Hello! From what I understand, can you only take the IFC through CSI now? I tried to find the IFIC course on the IFSE website to no avail. How do you prepare for IFC in 2 weeks?
Hey everyone, just looking for some advice from people who have their CIM and work as Associate Advisors, APMs, PMs, or Investment Advisors.
Is the current path to the CIM:
CIRE → RSE → AIS → Certificate in Advanced Investment Advice → PMT → CIM?
Also, I’m curious about salary transparency. I’ve heard that the biggest money in wealth management comes from eventually owning your own book, either by building one or taking over from someone retiring.
But are there people who have stayed long-term as an Associate Portfolio Manager or Associate Advisor and earned $250k–$300k+, or even closer to $500k, without owning their own book? I'm currently 27M and i'm really hoping to get to the 250-300k mark by 33 or 34 and wanted to ask if that is realistic?
My goal is to become an APM and eventually hopefully take over a senior advisor/PM’s book, but I’m wondering what the realistic earning ceiling is if you stay in the APM role long term.
Would love to hear real experiences and rough compensation ranges!
Any suggestions or key things I should keep in mind? And is the remote proctoring straight forward? I’m concerned abt connection problems and stuff like that. Am I on camera? How does it all work?
Any comments appreciated.
Cheers
I just failed my csc vol 2 exam for the second time. I don't know where I went wrong. I am going to take it a third time, but how do I ensure that I pass, is there anything else I can do besides re reading the textbook and taking practice exams.
Hi everyone,
I'm hoping to get some advice or hear from anyone who might have been in a similar situation regarding the IFIC exam through CSI remote proctoring.
On August 6th, I logged in to write my exam. The proctor completed the initial environment checks, but disconnected right before launching the test. A second proctor joined, requested a full re-scan, and also disconnected. This loop repeated 8 times over an hour before the system stopped reconnecting.
I submitted a support ticket through the portal to explain what happened. After an initial response asking for details, I replied back, but I haven't heard anything in 11 days despite a couple of polite follow-ups. When I check the portal to reschedule, it prompts for a $300 CAD "No Show" fee.
Since phone support is no longer available, I’m trying to figure out the best way to move this forward, especially as I'm nearing the end of my course window.
If you've experienced a similar proctoring issue with CSI, how did you get it escalated or resolved? Are there specific contact channels, escalation paths, or steps that worked for you to get the fee waived and the exam rescheduled?
Thanks in advance for any insights or guidance!
I just took my IFIC and I finished with a 85% while studying for 2.5 weeks. Someone else posted a guide on how to pass, but I will also do the same.
So while your going through the flashcards and quiz, put notes on things you come across here that you may have not understood as much the first time through the study guide, or something you want to highlight even more. Do this chapter quiz ONCE for now, whatever you get, you get. Just study your notes for now and the concepts on your notes.
Continue doing this for each chapter, again only doing the chapter quiz ONCE for now. i say this because if you do it again, and again, and again immediately, you will start to just remember the answers themselves, and not the concepts. So again, continue this process for every chapter till the last chapter (chapter 18). Rinse and repeat, start with the study guide and making notes on that while going through it, then flashcards, then the quiz for the chapter. Then study your notes, and move on to next chapter.
Once you have gotten to the last chapter and you did the same process for it. Now is the time to go back to where you started. Start with the flashcards of chapter 7 again, see how you do, and then move on to the chapter 7 quiz. Assuming you continued to review your notes that you have been taking, you should score better than your first time. While now understanding the concepts! Do this for each chapter, again while writing any notes in your document that you feel fit to add.
Lastly, do the practice exam on seewhy once. If you score well on that first try (80%+), perfect! Now go on to CSIs section quizzes, and then do CSIs practice exam. Again, while your doing this, make sure your rereading your notes that you have been taking during your whole process of studying.
This is truly ALL you need.
Few points to add
\- Yes, seewhy helps. Are the questions on the IFIC the same as seewhy? NO! Why would they be? Does answering those see why practice questions actually help? Yes, IF you understand the CONCEPTS of each question you answer. On seewhys practice quiz, they had notes for each question after you answer it. Read the notes after each question, even if you got it right. Again, this will help you understand the CONCEPT of the question or any concepts relating to the question.
\- I studied for 2.5 weeks, but killed myself during it. I work full time and would come home from a 9-5 and study till 10. You do not need to do this, I was on a time crunch. I would say aim to finish this and book your exam from 1-1.5 months when you start. This will not have you burn out, but also be at a reasonable pace that is faster than slower.
\- I’ve seen a lot of people on here say seewhy does not work. I assume they were just practicing the questions only and not putting any reasoning to them. I’ve also seen a lot of people on here say to use these practice questions by some guy called “nav” (I wanna say these are bots) I would actually not recommend finding any other questions to test yourself on apart from seewhy and the CSI website. A lot of other practice questions I found had wrong out dated answers/concepts that made no sense.
\- The exam itself is definitely tricky. I would say most of my questions came from chapter 2,6,9,17 and 18. Few math questions (maybe 5). I was worried about the structure of the exam, I heard that every question is SUPER LONG AND ALL THE OPTIONS ARE SO CLOSE TO THE RIGHT ONE. This is not true, I would say I had maybe 8 questions that required me to read 3 sentences for the question. Then the rest was normal
All in all, not a bad exam. If you need any help, I can send you my exact study guide notes I made if you Dm me. Take care and best of luck!
