CP3 exam - revision

I will be taking CP3 in Sept 2018 and would like some guidance on following aspects:

1. I am going through core material pack and briefly looked at past exam papers. Is there any other study material or preparation (ie additional reading) I should do to prepare well for this exam? Please note that I am doing this exam prior to taking CA1.
   
   
2. I do plan to submit the X assignments and Mock exam.
   
   
3. How useful are the tutorials? Is it better to attend face to face prep days or online versions?
   
   
4. Any tips on how best to prepare once you receive the advanced study material?
   Thanks

 

Thank you Helen.
How much time is required to go through advanced study material? Reason for my query as if I have to retake CA2 (as they are on consecutive days), could that cause any issue?

 

Thank you Helen.

Also, how useful are the old exam papers (prior to presentation version) for revision when CA3/CP3 was three hours written exam? My concern is that there may not be enough past exam papers with CP3 with the recent changes? Welcome your guidance. Thanks

 

From my personal experience preparation beyond a certain point does you no favours and may damage your chances. Get comfortable with some very basic things like knowing the template layout for formal letter etc. or ensuring you provide within the word count requirement or you're giving them an easy excuse to deduct marks.

Preparation beyond that cannot be of any value when the exam is such a lottery so I would caution students to be careful with how they spend their money. It's not just me stating it's a lottery look at the student consultative forum minutes of meetings since 2014. My advice would be as follows - treat this thing as a lottery. Sit it at the first possible opportunity and expect many resits. If it ends up being your final exam then it will probably delay your qualification. Also I advise that if you fail this exam to submit a subject access request to the IFoA as per your rights according to section 7 of the Data Protection Act to obtain your mark breakdown. Almost certainly there's nothing wrong with your communication skills already. The flaws are with the assessment itself that they stubbornly insist is required for qualifying as an actuary- unless you seek Fellowship with the benefit of a MRA of course as then you don't need to complete this "key part of the competence standard".

I had received from acted & ifoa over the years so much contradictory and confusing advice on why I failed CA3, what I should do, what was jargon and what wasn't, whether my voice and movements were ok or not. I'm still waiting over a year for a response from IFoA on what the standard for voice and movements were using that they were so willing to deduct marks for me - doesn't that say it all? As such I decided for CP3 to just completely ignore everything I had been told and just sit the thing. I sat CP3 with no preparation at all and passed it.

I must wonder whether the decision to pass the presentation aspect of CA3 to employers might have something to do with the questionable compliance of voice/movement criterias to stop people qualifying as actuaries with regards to say the disability discrimination aspects of the Equality Act?

 

Of course sitting the exam a few times previously and getting comfortable with some basic things accounts to some preparation. But each to their own.

 

How many of the historically 2 out of 3 people who sat and failed this exam do you consider had not prepared for it?

 

It seems that the pass rate is high for cp3 which is good news....