This FRM cheat sheet distills GARP's Financial Risk Manager Part I curriculum into a scannable rundown of the models and rules examiners lean on most. It's a premium cheat sheet built by Capital Prep — the one premium prep we trust — and it's yours free. Reinforce it with the rest of your free FRM toolkit: the practice test, study guide, and flashcards.
FRM exam at a glance
- Structure: Two exams — Part I (100 questions) and Part II (80 questions); this sheet covers Part I
- Time: 4 hours per part
- Scoring: Pass/fail — no published cut score; GARP's Board sets the standard, and you get quartile results by topic
- Certifying body: Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP), delivered at Pearson VUE
- Cost: ~$400 one-time enrollment + ~$600 (early) to ~$800 (standard) per part (verify at GARP.org)
What’s on the FRM cheat sheet
- Foundations of Risk Management (20%) — the risk types, the CAPM and beta, RAROC, the Basel three pillars, and the GARP Code of Conduct.
- Quantitative Analysis (20%) — distributions, correlation, hypothesis testing and regression, and the EWMA and GARCH volatility models that feed VaR.
- Financial Markets & Products (30%) — bonds and duration, forwards, futures, swaps, and options — the largest topic, tied at 30%.
- Valuation & Risk Models (30%) — Value at Risk and expected shortfall, Black-Scholes-Merton and the Greeks, and stress testing — the other 30% area.
How to use it in your final week
- Front-load the two 30% areas — Financial Markets & Products and Valuation & Risk Models make up 60% of Part I, so the biggest score swings live there.
- Lock in the formula block: Value at Risk versus expected shortfall, the square-root-of-time scaling rule, expected loss = PD × LGD × EAD, and the option Greeks (delta, gamma, vega, theta, rho).
- Rehearse the four-hour clock — run one full timed practice set so 100 questions across four topics feels routine, not rushed.
- Read the sheet the morning of the exam for a last pass on the memory hooks: the inverse bond price–yield link, the Basel three pillars, and what drives duration up (longer maturity, lower coupon, lower yield).
The cheat sheet is your review layer — your FRM practice test drives the exam-readiness ring at the top of this page. Download it, review, then take a full practice exam (or drill with the study guide and flashcards) to see where you stand.
FRM cheat sheet FAQ
Yes — the FRM cheat sheet downloads as a PDF with no sign-up and no payment. It sits alongside Career Employer's free FRM toolkit: the practice test, study guide, and flashcards, all built around the GARP Part I topics.
It condenses the highest-yield GARP Part I material into a fast-scan reference: the four topic areas and their weights, Value at Risk and expected shortfall, bond duration and convexity, the Black-Scholes-Merton Greeks, the credit-loss formula (PD times LGD times EAD), and the Basel three pillars. The layout follows the 20/20/30/30 topic split so you review in the exam's own order of importance.
No fixed passing percentage. The FRM is scored pass/fail, and GARP's Board of Trustees sets the standard for each administration through a formal standard-setting process. Instead of a number, you receive quartile results showing how you performed in each topic area relative to other candidates, so the cheat sheet is built to make you broadly strong rather than to chase a single cutoff.
It reflects GARP's current Part I learning objectives and topic weights and the Basel III framework, and we review it against the official GARP materials on a regular cycle. Always confirm live dates and fees at GARP.org before you register.
Click the download button or the preview card at the top of this page to open the PDF instantly. Bookmark the page so you can pull it up again the morning of your Part I exam for a final memory pass.
References
- 1.Global Association of Risk Professionals. “FRM Exam — Financial Risk Manager Certification.” GARP.org, 2026. ↑
- 2.Global Association of Risk Professionals. “FRM Exam Information — Steps to Earn Certification.” GARP.org, 2026. ↑
- 3.Global Association of Risk Professionals. “FRM Exam Fees, Dates and Payment Types.” GARP.org, 2026. ↑
- 4.Bank for International Settlements. “Basel III: International Regulatory Framework for Banks.” BIS / Basel Committee, 2026. ↑
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