Good reading list for exam FM?

[admin]

I compiled a reading list for exam FM, just looking for any comments/suggestions: Mathematics of Finance Mathematics of investment and credit? ACTEX manual Curious whether it's be worth it to get the Mathematics of investment and credit, not sure if it's a good textbook although I know Mathematics of Finance is, even though it's not on the suggested list

[admin]

Dave , do you have the flash cards for the exam 2 from ACTEX

[wat]

I compiled a reading list for exam FM, just looking for any comments/suggestions: Mathematics of Finance Mathematics of investment and credit? ACTEX manual Curious whether it's be worth it to get the Mathematics of investment and credit, not sure if it's a good textbook although I know Mathematics of Finance is, even though it's not on the suggested list

Kellison (Theory of Interest) is a tough "read" - it's not a book that hand-feeds you the material. Fortunately, that's where study manuals come in. I've seen the ACTEX for Exam FM - it's not bad. Especially because it has about 20 practice exams at the end of the manual.

I'd get a manual as soon as possible and start working through it diligently. I suppose you could get the texts and try giving it a shot from there, but the best chance you might have is getting a manual to help out and provide practice problems.

[krzysio]

Exam FM manual

I have written a manual for exam FM, which I would like to suggest to you, it can be obtained from New England Actuarial Seminars:

http://www.neas-seminars.com

and anyone who registers for my intensive review for exam FM:

http://www.math.ilstu.edu/actuary/prepcourses.html

will get a complimentary copy of it. It contains realistic practice exams, and one more new practice exam will be given in the seminar.

Yours,
Krzys'

P.S. Effective 2006, Illinois State University no longer provides a complimentary manual with the seminar, sorry ...

[yogita]

Kellison (Theory of Interest) is a tough "read" - it's not a book that hand-feeds you the material. Fortunately, that's where study manuals come in. I've seen the ACTEX for Exam FM - it's not bad. Especially because it has about 20 practice exams at the end of the manual.

I'd get a manual as soon as possible and start working through it diligently. I suppose you could get the texts and try giving it a shot from there, but the best chance you might have is getting a manual to help out and provide practice problems.

Hi , I want to start preparing for Exam FM. I guess Actex material is good and will buy that but before that I was looking for something which can clear my fundamentals as I think tht is very necessary .

[Harold Cherry]

ASM Exam FM Manual

I am the author of ASM's Exam FM/2 manual. You can find a description of the manual, some excerpts (a sample of 3 sections from the manual, including problems and solutions) and a free full-length sample exam (25 problems with solutions) on the ASM web site at www.studymanuals.com. You can also search for comments on my manual and others on the Discussion Forum of this site and a rival site that you probably know about.

[yogita]

I am the author of ASM's Exam FM/2 manual. You can find a description of the manual, some excerpts (a sample of 3 sections from the manual, including problems and solutions) and a free full-length sample exam (25 problems with solutions) on the ASM web site at www.studymanuals.com. You can also search for comments on my manual and others on the Discussion Forum of this site and a rival site that you probably know about.

Dear Sir,

After a review of all the books available for Exam FM , I am sure I want to buy Kellison , its solution manual and ASM - EXAM FM by you . But your book is currently out of order at actexmadriver.com . Kindly let me know when will it be available as I want to order all the books at one go.

Regards,
Yogita

[Harold Cherry]

Dear Sir,

After a review of all the books available for Exam FM , I am sure I want to buy Kellison , its solution manual and ASM - EXAM FM by you . But your book is currently out of order at actexmadriver.com . Kindly let me know when will it be available as I want to order all the books at one go.

Regards,
Yogita

The fall 2005 edition of the ASM Exam FM manual is now at the printer and will be available in a few days. If you order it from Actex now, they will send it to you automatically when it is ready. Your credit card won't be charged until it is shipped.

[novrain]

I compiled a reading list for exam FM, just looking for any comments/suggestions: Mathematics of Finance Mathematics of investment and credit? ACTEX manual Curious whether it's be worth it to get the Mathematics of investment and credit, not sure if it's a good textbook although I know Mathematics of Finance is, even though it's not on the suggested list

Could you tell me who the author of the book Mathematics of Finance is?

