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CAIA · Level II

How to pass CAIA Level II

Application of alternatives in portfolios. Section 1: 100 MCQ (130 minutes). Section 2: three constructed-response sets (130 minutes). Handbook allocates roughly 70% MCQ / 30% constructed response. 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

100

Sims / cases

3

Topics

10

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

  1. Step 1

    Lock the blueprint

    List every Level II content area and its weight range before you open a course chapter. High-weight bands get calendar priority even when they feel familiar.

  2. Step 2

    Drill the format

    Practise 100 MCQ + 3 constructed-response sets under partial timing, then full sitting length near 260 minutes. Format skill is a separate skill from content recall.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

  5. 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.

  6. Step 6

    Attack the known failure mode

    Passing Level I on recognition questions, then underpreparing constructed-response structure and institutional due-diligence frameworks. Build two drills this week that force that exact miss pattern into the open.

Level II 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: Passing Level I on recognition questions, then underpreparing constructed-respon…
  • 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.
Pro tip

Fee and liquidity mechanics: Many Level I misses come from waterfall, lock-up, or redemption details rather than strategy labels.

Tip 2

Institutional constraint questions (Level II): Practise how asset-owner constraints change the acceptable alternative allocation.

Tip 3

If level i strategy flashcards are not lifting scores, Rewrite each strategy card with one risk, one liquidity feature, and one fee feature.

Tip 4

If level ii constructed responses feel unstructured, Practice command-word templates: recommend, justify, list three risks.

Without structured practiceWith MiloPrep-style loops
Read chapters end-to-end with no weight mapBudget weeks to published CAIA content-area ranges
Untimed question dumps until exhaustionShort diagnostics → mixed drills → timed sitting blocks
Ignore format (sims / cases / item sets)Separate format drills that match each sitting
Repeat the same miss with no error logLog stem mistakes and retest within 72 hours
ApproachBest forWatch-out
Part-by-part sprintCandidates sitting one CAIA part soonLeaving neighbouring topics cold
Weight-first calendarWorking professionals with limited hoursSkipping format practice
Full mock weeksFinal 3–4 weeks before a sittingUsing mocks before a baseline exists

Level II topic weights

TopicWeight
CAIA Ethical PrinciplesMCQ 0%; constructed response 10%
Institutional Asset OwnersMCQ 8–12%; constructed response 0–10%
Asset AllocationMCQ 8–12%; constructed response 0–10%
Risk and Risk ManagementMCQ 8–12%; constructed response 0–10%
Methods and ModelsMCQ 12–15%; constructed response 0–10%
Accessing Alternative InvestmentsMCQ 8–12%; constructed response 0–10%
Due Diligence and Selecting ManagersMCQ 8–12%; constructed response 0–10%
Volatility and Complex StrategiesMCQ 8–12%; constructed response 0–10%
Universal Investment ConsiderationsMCQ 6–11%; constructed response 0–10%
Emerging TopicsMCQ 0%; constructed response 10%

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 II hub

Format and topics for Level II.

Open hub

Level II practice

Blueprint explorer and sample question.

Practice

CAIA 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.