Frequently Asked Questions

After I register and pay, how do I access the premium content

After you register and pay for the Bionic Turtle course, you will then be able to access the premium content.  To access this information, you want to:

Log in, click on premium members (in orange), and lastly FRM Product. 

Here is a direct link

Are all of the materials on the exam provided in the BT course

Thanks for your inquiry about our FRM content. We cover every single AIM in our materials by providing you with powerpoints, study guides, learning spreadsheets, and practice questions that go over all of the sections of the FRM. Yes, I do feel that a beginner would understand the examples used. I also believe that we build on prior knowledge by teaching in parts. You will first learn that foundations of risk and the common words (vocabulary) used in risk management. Then we build on that by teaching concepts and types of risk.

Are the videos downloadable

Yes, the regular season video tutorials are downloadable. We produce two downloadable formats: iPod (.m4v) and windows media (.wmv) format for other devices. The windows media format can be played on virtually any PC, just make sure you have the free windows media player installed on your device or machine. Check here for the free player.

Can I register for the exam if I am not working

Yes, you can register. There are not prerequisites to registering or sitting for the exam.  You will, however, need 2 years work experience in order to receive your FRM certification.  Please click here.  Previous work will count.

Do you have a purchase option for Level II only

No, unfortunately we only offer Level I & Full Exam (Level I + Level II).

Our course prices are as follows:
Annual Membership Fees:
$199 for Level I
$399 for Full Exam (Level I + Level II). 

Your membership will be valid for a full calendar year from the purchase date.  There is a possible $100 discount for qualifying customers on the Full Exam course only.  To qualify you must show proof of one of the following: 

1)  You are a full-time student
2)  You are a returning candidate of Bionic Turtle
3)You purchased a program from one of our competitors. (Example:  Schweser)

If you qualify you may purchase at the discount rate.  Please request a discount code on our purchase page here.  After you are approved, you will then apply the discount code to your purchase. 

Do you have any samples of your Bionic Turtle course content

If you are interested in seeing some samples of what is available for our customers, you may visit this page. If you scroll to the bottom of this page, we have included a few samples from the 2008 material.

Do you need an internet connection

Yes, a high-speed internet connection is desirable. With that you will be able to access all of the resources. No printed materials will be shipped.

Do you offer any discounts

Yes, there is a possible $100 discount for qualifying customers on the Full Exam course only.  To qualify you must show proof of one of the following: 
1)  You are a full-time student
2)  You are a returning candidate of Bionic Turtle
3)  You purchased study materials from one of our competitors within the past 365 days. (Example:  Schweser)

If you qualify you may purchase at the discount rate.  Please request a discount code on our purchase page here.  After you are approved, you will then apply the discount code to your purchase.

Do you provide phone or one-to-one support or in-person training

No, we are the market-leading online training resource, and we are priced accordingly. For less than $500, our customers get forum support and live webinar participation. For most, this is a cost-effective way to learn risk.

However, GARP publishes a list of training providers here

Many of these firms provide on-site (seminar-like) training. The cost for these programs are roughly in the neighborhood of the cost to attend a conference; e.g,. $5,000 U.S. dollars is typical. In other words, we are training candidates at approximately 10% to 20% of the cost (-80% to -90%) of these programs.

We think on-site, personalized training is valuable. We are not trying to replace or compete with personalized training. We are trying to offer an affordable alternative. However, if you do have a non-content related support question, please direct your question to Suzanne.

Do you supply printed materials

All of our materials are only available on our website for you to download and view at your convenience.  No printed materials will be shipped.

Does GARP provide formula sheets during the exam

GARP does not provide formulas during the exam (this contributes the difficulty indeed).

How can I receive a receipt for my purchase

You are now able to retrieve a receipt when you are logged into the Bionic Turtle site.  After you log in, you will see “Hi…(your name).”  Under your name you will see order history, click on that and you will have the availability to print your receipt.  Should you have any problems locating your receipt, please contact Suzanne (Suzanne@bionicturtle.com) and she will be able to assist you.

How do I register

In order to register for the FRM content training materials, please click here.

On this page, you will also find three buttons labeled “Level 1”, “Level 2”, and “Discounted”.  Level 1 is for people taking the FRM level 1 while the Level 2 is for people taking the FRM full exam.  Discounted is for people who are taking the FRM full exam and qualify for the $100 discount. 

There is a possible $100 discount for qualifying customers on the Full Exam course only.  To qualify you must fall under one of the three categories: 

1)  You are a full-time student.
2)  You are a returning candidate of Bionic Turtle.
3)  You purchased study materials from one of our competitors within the past 365 days. (Example:  Schweser)

If you fall into one of those categories, you may request a discount code on the purchase page with an attachment of the proof that demonstrates above.  After the discount code has been assigned, you will then receive an email with the discount code to apply to your purchase.

How long will my Bionic Turtle course purchase be valid

Your membership will be valid for a full calendar year from the purchase date.  You will have access to all contents published and available on the site through your expiration date.

I am unable to successfully join the site.  What can I do?

I am sorry that you have been unable to successfully register on our website.  There must be a problem with the captcha that you are trying to key. You should only key the bold letters, not the letters that you see in the background. 

