Sitting for the AFP certification in mid-August with a corporate treasury background — about 6 years in cash management. Liquidity and working capital sections should be fine. It's capital markets and risk management I'm less confident about.
Current plan: 2 hours weekdays, 4 hours weekends for the first 8 weeks covering all domains. Weeks 9-12 pure practice questions. Weeks 13-14 review weak areas and simulated exams. Aiming for 75%+ since the pass rate hovers around 55-60% and I don't want to retake.
Is the AFP study guide worth the $200 or should I just use Essentials of Treasury Management plus practice questions? Also curious whether the exam tests financial modeling or conceptual understanding — I can model cash flows all day but if it's mostly definition-recall that changes my prep allocation.
6 years in treasury is a real advantage for about 40% of the content. The capital markets and derivatives sections will need the most work — I spent 60% of my prep time there and passed with 78%.
The official AFP guide plus Essentials is the standard combo. Don't skip either one if you're serious about it.
It's more conceptual than modeling — you need to understand what an interest rate swap does and when you'd use it, not build a full model. I passed on first attempt with 12 weeks at 1.5 hours a day. Your 14-week plan sounds solid.
The 55% pass rate is real. I failed my first attempt with 69% despite feeling prepared. Risk management questions use a lot of scenario framing that's easy to misread under time pressure — do at least 2 full timed practice exams before the real thing.