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CFA Level II · CFA Level II Exam

Standard VII: Responsibilities as a CFA Member or Candidate

Standard VII covers your duties to CFA Institute and the CFA Program. Part A bans conduct that harms the integrity or validity of the exams, including breaching confidentiality. Part B requires that references to CFA Institute, the designation and the Program are accurate and do not overstate. To solve questions, find the act, name the Standard, and judge whether it breaks the rule.

What this chapter covers

Standard VII has two parts and is narrow in scope, but it is tested through the same vignette format as the rest of Ethics. Standard VII(A): Conduct as Participants in CFA Programs protects the integrity, reputation and validity of the CFA exams. Standard VII(B): Referring to CFA Institute, Designation and Program controls how you describe the organisation, the CFA designation and your candidacy.

VII(B) requires that references to CFA Institute, the CFA designation and the CFA Program are accurate. You must not misrepresent or exaggerate the meaning or implications of membership in CFA Institute, holding the CFA designation, or candidacy in the CFA Program. Standard I(C) and VII(B) may both apply to the same act. VII(B) covers misrepresenting what membership, the designation or candidacy implies, such as claiming superior ability because of it. I(C) covers misrepresentation generally, including claims about your own skills.

The guidance splits into four ideas. First, what counts as conduct that compromises the exam. Second, what is confidential program information and what you may and may not say about it. Third, how to refer to the designation correctly. Fourth, how to refer to candidacy without implying you hold a credential you do not yet hold.

This chapter links to the rest of Ethics. Standard I(D) on misconduct and Standard I(C) on misrepresentation often overlap with VII. In an item set, a candidate or charterholder acts, and you decide which Standard applies and whether it is breached. Learn VII alongside the others so you can separate it from them, and so you spot when more than one Standard applies.

Ethical and Professional Standards carries a heavy topic weight of 10-15%, and Standard VII is a narrow part of it where the violations follow recognisable patterns. Candidates often lose points here through careless reading, such as confusing what is allowed in marketing with what is misrepresentation. A small amount of focused study gives you reliable points in an area where many candidates guess.

Guidance for Standard VII: Responsibilities as a CFA Institute Member or CFA Candidate: topics in the order to study them

  1. 1Standard VII(A): Conduct as Participants in CFA ProgramsStart with the core rule: do not compromise the integrity, validity or security of CFA exams.
  2. 2Guidance on Confidential Program Information and Exam ConductThis turns the rule into cases: what is confidential, what you may discuss, and what counts as cheating or sharing exam content.
  3. 3Standard VII(B): Referring to CFA Institute, Designation and ProgramMove to the second duty once VII(A) is clear, so you do not mix the two parts.
  4. 4Referring to Candidacy for the CFA DesignationFinish with the most test-prone detail: how to describe candidacy without implying you hold the designation or a special status.

How to prepare Guidance for Standard VII: Responsibilities as a CFA Institute Member or CFA Candidate

This chapter is rule-based and short, so aim for exact wording and fast pattern recognition rather than long study sessions.

  1. Read the text of VII(A) and VII(B) and write each in one sentence of your own.
  2. List what counts as confidential program information and what may be shared, such as the general topics tested versus specific exam content.
  3. Write the permitted and prohibited ways to refer to the designation and candidacy, as two short columns of do and do not.
  4. Practise item-set cases by naming the Standard first, then the specific breach, then the reason.
  5. Review cases where VII overlaps with Standards I(C) and I(D), and decide which fits best and whether both apply.
  6. Revisit your do and do not lists two or three days before the exam.

Common mistakes in Guidance for Standard VII: Responsibilities as a CFA Institute Member or CFA Candidate

  • Treating any talk about the exam as a breach of confidentiality.

    Fix: Separate sharing specific exam content, which is a breach, from general discussion of the Program, publicly released information or study approaches, which is not.

  • Applying VII(A) to marketing or title claims.

    Fix: Use VII(A) for exam conduct and VII(B) for how the designation, Program and candidacy are described.

  • Assuming that passing a level earns a partial designation.

    Fix: Remember that there is no partial designation. A candidate may state which levels they have passed, but must not imply superior ability or a partial charter.

  • Missing overlap with other Standards.

    Fix: Ask whether the act also involves misrepresentation, misconduct or integrity of the profession, and name each that applies.

  • Choosing an answer from general ethics instinct instead of the Standard's wording.

    Fix: Anchor each answer in the exact wording of the Standard and the guidance, then compare the facts in the vignette.

Last-day revision: Guidance for Standard VII: Responsibilities as a CFA Institute Member or CFA Candidate

  • VII(A): do not engage in conduct that compromises the integrity, validity or security of CFA Program exams.
  • Conduct in VII(A) includes cheating, violating exam rules, and disclosing confidential Program or exam content.
  • Sharing specific exam questions or content with others is a violation.
  • Using a device or help that is not allowed in the exam is a violation.
  • Specific exam questions and content that CFA Institute has not made public must not be disclosed. Publicly released information, such as the general topic areas, may be discussed.
  • Expressing opinions about the Program, or giving feedback to CFA Institute, through proper channels is not a violation.
  • VII(B): do not misrepresent or exaggerate the meaning or implications of membership in CFA Institute, holding the CFA designation, or candidacy in the CFA Program. Claims about your own skills may also be misrepresentation under I(C), so both Standards can apply.
  • Say you are a candidate in the Program; do not imply you hold the designation.
  • Passing an exam level does not give you a designation or partial designation.
  • Do not claim or imply a partial designation. Do not claim superior ability or special status because you passed levels or passed on the first attempt.
  • Name the Standard first, then test whether the act breaches it.
  • Check for overlap with Standard I(C) misrepresentation and I(D) misconduct.

Guidance for Standard VII: Responsibilities as a CFA Institute Member or CFA Candidate in other exams

The same ground in other exams, if you are preparing for more than one or want another angle on it.

Guidance for Standard VII: Responsibilities as a CFA Institute Member or CFA Candidate: frequently asked questions

What does Standard VII cover?

It covers your responsibilities to CFA Institute and the CFA Program. Part A deals with conduct in the Program, such as protecting exam integrity. Part B deals with how you refer to CFA Institute, the designation and the Program, accurately and without overstating.

Can I tell others what was on the CFA exam?

You must not disclose specific exam questions or content that CFA Institute has not made public. That breaches Standard VII(A). You may discuss publicly released information, such as the general topic areas.

How should I refer to my candidacy?

State accurately that you are a candidate in the CFA Program. Do not suggest you hold the designation or a partial designation. Do not claim superior ability or special status because you passed levels or passed on the first attempt.

How is Standard VII tested at Level II?

It appears inside an item set as a short case about a candidate or charterholder. You decide whether the conduct breaches a Standard, name it, and give the reason.