Hi everyone,
I’m writing my IFIC exam on August 18 and I’m starting to get really nervous about my preparation. I’d really appreciate advice from anyone who has written the exam recently.
I followed the current exam weighting published by CSI/IFIC and prioritized my studying based on that. I’ve completed all the SeeWhy Learning quizzes as well.
I skipped studying Chapters 3, 5, and 6 in depth:
Chapter 3 – Overview of Economics
Chapter 5 – Behavioural Finance
Chapter 6 – Tax and Retirement Planning
I did skim through the textbook sections, but I didn’t spend much time studying them because when I originally looked at the material, I was already getting around 60–70% on those areas and felt my time would be better spent on the more heavily weighted material.
Now that my exam is getting close, I’m second-guessing that decision.
My main concern is: Should I go back and properly study Chapters 3, 5, and 6, or should I focus on reviewing the higher-weighted material and doing practice questions?
How important were Chapters 3, 5, and 6 on your exam?
Did the exam actually follow the CSI weighting fairly closely?
Hi everyone,
I’m currently preparing for the Canadian Securities Course (CSC) and could really use some guidance from those who’ve been through it.
I come from a business admin background, but I’m getting back into studies after a long gap 9-10 years out of college, and honestly, the CSC material feels overwhelming. Even the basic preparation seems massive, and I’m struggling to figure out how to approach it efficiently.
I only got about 3 months to complete both exams ( already extended it once)
I purchased SeeWhy exam 1 to make my life easier but it still seems so hard to lock in and understand the material.
Also, im a better learning with writing notes, should i write some of the key terms etc for each chapter from Seewhy?
Any help or tips is appreciated
Thanks
I’ve failed the IFIC exam twice, with my second attempt being 56% (just 4 percentage points short of the 60% passing mark).
This time I really want to make it my final attempt and give it everything I have. I’ve mainly been studying through SeeWhy Learning, and I’ve taken so many notes that I’m honestly starting to feel overwhelmed. I’ve also spent quite a bit of money on preparation already, but I’m not convinced that relying on SeeWhy alone is enough.
For those who have successfully passed the IFIC exam, what study methods actually worked for you?
I’m especially looking for free resources such as:
- Practice/mock exams
- Chapter-by-chapter MCQs
- Study guides or summaries
- Flashcards
- Other websites, videos, or materials
If you have any resources or advice that helped you get comfortably above 60%, I’d really appreciate it. I’m determined to pass this time and would genuinely appreciate any help from people who have been through it. 🙏
If i have both volume 1 and volume 2 books do i still need to pay 1300$ for enrolment?
Having mixed results from ppl at bank stating IFC is not valid anymore, what is the real scenario?
Hello everyone, I’m im about to give my csc volume 2 exam in coming i want to make sure that i prepared well for it. I gave csc check and score around 75 in both am I i ready for the exam?
Is the exam going to be to be similar to csc check or different ?
It would be really helpful for me thank you
Hi there,
Just that. Is SeeWhy, Michael Hlinka’s notes and CSC Check enough to pass, or are there certain topics I should definitely read from the textbook?
Many thanks
Hi everyone,
I’m looking for some advice from those who have successfully broken into private wealth management. I have over 5 years of experience in the financial services industry, primarily in retail banking and financial analysis, but I haven’t been able to land my first role in wealth management. My long-term goal is to become an Associate Portfolio Manager, so I’m trying to get my foot in the door in a client services, investment assistant, or administrative associate position.
Over the past year, I’ve connected with 50+ individuals across the industry through networking, coffee chats, referrals, and informational interviews. Everyone has been incredibly helpful, but despite all the networking, I’m still struggling to secure that first opportunity.
I’m currently studying for the CIRE to strengthen my qualifications and show my commitment to the industry.
For those of you who successfully transitioned into private wealth:
What ultimately helped you land your first role?
Is there anything I should be doing differently?
Are there firms or roles that are more open to hiring candidates without direct wealth management experience?
I’d really appreciate any advice or insights. I’m committed to building a long-term career in wealth management and am willing to start wherever I can to gain the right experience.
Thanks in advance!
HELP!!!! I'm writing csc 2 in about 3days, i have studied upto chapter 19 so far. I am so nervous and scared rn because I had to rush and book it within 2weeks since there is a sudden opening for an advisor position at work( big 5 ) which requires me to give my part 2 ASAP.
Any tips from someone who has given the test and/ or had to give the test in short period of time. ( i usually like to take my time to do prep so I can be more confident) i feel so lost.
Good morning Everyone,
I am starting the process of preparing my CV and resume for the canadian financial services market.
I am wondering which are the best qualifications to begin studying for and obtaining so that I can be as attractive as possible to employers in Toronto.
I hear people say - CSC is not worth studying for etc. I need help and advice on which qualifications would make employers notice me etc.
I have experience in Financial planning in the UK, however, the system is completely different and i'd need to start over again.
Can anyone recommend qualidications for
Becoming an Investment Manager (Entry level)
Wealth Management back office or middle office roles
Financial planning or operational roles
Any help is appreciated