However, if you are still unable to register successfully, email Suzanne and she would be more than glad to register you manually.  You will just need to provide the username/email that you would like to register with.  If you provide her that information, she will gladly set you up a username.

Is 200 hours enough to prepare for the exam

There is no specific answer for this question as every person is different.  But I believe the first determinant in regards to time required is comfort/capabiltiy with quantitative methods. A good test of this is to simply browse a few chapters from the assigned Gujarati, Jorion or Kevin Dowd (for more advanced; if you are comfortable with Dowd, you will generally not struggle with any of the readings) and see if you can read without undue struggle.

Here is what GARP says: “Approximately 150 to 200 hours for each level of the exam.  Since the last FRM Exam Full covers both levels, approximately 300 to 400 hours of preparation would be required.” http://www.garp.com/frmexam/faq.aspx

I’d add two qualifiers: (1) there is a wide dispersion (variance) based on individual experience & aptitude. At one end, candidates without quant likely need more time than the upper round, at the other end, some have strong experience and need less time. You can’t understate this, we’ve seen a really wide difference. We’ve had customers with no math background and they will need a massive amount of time; then some who work in the field and/or fresh off relevant academic training, and they can ramp up surprisingly quickly (2) The full exam is a significant expansion from the previous exam and does not have a real precedent/benchmark. There are not any benchmarks for Full, it’s a one-time experiment.

Is it sufficient to just take the course from Bionic Turtle

Many customers utilize only BT resources. However, the correct answer to this really varies by individual. The primary factor is your comfort level with the quantitative methods.

Please see this recent forum thread.

And perhaps this recent blog post will be helpful.

Is there a schedule for 2010

Yes, there is a schedule for 2010.  Please click here or here

What are the fees and payment details

Our course prices are as follows:
Annual Membership Fees:
$199 for Level I
$399 for Full Exam (Level I + Level II). 

Your membership will be valid for a full calendar year from the purchase date.  There is a possible $100 discount for qualifying customers on the Full Exam course only.  To qualify you must show proof of one of the following: 

1)  You are a full-time student
2)  You are a returning candidate of Bionic Turtle
3)  You purchased study materials from one of our competitors within the past 365 days. (Example:  Schweser)

If you qualify you may purchase at the discount rate.  Please request a discount code on our purchase page here.  After you are approved, you will then apply the discount code to your purchase. 

What do you offer

As an overview, we offer learning spreadsheets, practice questions, study notes/outlines, video tutorials and a forum for support and feedback.  All of our materials are only available on our website for you to download and view at your convenience.  We release our content in sections throughout the year.  We believe releasing it in sections gives you ample time to study without being overwhelmed by the massive amount of content.

Our course prices are as follows:
Annual Membership Fees:
$199 for Level I
$399 for Full Exam (Level I + Level II). 

Your membership will be valid for a full calendar year from the purchase date.  There is a possible $100 discount for qualifying customers on the Full Exam course only.  To qualify you must show proof of one of the following: 
1)  You are a full-time student
2)  You are a returning candidate of Bionic Turtle
3)  You purchased study materials from one of our competitors within the past 365 days. (Example:  Schweser)

If you qualify you may purchase at the discount rate.  Please request a discount code on our purchase page here.  After you are approved, you will then apply the discount code to your purchase. 

What is a good book to start with the basics

A good book to start studying would be Jorion’s Value at Risk or Gujarati’s Essentials of Econometrics.  Both of these books are a great start to studying for your FRM exam!

What is the best calculator you would recommend

Most use HP 12C or TI BA II+ or TI BA II+ Pro.

What is the difference between the L1 & Full Exam course

Bionic Turtle’s courses include: provide movie tutorials, outline notes, learning spreadsheets, high-quality practice questions and live webinar review sessions.  The difference between the two courses is the content that is covered.

The Level 1 course covers the following content:
Foundations of Risk Management
Quantitative Analysis
Financial Markets and Products
Valuation and Risk Models

The Full Exam course covers the following content:
Foundations of Risk Management
Quantitative Analysis
Financial Markets and Products
Valuation and Risk Models
Market Risk Measurement and Management
Credit Risk Measurement and Management
Operational and Integrated Risk Management
Risk Management and Investment Management
Current Issues in Financial Markets

When will you begin the 2010 course

We have already started to prepare the content for the 2010 course.  We will begin to publish the content on our site approximately February 1, 2010.  We have already started to publish 2 AIMs per day under the blog.  If you are a paid member, as soon as the content is published you will have access.  Should you have any additional questions, please direct your question to Suzanne.

Where should I start preparing

I would suggest starting by viewing our webinars.  These webinars are reviews of the math concepts you will need to know in order to do well on the FRM.  Some of them were recorded and placed on the website for you to view at your convenience.  In order to view any webinars, you will need to download the codec from here.

Webinar #1

Webinar #2 unfortunately was not recorded.

Webinar #3

Webinar #4 and Webinar #5 are available for download through the FRM premium content section.

After viewing the webinars, I would start with Video Tutorial 1.a.i. on the FRM content page.  This is where David teaches about the first concept of the year - “Foundations of Risk Management”.