How to pass CAIA Level I
Tools and alternative asset classes. Two timed sections of 130 minutes; 200 multiple-choice questions. This pass plan ties weights, format, and failure modes into one weekly loop. Level I builds ethics, quantitative tools, and the major alternative asset classes. Use MiloPrep tools to plan hours for CAIA alongside practice in the app.
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Duration
260 min
Questions
200
Sims / cases
—
Topics
8
Who this fits
Fits you if
- Professionals in private markets, hedge funds, or alternatives allocation who want a charter specialised in alternatives.
Skip if
- Candidates whose roles are pure public-markets equity research or household financial planning - CFA or CFP may fit better as the primary exam path.
Pass plan
Step 1
Lock the blueprint
List every Level I content area and its weight range before you open a course chapter. High-weight bands get calendar priority even when they feel familiar.
Step 2
Drill the format
Practise Multiple choice under partial timing, then full sitting length near 260 minutes. Format skill is a separate skill from content recall.
Step 3
Treat Ethics and Introduction as Level I anchors
Those topics carry the widest Level I bands. Do not starve them to chase niche strategy names. Tie this stage to the published CAIA weights before you expand reading. Watch for: Studying hedge-fund strategy names without practising the risk, liquidity, and fee mechanics that change the answer.
Step 4
Learn each asset class through risk and liquidity
For hedge funds, private equity, private debt, and real assets, practise fee, liquidity, and risk questions - not only definitions. Tie this stage to the published CAIA weights before you expand reading. Watch for: Passing Level I on recognition questions, then underpreparing constructed-response structure and institutional due-diligence frameworks.
Step 5
Add digital assets and funds of funds deliberately
They are smaller weights but easy marks if you know the handbook framing. Tie this stage to the published CAIA weights before you expand reading. Watch for: Studying hedge-fund strategy names without practising the risk, liquidity, and fee mechanics that change the answer.
Step 6
Attack the known failure mode
Studying hedge-fund strategy names without practising the risk, liquidity, and fee mechanics that change the answer. Build two drills this week that force that exact miss pattern into the open.
Level I pass checklist
- Weights listed and calendarized
- Timed block near 260 minutes completed
- Error log has at least 10 recent misses with rules
- Failure mode addressed: Studying hedge-fund strategy names without practising the risk, liquidity, and f…
- Retake rules checked only after a real readiness mock
CAIA study-week checklist
- Open the CAIA hub and mark which sittings you will book first.
- Spend at least one block on Level I high-weight topics.
- Run one mixed set, then log every stem you missed with the correct rule.
- Schedule one timed block near published sitting length this week.
- Revisit one troubleshooting symptom from the hub and apply the next step.
Fee and liquidity mechanics: Many Level I misses come from waterfall, lock-up, or redemption details rather than strategy labels.
Institutional constraint questions (Level II): Practise how asset-owner constraints change the acceptable alternative allocation.
If level i strategy flashcards are not lifting scores, Rewrite each strategy card with one risk, one liquidity feature, and one fee feature.
If level ii constructed responses feel unstructured, Practice command-word templates: recommend, justify, list three risks.
| Approach | Best for | Watch-out |
|---|---|---|
| Part-by-part sprint | Candidates sitting one CAIA part soon | Leaving neighbouring topics cold |
| Weight-first calendar | Working professionals with limited hours | Skipping format practice |
| Full mock weeks | Final 3–4 weeks before a sitting | Using mocks before a baseline exists |
Level I topic weights
| Topic | Weight |
|---|---|
| CAIA Ethical Principles | 8–12% |
| Introduction to Alternative Investments | 20–28% |
| Real Assets | 14–20% |
| Private Equity | 8–12% |
| Private Debt | 12–16% |
| Hedge Funds | 15–19% |
| Digital Assets | 4–8% |
| Funds of Funds | 1–5% |
Confirm numbers on official pages
Session structure, question formats, and approximate topic weights come from the 2026 CAIA Exam Handbook. Level I is two 130-minute multiple-choice sections with 200 questions in total. Level II has 100 multiple-choice questions in section 1 and three constructed-response sets in section 2, with each section lasting 130 minutes. Level II topic records preserve the separate multiple-choice and constructed-response columns. CAIA Ethical Principles and Emerging Topics are constructed-response-only. Other Level II topics can appear in either format. Curriculum and weights can change by calendar year.
How we review structure facts
MiloPrep cites awarding-body materials for CAIA. Fees and pass rates are excluded when they move too often to state as facts.
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Next steps
Level I hub
Format and topics for Level I.
Open hubLevel I practice
Blueprint explorer and sample question.
PracticeHow to study
Study approach for CAIA.
Read guideCAIA FAQs
- How many levels is CAIA?
- Two: Level I and Level II.
- What is the Level I format?
- 200 multiple-choice questions across two sections of 130 minutes each, per the CAIA Exam Candidate Handbook.
- Does Level II include constructed responses?
- Yes. Level II includes 100 multiple-choice questions plus three constructed-response sets. Some topics are constructed-response only.
- Is CAIA a substitute for the CFA charter?
- No. CAIA is specialised in alternatives. Some candidates hold both; choose based on whether alternatives are central to your work.
- Where do these CAIA facts come from?
- From the CAIA Exam Candidate Handbook and curriculum pages linked in the source callout on this page.
- How many sittings does the CAIA exam include?
- CAIA is structured as 2 levels. On this site we track 2 sittings: Level I, Level II. Confirm current windows on CAIA Association pages.
- What question format should I expect on CAIA Level I?
- Level I uses Multiple choice across about 200 scored items, with roughly 260 minutes of content time. Always re-check CAIA Association before you book.