Interview with Anthony Vaccaro (MBA/CFA student)

There’s no possible way you can do it without doing a crazy amount of work. So the biggest advantage is scientific proof of your work ethic.

What do you think makes the program so successful? Because it’s doubled the CFA pass rates since 9 years ago?

Yes. I think it’s the pace at which they go over everything, and do it very, very thoroughly. Generally what happens – I’ve known a few people that have done it on their own – and you kind of climb through everything between a four and six month period. So maybe you’re learning…on the surface but you’re not really learning on a deeper level. Whereas at the Goodman Institute, you’re going over the material at the start of September for an 8 month period or so; you have professional, well informed professors that you can bounce ideas off of – that can actually make sure you understand the concepts. I remember when I was studying on my own: I just wanted to memorize the formula, rather than try to apply it. And that becomes harder to do when you try to do it without understanding the concept behind the formula. So having a professor there actually helps you learn the concepts – it gives you someone to talk to and helps you get your ahead around it. It’s much easier when you actually understand the concept behind what he is doing as opposed to just memorizing what [metrics] are.

What about when you do it independently, there’s no instructor, or professor or no one that can guide you with it?

No. You’re all on your own. You can download videos and stuff like that, so you can watch these ‘gurus’ speak, but you cannot interact with them.

Is it a lot more expensive to take it through the MBA program?

Yes, probably 16 times more expensive. $16,000 I’m paying – I believe it’s up to $18,000 per year now. And that’s a GNFB. Now listen, compared with most other MBA programs, that’s a good deal (I believe Rotman’s is $45,000 a year or something like that)…Now relative to other preparation programs for the CFA which are not MBAs, then it’s expensive. A prep program is usually just a couple thousand bucks.

So would you definitely recommend the program?

If you can afford it, yes. I don’t think it’s absolutely necessary. If you can’t afford it, then no – it’s not worth ruining your financial life over, because you can do it on your own – if you are a very dedicated person. But if you have the money, then yes. You will get a more thorough understanding of the material and when you’re done you will also have an MBA. And another important factor is that not everyone gets the CFA. I know some people in our program that were unable to get the CFA, but after three years they still had the MBA. The only requirement is that you have to pass the first level of the CFA; if you are unable to pass level two or three and you complete the MBA program, you will still get the MBA.

The classes that you take for the CFA – are those literally integrated into the same MBA classes, or are they completely different courses, independent of the MBA classes?

For the most part, I’d say there is probably 80% – 90% integration; there are some courses that are just MBA courses: behavioral finance, for instance. And then there’s a couple of the CFA ones that aren’t specifically covered as well, some of the smaller ones.