[Krieger]

I believe the recommended texts are irrelevant so long as you knock out those practice problems you find in the study manuals.

[Ken]

I say this with the risk of being seen as crazy, but I've read Kellison almost cover to cover and I think it is a great book.

[sutcliffe]

asm manual

I am the author of ASM's Exam FM/2 manual. You can find a description of the manual, some excerpts (a sample of 3 sections from the manual, including problems and solutions) and a free full-length sample exam (25 problems with solutions) on the ASM web site at www.studymanuals.com. You can also search for comments on my manual and others on the Discussion Forum of this site and a rival site that you probably know about.

Dear Sir,
I just recently joined this forum. I am working on exam fm, and now have been looking around for gud manuals to use. I am interested in purchasing yours (hopefully it will be available as soon as possible). I have been wondering if it also has information on calculator functions. if it does not, is there some place online where i cud get really efficient information on calculator operations (they seem such a big part of exam fm). I am planning to get the ba ii plus calculator.
sincerely,
sutcliffe

[Harold Cherry]

Dear Sir,
I just recently joined this forum. I am working on exam fm, and now have been looking around for gud manuals to use. I am interested in purchasing yours (hopefully it will be available as soon as possible). I have been wondering if it also has information on calculator functions. if it does not, is there some place online where i cud get really efficient information on calculator operations (they seem such a big part of exam fm). I am planning to get the ba ii plus calculator.
sincerely,
sutcliffe

ASM's Exam FM/2 manual should be available within the next few days. I suggest that you order it from Actex now at www.actexmadriver.com. They will automatically send it to you when it is ready and they will not charge your credit card until it is shipped.

Calculator instructions based on the BA-35 are included in the manual. The BA II Plus is similar to the BA-35 but has more functions. You can find more details about using both of these calculators on the SOA web site www.soa.org. Click on the Exams and Jobs link on the menu on the left-hand side of the home page, then Candidate and Exams Information/Fall Exam Session/Fall 2005 Basic Education Catalog - Study Notes Information. This link is not yet active, so re-visit the SOA site until the link is live.

[Harold Cherry]

ASM's Exam FM/2 manual is now available from Actex.

[Mathguy36]

I would go with ASM from Hal Cherry

Here are the materials I used and my opinion.

For ordering study materials, my friend and I went a little overboard in ordering for last May's exam FM. Here's what we had and my thoughts on each.

Kellison's book and solution manual-- Not needed. The formulas in many cases are too hard to memorize and the problems are too easy. The key to passing exams is to practice similar problems. Also, the solution manual ended with Chapter 8 and was of no help for the new material that was added for that sitting.

Actex study manual- It was helpful in that it showed how to complete problems by using only your calculator. Hard to follow initially for it is written for use with the BA 35. (I used the BA II plus). After a few months, those shortcuts were helpful but it was very frustrating in the beginning. On the positive side, it did include 13-17 practice exams which were helpful.

ASM by Hal Cherry- This was the study guide we used the most. It quickly became called "the bible" for my friend and I while studying for this exam. It has many, many practice problems from prior exams. In addition, he offers examples on commom mistakes that students make. (He calls them trap alerts). The only downside was that there weren't many practice exams included. We got around this by selecting 25 practice problems and completing them in under 2 hours.

"How to pass exam FM" (I forgot the author)- This manual was poorly done. The supplemental problems did not include solutions and many didn't even include the answers. Most users of this manual had to post sample problems in the forum to receive verification of answers. The one positive is that if you can correctly master these VERY difficult supplemental problems, you will do well on the exam.

Those were what we used. My advice is to stay away from Kellison's book and just use a couple of study manuals. Each author has their own way of presenting the material and this gives you a variety of ways of solving different types of problems. If I could only afford one manual, I would go with ASM from Hal Cherry.
I don't know of anyone who used this manual and was disappointed.