Can you study for this beside your job? Weekly study-time calculator for SQE1, the CFA® Program Level I and the FRM® Exam Part I

How is the result calculated?

A week has 168 hours. The calculator takes off your fixed commitments, then the free time you want to keep. What is left is the most you could study in a week:

$W$ is paid work, $C$ the commute, $K$ care for others and $O$ other fixed commitments, all in hours a week; $S$ is sleep and $E$ household, meals and getting ready, in hours a day. $R$ is the free time you keep. If you can study on your commute, $C$ is added back to $A$.

The hours you still need are spread over the weeks in which you can study:

$T$ is the study hours the exam needs, $D$ the hours already done, $d$ the days from today to the exam and $P$ the weeks without study. The result is read like this:

• Fits if $N \le 0.8\,A$: the plan leaves a fifth of your study time spare for weeks that go wrong.
• Tight if $0.8\,A < N \le A$: it works only if every week goes to plan.
• Does not fit if $N > A$.

The earliest date that fits is today plus $\left\lceil 7 \left( \frac{T - D}{0.8\,A} + P \right) \right\rceil$ days. The 80% limit is our own rule of thumb for keeping a plan going, not a research finding; if your weeks are very regular, a tight result may still work for you.

The starting values for $T$ are estimates published by prep and careers websites: 300–400 hours for SQE1 (SQE1 Prep, study hours (secondary source)), at least 300 hours for Level I of the CFA® Program (Soleadea, study hours (secondary source)) (300Hours, preparing for Level I (secondary source)) and 250 hours for Part I of the FRM® Exam (300Hours, Part I study guide (secondary source)). They are planning figures, not requirements. Sitting dates come from our register of exam dates, with a link to the exam body’s page.

Worked example

Take a full-time job of 37.5 hours a week, 5 hours of commuting, 3 hours of other fixed commitments, 8 hours’ sleep a night and 3 hours a day for household, meals and getting ready. Keep 28 hours of free time a week:

So 17.5 hours a week are free for study, and the plan fits if it needs no more than 14 of them. The plan is SQE1 with 350 hours, starting on Monday 2 November 2026, with 2 weeks without study. For the July 2027 sitting (FLK1: 12–16 July 2027 (check the official website)) there are 252 days, or 36 weeks, to the first day:

That is 59% of the 17.5 free hours: the plan fits. For the January 2027 sitting (FLK1: 11–15 January 2027 (check the official website)) there are only 10 weeks, so the same 350 hours would need 43.8 hours a week in 8 study weeks – far more than the week allows. At 14 hours a week, the earliest date that fits is 10 May 2027:

July 2027 is therefore the first SQE1 sitting this plan fits.

What does the result mean for you?

If the plan fits, turn the weekly hours into fixed slots – for example two evenings and one weekend morning – and keep the spare fifth for weeks that go wrong. For Level I of the CFA® Program, the Level I study planner turns your weeks into a plan by topic area; for SQE1, the guide to an SQE1 study plan built on spaced repetition shows how to divide the time.

If it is tight or does not fit, look at the levers under the result: a later sitting, study on the commute, or hours from somewhere else in your week. Cutting sleep is not one of them – the calculator never counts it as study time.

Which planning mistakes are common?

• Planning with every free hour. A plan that needs all of your free time breaks in the first week of overtime or illness.
• Forgetting weeks without study. Holidays and busy periods at work take weeks out of the plan; enter them, so the weekly hours are for the weeks you really study.
• Counting a commute you cannot use. Driving or a crowded train is not study time; tick the box only if you can read or answer questions on the way.
• Treating an hour estimate as a promise. The published figures are planning values. Your own need depends on your background and on how you study; adjust the target once you see your pace in the first weeks.

Study aid only – not legal, financial or careers advice. The tool runs in your browser and stores nothing.

High Performer Certs is an independent study platform. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), and it is not authorised or accredited by the SRA or the SQE assessment provider. The SQE and SOLICITORS QUALIFYING EXAMINATION trade marks are the property of and are used under licence from the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

High Performer Certs is an independent study platform. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by CFA Institute or the Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP). We are not a CFA Institute Prep Provider and not a GARP Exam Preparation Provider. CFA Institute does not endorse, promote, review or warrant the accuracy or quality of our products and services. GARP does not endorse, promote, review or warrant the accuracy of our products or services. All questions and explanations are our own original material and contain no CFA Institute or GARP exam, curriculum or practice questions. CFA®, Chartered Financial Analyst®, CIPM® and GIPS® are registered trademarks owned by CFA Institute. FRM® and GARP® are trademarks owned by the Global Association of Risk Professionals.