CFA pass rates hit five-year low as test-takers complain about accessing results

Those who sat for the June CFA Level I and Level II exams received their results today, and a smaller percentage at each rung passed than in recent years. Roughly 41% of test-takers passed Level I while around 44% of Level II candidates were successful, according to emails seen by eFinancialCareers.  

Both figures are the lowest since 2013, though each mirrors the 10-year average pass rate at each level. Pass rates have edged up a few percentage points in recent years, despite the number of test-takers continuing to break new records. Around 250,000 candidates signed up for the June exams, which include the third and final level that has not yet been fully graded. The CFA Institute typically waits until Level III results are provided to test-takers before officially announcing the specifics for all three exams.

No significant drama was artificially added this time around – candidates did receive their correct results via email right on time – but several reported being greeted with a “server error” message when they tried to login and view the specifics surrounding their percentile and how they fared on each module. The server issue, which didn’t appear to affect the majority of candidates, was apparently cleared up after a few hours. “It’s happening to me too but I received the email saying passed!” reported a Level I test-taker who cared little about the problem. The CFA Institute didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment on the reported pass rates and server issue.

Either way, candidates who had email access didn’t have to wait around and guess like some did a year ago. Last summer, the day before results were meant to be emailed, a handful of candidates were greeted with a premature “congratulations!” message in their CFA Institute account, while most others saw no message whatsoever. While the glitch only affected a select few, news of congratulatory emails soon spread to those who received nothing, causing paranoia and an extra day of consternation for many. As it turned out, those who received the congratulatory message did in fact pass, but that didn’t mean that candidates who saw nothing failed. This time around, people at least knew where they stood.

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