Course Curriculum

At AnalystPrep, our CFA Level 3 study materials are designed by CFA charterholders who know firsthand what it takes to succeed. Each practice question, study note, and video lesson is meticulously validated and regularly updated to align with the latest CFA Level 3 curriculum and exam difficulty.

Our curriculum aligns seamlessly with the CFA Institute’s new structure, focusing on the common core topics (65%-70%) while providing in-depth coverage of the private wealth, private markets, and portfolio management pathways (30%-35%). Whether you’re aiming to master foundational concepts or delve into specialized areas, our platform caters to your unique learning needs.

With study notes, video lessons, and a vast question bank, each topic is broken down into easily digestible modules. Every practice question is accompanied by detailed solutions, and our instructors are always available to clarify concepts and provide guidance. Regular updates ensure that our resources reflect the latest curriculum and exam difficulty levels, keeping you ahead of the curve.

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CFA Level III Common Core Topics

The Level III common core represents the foundational expertise required across all investment management roles, creating a robust framework that transcends specialized pathways. This essential knowledge base encompasses:

1. Asset Allocation: The curriculum delves deep into developing capital market expectations and macro forecasting methodologies, while teaching candidates how to navigate and optimize portfolio decisions within real-world constraints. These skills form the cornerstone of strategic investment decision-making.
2. Portfolio Construction: This segment covers comprehensive approaches to building portfolios across equity, fixed income, and alternative investments, examining the nuanced differences between institutional and private wealth mandates. Special attention is given to trading costs and their impact on portfolio implementation.
3. Performance Measurement: Candidates master the intricacies of performance attribution and manager selection processes, while gaining thorough understanding of Global Investment Performance Standards. This ensures the ability to evaluate investment success and maintain standardized reporting practices.
4. Derivatives & Risk Management: The focus here is on practical applications of options, swaps, forwards, and futures strategies, along with currency hedging techniques. This knowledge enables candidates to implement sophisticated risk management and portfolio optimization solutions.
5. Ethics: Professional integrity is emphasized through detailed study of the Code of Ethics, Standards of Professional Conduct, and Asset Manager Code. This foundation ensures candidates understand their fiduciary responsibilities and professional obligations.

CFA Level III Specialized Pathways

Private Wealth Pathway (30-35% of Curriculum)

The Private Wealth pathway equips candidates with sophisticated knowledge for serving High Net Worth individuals (US$5M+), focusing on comprehensive wealth management across the client lifecycle. This specialized curriculum addresses:

1. Private Wealth Management Industry: The curriculum examines diverse business models within wealth management, intricate fee and compensation structures, and the crucial role of coordinating various professional advisors. Special emphasis is placed on navigating the complex regulatory landscape unique to private wealth management.
2. Working with the Wealthy: Candidates learn to understand the psychology of wealth, family dynamics, and governance structures across different wealth tiers. This section develops essential skills for engaging with ultra-high-net-worth clients and facilitating effective family decision-making frameworks.
3. Wealth Planning: This segment focuses on creating goals-based financial plans, implementing asset protection strategies, and developing tax-efficient solutions. Particular attention is given to liquidity management strategies that align with clients’ complex needs.
4. Investment Planning: The focus here is on crafting tailored portfolio allocations, implementing tax-efficient investment strategies, and developing comprehensive retirement solutions. Students master performance measurement techniques specifically adapted for private wealth contexts.
5. Preserving Wealth: This section addresses strategies for protecting human capital through insurance products and other risk mitigation tools. Candidates learn to develop robust plans for managing inflation risk and currency volatility in private wealth contexts.
6. Advising the Wealthy: The curriculum covers advanced topics including cross-border wealth management, strategies for entrepreneurs and business owners, and specialized approaches for managing concentrated wealth positions. Particular attention is given to optimizing outcomes for high-earning professionals and athletes.
7. Transferring Wealth Candidates master strategies for both lifetime wealth transfer through gifting and posthumous transfer through inheritance planning. 

