CFA Level I Score of 1820: How a Delhi University Student Beat the Odds While Juggling College

Most people wait until they finish college before even thinking about the CFA. Anish Puri didn’t wait. A final-year B.Com Honours student at Delhi University, Anish was already tracking financial news, investing in the stock market, and quietly preparing for one of the world’s toughest finance certifications — all at the same time.

When his CFA Level I results came in, they showed a score of 1820. Not just a pass. A statement.

Here’s how a Delhi boy still in college pulled it off — and what he says every aspiring CFA candidate needs to hear.

The Interview

Q: Tell us a little about yourself — who is Anish Puri before the CFA?

I’m a final-year B.Com Honours student at Delhi University, born and brought up right here in Delhi. Finance was never just something I studied — it genuinely interested me. I used to follow financial news pretty closely, and at some point I started putting money into the stock market as well.

So the curiosity was always there. The CFA felt like the natural next step — a way to channel that interest into something serious and structured.

Q: Why the CFA specifically? What drew you to it over other finance certifications?

When you’re someone who reads the financial news and invests, you start realising very quickly how much you don’t know. The CFA curriculum is essentially a masterclass in everything — equity, fixed income, derivatives, portfolio management, ethics. It covers the whole picture.

I also knew it’s globally recognised. Whether I want to work in asset management, research, or risk — the CFA opens those doors. That kind of versatility was important to me at a stage where I hadn’t locked in one specific career path yet.

Q: Be honest — how hard was it to manage CFA prep alongside your final year of college?

It was genuinely tough. Final year isn’t easy — you have exams, assignments, placements going on around you, and a social life that’s practically demanding its fair share of attention.

The hardest part wasn’t the syllabus. It was protecting my study time consistently. Some days college would drain me completely and I’d still have to sit down and do my questions. But I told myself: if I skip today, tomorrow becomes twice as hard.

That thought kept me going on the days when motivation was nowhere to be found.

Q: How did you find QuintEdge, and what made you decide to go with them?

I came across QuintEdge while researching coaching options in Delhi. What stood out immediately was the faculty — the fact that they hold the CA and FRM along with being CFA Prep Providers isn’t something you see everywhere. That combination of academic depth and real market understanding felt different.

After attending a demo session, the decision was easy. The way concepts were explained — starting from first principles, building intuition before diving into formulas — matched exactly how I like to learn.

Q: Walk us through your actual preparation strategy. What did your routine look like?

One word: consistency. I set a fixed number of practice questions to solve every single day — no matter what. Not a range. A specific number. That commitment forced structure into my schedule even when college was chaotic.

I didn’t try to study for eight hours on weekends to compensate for skipped weekdays. I’d rather do two focused hours every day than ten scattered hours over the week. The daily repetition is what builds retention, not the occasional marathon session.

I also used the mock tests heavily in the final stretch. Seeing where my weak areas were, then going back and fixing them — that loop was critical.

Q: Were there any concepts or topics that really challenged you?

Derivatives and Fixed Income were the toughest for me initially. The pricing mechanics, the Greeks, duration and convexity — these require a different kind of thinking than what you’re used to in B.Com.

What helped was the way QuintEdge faculty broke these down. They didn’t just teach you the formula — they showed you why the formula is what it is. Once that clicked, the calculations became almost intuitive. That depth of teaching made a huge difference.

Q: The result — 1820. What was that moment like when you saw it?

Honestly, I just felt a wave of relief first. When you’ve been grinding daily for months while managing college on the side, the result isn’t just a score — it’s confirmation that the sacrifice was worth it.

And then it hit me: 1820. That wasn’t just a pass. That was the kind of score that tells you that if you stay consistent, the results take care of themselves. That moment made every early morning and every late night feel completely worth it.

Q: What’s next for you? Where does this take you?

I’m now focused on CFA Level II while I finish my degree. The plan is to build toward a career in investment research or portfolio management — areas where both the CFA knowledge and my market interest can come together.

The stock market was always something I did out of curiosity. Now I want to make it a profession. The CFA is the path that gets me there.

Q: Last question — what would you say to a college student who’s sitting on the fence about starting the CFA?

Don’t wait for the “perfect time.” If you’re in college and genuinely interested in finance, start now. You already have more time and flexibility than you’ll have once you’re working full-time.

And the most important thing? Stay consistent and believe in your efforts. Results don’t come from bursts of hard work — they come from showing up every day, even when you don’t feel like it. The exam rewards discipline more than intelligence. Trust the process, and the score will follow.