Level III study guide (2027)

2027 orientation. Level III emphasizes integration and application. Every candidate studies the common core and selects one pathway at registration. CFA Institute states that the common core represents 65–70% and the selected pathway 30–35% of exam topic weight.

Common core

Topic	Published range	PureAlpha entry point
Asset Allocation	15–20%	Asset allocation
Portfolio Construction	15–20%	Portfolio management
Performance Measurement	5–10%	Performance measurement
Derivatives and Risk Management	10–15%	Derivatives and risk management
Ethical and Professional Standards	10–15%	Ethics and professional practice

Choose one pathway

Portfolio Management

Index and active equity, fixed-income strategies, institutional integration, and trade execution. Open pathway →

Private Markets

Fund structures, GP–LP economics, diligence, private equity and credit, special situations, real estate, and infrastructure. Open pathway →

Private Wealth

Client and family systems, goals, liquidity, investments, protection, complex wealth, and transfer planning. Open pathway →

Constructed-response practice

Use Constructed-response practice to train command-word recognition, direct conclusions, separately requested reasons, calculation discipline, and time allocation. Every exercise must be original or permissioned.

Official references

• CFA Institute: Level III exam
• CFA Institute: Level III specialized pathways

Accessed 28 September 2026. One official cross-level page presents a conflicting derivatives range; PureAlpha preserves the level-specific page as the planning source and will revalidate before publication updates.