CAIA Level II study plan

Map the Emerging Topics syllabus into a one-page outline of every listed subtopic before reading any detail

Define and contrast the alternative risk-premium, illiquidity-premium, and diversification rationales for allocating to alternatives

Build a spreadsheet that computes the Sharpe ratio, Sortino ratio, and maximum drawdown of a two-asset portfolio as the alternatives weight moves from 0% to 40%

Explain how endowment, defined benefit, sovereign wealth, and family office objectives differ in horizon, liquidity needs, and governance constraints

Draft ten original flashcards distinguishing strategic from tactical allocation within an alternatives sleeve

Compute fund-level gross and net IRR and multiples of invested capital from a sequence of capital calls and distributions

Derive the fee and carry economics of a private equity fund across a range of hurdle rates and catch-up provisions

Compare J-curve, vintage-year, and committed-capital pacing effects on a private equity program's reported returns

Differentiate core, core-plus, value-add, and opportunistic real estate strategies by leverage, income yield, and exit assumptions

Calculate the impact of farmland and timberland income yield, biological growth, and land appreciation on total return

Distinguish directional, event-driven, relative-value, and opportunistic hedge fund strategy exposures and the market betas each carries

Reconstruct a hedge fund return series as a blend of equity, credit, and trend-following factors and quantify the residual alpha

Interpret managed futures roll yield, margin-to-equity, and volatility-targeting mechanics in a portfolio context

Model structured credit tranching: allocate collateral cash flows across senior, mezzanine, and equity tranches and compute each tranche's expected loss

Compute credit spread, duration, and recovery effects on a high-yield and distressed debt position's total return

Apply the CFA Institute Code and Standards and GIPS core requirements to at least six original alternative-investment fact patterns

Identify conflicts of interest, soft-dollar, allocation, and valuation-manipulation issues in private fund and hedge fund settings

Diagnose the governance failures that emerge when alternatives valuations are manager-marked rather than independently verified

Re-derive the liquidity-budget framework linking illiquid allocation size to expected capital calls and distribution timing

Write a compliance checklist for marketing alternative strategies to institutional versus retail investors

Value a venture-stage company using the venture capital method and reconcile it against a scenario-weighted DCF

Diagnose secondaries, continuation vehicles, and co-investment structures for fee, alignment, and reporting implications

Build a private equity portfolio construction model that tests vintage-year diversification against concentration limits

Evaluate infrastructure and natural resources assets on regulated-return, inflation-linkage, and concession-life criteria

Stress-test a real assets portfolio for cap-rate expansion, rate shocks, and commodity price declines

Construct a hedge fund portfolio that targets a stated volatility and correlation profile to a 60/40 baseline

Assess fee structures, high-water marks, and lock-up terms for their effect on net-of-fee investor outcomes

Build a convertible arbitrage and merger arbitrage payoff profile and identify each strategy's break-even and tail scenarios

Evaluate securitization structures for prepayment, extension, and correlation risk under two interest-rate scenarios

Compare distressed-for-control and distressed-for-trading approaches on recovery assumptions and holding period

Assess digital assets, tokenization, and blockchain-based fund structures on valuation, custody, and regulatory risk

Evaluate climate, transition, and sustainability-linked strategies for measurable risk-return effects in a portfolio

Critique the data and backtest-quality problems that inflate reported alternative-investment performance

Rehearse ethics fact patterns under timed conditions and isolate every repeated error pattern

Integrate emerging-topic exposures into an existing allocation without breaching liquidity or governance constraints

Complete two full-length timed mock exams under exam conditions

Categorize every missed question by domain and error type, then re-study only high-frequency weak areas

Recite from memory the key formulas for IRR, multiples, carry, Sharpe, tranche loss allocation, and duration

Re-write a condensed one-page summary for each of the seven domains

Verify readiness by re-taking all previously missed ethics questions and scoring at least 85%