Has anyone taken the CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst)???

My boss has a CFA. I worked closely with him during the period he was studying and doing exams and it was very tough for him - not the learning part, since he is very experienced in portfolio and asset management and has worked for REITs for many years, but the time-management and the book studying itself. He failed each exam (in my opinion because he didn't properly prepare) but there is a lot of reading involved, something he was able to do only during long flights while travelling on business trips. If you are new to investment, real estate, portfolio management, and can find a review course, I would recommend you do it. Self-studying for a CFA is based on the assumption that you are in the industry and have a good understanding of it already.

In my opinion the CFA is the equivalent to a Masters Degree.