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The research behind how you study

Most exam-prep advice is folklore repeated confidently. These are the findings that actually hold up — on memory, on spacing, on what a mock score does and does not tell you — and what they mean if you are sitting CFA, FRM, ACCA or CPA.

The forgetting curve is worse than you think

Ebbinghaus proved in 1885 that humans forget roughly two-thirds of new information within 24 hours. Nothing about how we study has fixed this. Here's the data — and what to do about it.

You don't have a time problem. You have a gap problem.

More hours doesn't mean more marks. Research shows study efficiency — not time — drives exam performance. Here's what the science says, and how to fix it.

Why your mock exam score is lying to you

A 75% practice score feels like a pass. The research says it's almost meaningless. Here's what actually predicts whether you'll pass the CFA or FRM exam.

Sleep is a study session

The most underrated tool in exam preparation isn't a question bank or a study schedule. It runs every night, costs nothing, and most candidates are actively destroying it.

Also worth reading

The science behind Pinnacle

FSRS, interleaving, and the 85% challenge point

The spaced repetition method

How the scheduling actually works

CFA exam guide

Format, fees, pass rates, dates

FRM exam guide

Format, fees, pass rates, dates

ACCA exam guide

Papers, entry deadlines, pass rates

CPA exam guide

Sections, windows, score releases

Reading about it is the easy part

Pinnacle applies all of this automatically — spacing, interleaving and difficulty are chosen for you, from your own answers. Free to start.

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