Private Markets Pathway (30-35% of Curriculum)

The Private Markets pathway approaches investing primarily from the General Partner (GP) perspective, providing advanced knowledge of private investment strategies across multiple asset classes. This specialized curriculum addresses:

1. Private Investments and Structures: The curriculum examines fundamental differences between private and public markets, exploring various investment methods and structures across equity, debt, real estate, and infrastructure. Candidates learn to evaluate performance metrics and assess private markets’ role in strategic asset allocation.
2. GP and LP Perspective and Investment Process: This section details the intricate relationships between General Partners and Limited Partners, covering fee structures, performance measurement, and alignment of interests. Special focus is placed on due diligence, value creation, and exit strategies in private investments.
3. Private Equity: Candidates master private equity strategies across company lifecycles, from venture capital through buyouts. The section covers valuation methodologies specific to different investment stages and analyzes risk-return profiles within strategic portfolio contexts.
4. Private Debt: This segment explores debt financing across the investment lifecycle, including leveraged loans, high-yield bonds, and mezzanine financing. Emphasis is placed on credit analysis, valuation techniques, and the strategic role of private debt in investment portfolios.
5. Private Special Situations: The curriculum addresses event-driven opportunities involving financial distress, including distressed debt investments and capital structure arbitrage. Candidates learn specialized due diligence and valuation processes for complex investment situations.
6. Private Real Estate: This section covers private real estate investment strategies, focusing on value-add and opportunistic approaches. Students master due diligence processes and valuation techniques, including specialized knowledge of alternative real estate investments like timberland and farmland.
7. Infrastructure: Candidates learn to evaluate infrastructure investments across project lifecycles, understanding financing structures and investment vehicles. Particular attention is given to risk-return characteristics and the role of infrastructure in portfolio allocation.

Portfolio Management Pathway (30-35% of Curriculum)

The Portfolio Management pathway builds on traditional CFA Program strengths, focusing on advanced public markets investment strategies. This specialized curriculum addresses:

1. Index-based Equity Strategies The curriculum examines sophisticated approaches to passive management, comparing market-cap-weighted and factor-based methodologies. Candidates master various replication techniques, including full replication, stratified sampling, and optimization, while learning to analyze tracking error and risk sources.
2. Active Equity Investing – Strategies: This section covers comprehensive approaches to active management, from fundamental to quantitative methodologies. Candidates learn to develop and implement bottom-up, top-down, factor-based, activist, and arbitrage strategies while understanding various investment style classifications.
3. Active Equity Investing – Portfolio Construction: Students master the practical aspects of portfolio construction, exploring the relationships between Active Share and Active Risk. Special attention is given to risk budgeting, position sizing, liquidity management, and portfolio efficiency optimization within specific mandates.
4. Liability Driven and Index Based Fixed Income Strategies: The curriculum addresses sophisticated fixed income portfolio management, focusing on liability-matching strategies and passive implementation approaches. Candidates learn to select and justify appropriate benchmarks while managing various interest rate scenarios.
5. Fixed-income Active Management: Yield Curve Strategies This segment explores advanced fixed-income techniques for generating excess returns through yield curve positioning. Emphasis is placed on duration management, cross-currency strategies, and interest rate volatility analysis.
6. Fixed-income Active Management – Credit Strategies: Candidates master spread-based portfolio management, including sophisticated approaches to credit analysis, CDS strategies, and structured products. Special focus is placed on tail risk management and international credit market dynamics.
7. Case Study in Portfolio Management – Institutional: Through detailed case analysis of institutional portfolio management, candidates learn to develop and implement strategic asset allocations. The section covers liquidity management, derivative implementation, and ESG integration within an institutional context.
8. Trade Strategy and Execution: The curriculum concludes with advanced trading strategies across multiple asset classes, including algorithmic trading and machine learning applications. Candidates learn to evaluate execution quality, measure costs, and ensure regulatory compliance.