CFA Access Scholarship
How to write a winning CFA Access Scholarship Essay
The structure of my CFA Access Scholarship essay secured me the scholarship twice, enabling me to sit for both my CFA Level 1 and Level 2 exams
About CFA
The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) exam is a qualification for investment management professionals, consisting of three levels. The standard registration fee for each level is $1300.
However, you can pay less by taking advantage of the numerous scholarships available, with the most popular one being the CFA Access Scholarship. This scholarship significantly subsidizes the CFA exam fee by 80%, reducing it to just $300 per level.
Of course, the scholarship is quite competitive because the offer is great.
So, the goal of this write-up is to help you nail the access scholarship coming from a two times recipient of the scholarship.
The Access Scholarship involves two essay prompts, each with a 250-word limit.
Question 1: What prompted you to apply for this scholarship?
Start by rephrasing this question as ‘What personal, academic, and professional experiences and achievements make you worthy of this scholarship?’ Yes, this is essentially about proving that you are deserving of the scholarship.
In your response, ensure that you address these 5 points:
- How you developed an interest in finance (Background)
- A brief mention of your Long-term career goal (no need to elaborate at this point)
- How you’ve nurtured your interest in finance.
- Why CFA is the next big thing for you
- How the scholarship will offer financial relief
Link these points together using crisp linking words while maintaining the 250 word limit.
Question 2: How will receiving a scholarship make a difference in your pursuit of the CFA designation?
Again, start by rephrasing the essay question but this time as “How much does the CFA charter designation align with your long-term career goal to make you deserving of this scholarship?”
Here, I would expect you to touch on the 2 points:
- Elaborate on your long-term career goals and it aligns with the CFA charter
- Why do you need the scholarship? Why not fund yourself?
Of course, I will not leave stranded with just that.
Checkout this posts on actual prompts on how I answered the two questions here 👇🏽
A new application window for the CFA Access Scholarship opened on 24th Jan 2024 and closes 21 Feb 2024
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