01·Week 1 · Foundation
Get the lay of the Indian mutual fund land.
Five days of concepts + one weekly recap. By Friday you can explain to your parents what a mutual fund actually is — without using jargon.
Day 1 — Investment landscape in India
30 min- Bank deposits vs market-linked products
- How Indian households park money today
- Why mutual funds exist (the gap they fill)
Day 2 — What is a mutual fund, really?
30 min- The pooling concept in plain Hindi/English
- Units, NAV, AUM — the three numbers that matter
- Open-ended vs close-ended (in one sentence each)
Day 3 — Legal structure — Trust, AMC, Trustees
45 min- Who is the sponsor? Who is the trustee?
- AMC vs trust vs custodian — the four-pillar diagram
- Why this structure protects investor money
Day 4 — SEBI's role and the regulatory net
30 min- SEBI MF Regulations 1996 — the spine
- AMFI — the industry body
- KYC norms, FATCA, PMLA
Day 5 — NAV — calculation, cut-off times, T+1
45 min- How NAV is computed end of day
- Cut-off rules for equity vs liquid funds
- T+1, T+2 settlement implications
Day 6 — Practice: 25 foundation questions
45 min- Quick-fire format
- Mark anything you got wrong — revisit Day 7
- Aim for 18/25
Day 7 — Weekly recap + mini quiz
30 min- Re-read flagged concepts from Day 1-5
- Take the Week 1 mini quiz
- Note 3 weak spots for next week
02·Week 2 · Categories & Taxation
Every fund category, taxed every which way.
SEBI sub-categorises mutual funds into ~36 sub-types. By Sunday you can place any fund into the right bucket and quote its tax rate.
Day 8 — Equity scheme categories (large/mid/small)
45 min- Multi-cap, flexi-cap, focused, contra, dividend yield
- Sector & thematic — when to use, when to avoid
- ELSS — the only equity fund with a tax break
Day 9 — Debt scheme categories
45 min- Liquid, overnight, money market — your "emergency" buckets
- Short, medium, long duration — the duration ladder
- Credit-risk vs gilt — two ends of safety
Day 10 — Hybrid + Solution-oriented + ETFs
30 min- Balanced advantage, multi-asset, conservative hybrid
- Children's + retirement (lock-in caveat)
- Index funds, ETFs, FoF — the cheap-and-cheerful tier
Day 11 — Income from mutual funds (dividends, gains)
30 min- Why "dividend" was renamed IDCW — and what changed
- Capital gain vs IDCW — when each is taxed
- Switch transactions count as redemptions
Day 12 — Equity taxation — STCG / LTCG / STT
45 min- Holding period rules (12 months for equity)
- LTCG > ₹1.25L taxed at 12.5%
- STT at sale, surcharge on HNI
Day 13 — Debt taxation — slab rate post-2023
30 min- Indexation removed for debt funds bought after April 2023
- Taxed at investor slab — same as FDs now
- Hybrid >65% equity = equity tax treatment
Day 14 — Weekly recap + mini quiz
30 min- Pin the equity vs debt tax table
- Try 20 mixed-category questions
- Note any sub-category you can't place yet
03·Week 3 · Risk, Return & Selection
Read a fund factsheet like a portfolio manager.
Risk and return are mostly arithmetic. By next weekend you can pick up any factsheet, find the four numbers that matter, and ignore the rest.
Day 15 — Risk measures — SD, beta, Sharpe
45 min- Standard deviation — how much the NAV bounces
- Beta — sensitivity to the benchmark
- Sharpe & Sortino — return per unit of risk
Day 16 — Return measures — CAGR, XIRR, absolute
45 min- When CAGR lies (it lies a lot for SIPs)
- XIRR — the right measure for irregular cash flows
- Point-to-point vs rolling returns
Day 17 — Benchmark comparison + tracking error
30 min- TRI vs PRI benchmarks (a 1-1.5% gap)
- Tracking error for index funds
- Alpha — what active managers claim to deliver
Day 18 — Fund scheme selection — the 5-step filter
45 min- Step 1: scheme category vs your goal
- Step 2: 3y/5y/10y rolling returns
- Step 3: expense ratio + AUM
- Step 4: fund manager tenure
- Step 5: portfolio overlap with what you already hold
Day 19 — Building model portfolios
45 min- Conservative / Moderate / Aggressive — the three-fund recipes
- Tax-efficient placement (debt in PPF, equity in MF)
- When to rebalance (5% drift trigger)
Day 20 — Performance attribution + style boxes
30 min- Sector vs stock selection
- Style drift — why "large-cap" funds sometimes aren't
- Morningstar style box decoded
Day 21 — Weekly recap + 30-question mock
60 min- Pin the 5-step selection filter
- Take a 30-question topic-mixed mock
- Note any formula you can't recall in 5 seconds
04·Week 4 · Distribution & Operations
How the back office actually works.
