting scared ahead of APRIL, anyway will post my questions in the subject discussion forum and will hopefully get some help. P.s This subject though very interesting can be very hard as well!