The exam loves operational details — KYC, RTAs, accounting, valuation. By Friday you can trace an investor's rupee from bank to fund to NAV.
Day 22 — The distributor — ARN, EUIN, code of conduct
30 min- ARN registration with AMFI
- EUIN — the person who actually advised
- What the code of conduct allows / forbids
Day 23 — Investor services — KYC, eKYC, transactions
45 min- CKYC vs eKYC (Aadhaar-OTP)
- Switch, STP, SWP, SIP — the four standing instructions
- Nominee + joint holder + power of attorney rules
Day 24 — Fund accounting + NAV valuation
45 min- Mark-to-market for equity vs amortisation for debt
- Side-pockets and segregated portfolios
- Stale price / no-trade rules
Day 25 — Compliance, conflict of interest, AML
30 min- Adviser vs distributor (SEBI IA Regulations)
- Front-running, scheme-of-arrangement disclosures
- PMLA & STR reporting
Day 26 — Grievances + SCORES + Investor Charter
30 min- SCORES — SEBI complaint redressal
- Investor Charter & TAT for complaints
- Ombudsman as last resort
Day 27 — First full-length mock (100 questions, 120 min)
120 min- Sit it in one stretch. No pauses.
- Aim for ≥60%. If you score below 50%, repeat Week 1-2 quickly.
- Note every wrong answer — they become your Day 28 revision
Day 28 — Review + Mock #2
120 min- First 60 min: review every wrong from Day 27
- Next 60 min: second full mock (different question set)
- Score should jump 8-12% from Day 27
05·Days 29-30 · Final stretch
Polish, sleep, pass.
Two days. Don't cram new topics — sharpen what you have. The exam rewards calm pattern recognition, not last-minute memorisation.
Day 29 — Mock #3 + targeted revision
120 min- Third full mock — final calibration
- Revise only your weakest 2 topics from Mocks #1-2
- Pin the tax table, the legal-structure diagram, and the 5-step filter to a wall
Day 30 — Exam-day prep · light revision · sleep
60 min- Re-read flagged concepts only — no new material
- Check exam centre, admit card, ID proof, NISM password
- Sleep 8 hours. Eat breakfast. Show up 30 min early.
Day 31 onwards
Pass NISM. Now turn the certification into a career.
We help newly-certified MFDs get their ARN, set up the tooling, and onboard their first 5 clients. Free 15-minute call. No obligation.
Common questions
FAQ.
Is 30 days enough for NISM V-A?
For someone with no finance background, 30 days at ~40 minutes a day is comfortable. If you have a finance degree or work in a related role, 15-20 days is plenty. The plan is structured to be safely passable, not just minimally passable.
What if I miss a day or two?
Resume from where you left off. The plan saves your progress in your browser — open this page on the same device anytime and pick up. Don't double up on missed days; the spaced repetition is doing real work.
Where do I take the actual NISM exam?
Register at certifications.nism.ac.in. The exam fee is ~₹1,500, conducted at NISM test centres across India, computer-based, 120 minutes, 100 MCQs, 60% to pass with a 25% negative-marking rule.
Should I read the official NISM workbook?
Yes, but as reference — not cover-to-cover. The workbook is ~280 pages of dense regulatory prose. Use it to deep-dive any topic where your mock score is weak. The plan above + our mock tests cover everything the exam actually tests.
Is the progress synced across devices?
No — progress is stored in localStorage on the device you're on. Clearing browser data resets it. We deliberately don't ask you to sign up for this plan; it's free to use anonymously.
What if my mock score is < 50% by Day 21?
Slow down. Repeat Week 1-2 quickly over 3 days, then resume Week 3. If you take the exam below 60% mock consistency, you'll likely fail. There's no penalty for delaying the exam by 2 weeks — there's a big penalty for failing.
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