[jeff]

I will be giving away an iPad 3 Thursday to someone in the forum. Here are the details:

Who: 1 Randomly-selected winner.

You don’t have to be a current candidate to enter – Alums are welcome too!

The selection will be recorded through a screencast.

Note – the winner will be double-checked to make sure they don’t have more than one forum account posting in the giveaway thread, so no shenanigans.

What: iPad 3 – $499 model (winner will have the option to pay for any upgrades/features they want added)

Why: iPads are awesome (I have an iPad 2 … hope I win!) 😉

How:

1. “Like” another71 on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/another71)

2. In this thread, post a CPA Exam or Accounting Career tip (or both) that you think would benefit a College Senior or recent graduate. If you work for a Big 4 or Regional Accounting Firm, interview tips or anything making the process easier would be great.

That’s it … Good Luck!

***

New Prizes Added!

– 5 Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University Memberships (Online)

– 5 Complete NINJA Audios

– 5 Complete NINJA Notes

– 1 30 Minute Muay Thai training session at Del Mar Beach (CA) in September (you have to get to Del Mar though) 🙂

Jeff Elliott, CPA (KS) | Another71 | NINJA CPA | NINJA CMA | NINJA CPE

[liz1garcia]

Have faith in yourself, and study as many hours as you can for this exam. As someone already posted this exam will not go as you planned, so do not get discourage if you did not pass, just try again, study more, use different approaches and you will get the points you need.

At work do your best all the time 🙂 You want people to always talk positive about you.

[sourpatch]

Career Tip

Pick the first job that will give you wide and good experience, than money. If they both have the experience and money, then the company that have longer employee retention.

Exam Tip

Do multiple choice everyday. Do it like it's a hobby, like answering sudoku or crossword puzzle. Always read the explanation why it was the correct answer or the wrong one. Lots of prayers.

B - 69,75, (8/2011)
A - 64,75 (2/11)
R - (5/5/12) Waiting
F - ?

[jboxer310]

Exam tip:

Do practice McQ's and Sims over and over morning and night. Also beleive in the ninja…

[MaryEllen]

Exam Tip: Don't quit! Don't be afraid! You can do this!!!

[MB]

Take notes and re-write them over and over till you become familiar with each topic… flashcards are awesome.

[sboggs74]

Exam tip: Create a study schedule and stick to it!!

Interview tip: Your resume has gotten you in the door, don’t let personality get you kicked out of it.

[Anonymous]

CPA exam tip: Find a study plan/review course/materials that works for you. Everyone has a different circumstance and one program may work great for some and not work for others. The exam is standardized, but the approach to studying and passing the exam will be different for everyone!

Also, don't give up if you don't pass the first time. To quote one of my favorite historical people – “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts” – Winston Churchill

BEC – 68

AUD – 62

REG – 62

FAR – 70, (5/30/12)

[nebraska]

exam tip: when you are doing simulations, if you are hung up on a problem just fill it out with your best guesses and move on to the other sims. Then if you have extra time, use the authoritative literature to research what the answer should be. Don't get hung up at the beginning and end up not completing all the sims!!

REG (08/2011) - 73 (2/2012) - 72
AUD (08/2011) - 73 (1/2012) - 86
FAR (11/2011) - 79
BEC (11/2011) - 79

[Anonymous]

Don't study to get through the material…study to understand the material.

Basically, studying 100 hours means nothing if you studied quickly and didn't understand the lectures, questions and/or readings.

Most importantly…never give up.

[Anonymous]

Career Tip:

Be yourself! Never let someone else squash down your personality.

When I was in public accounting, I worked in a VERY conservative firm and the partners basically scared the staff into being automatons in the name of “professionalism” and client service. I had clients that requested me year over year because I wasn’t scared to show some personality and not just be all about the audit.

Look people in the eye, be direct and smile!

I can’t tell you how many of my coworkers in public accounting never looked the client in the eye when speaking to them or even said “Thank You” when clients would bring files/documents to us.

The simple action of looking someone in the eye and acknowledging their presence makes all the difference and they will remember that down the line when you have work on a project together.

If you can relate to people on a personal level, that makes your working relationships with them that much better. They see you as a person and not just a coworker.

Accounting knowledge can only take you so far and then you have to have the inter-personal skills and confidence to take your career to the next level.

The most successful accounting/finance managers I have worked with are those that love what they do, are impassioned about sharing knowledge with their staff and aren’t all business all the time.

Lastly, always take a moment in your day to smile or laugh.

[Kranzy]

Exam Tip: Make your own flashcards. After I watch the lecture, I take notes on the material, and then use my notes to make flashcards. The repetition of the material as well as the identification of keys points really drives it home. Plus, you have great flashcards to study with.

Big 4 tip: Having any accounting experience/internship on your resume is a big plus. It does not have to be with a big firm, it could be regional or a small firm or even tax experience!

Reg: Pass

Bec: Pass

Audit: 5/25/2012

Far: July 2012

[Anonymous]

Study/Exam tip: buy a bunch of legal size notepads or a reem of paper and write your notes, formulas, tables, etc. over and over. The process of writing and reading what you wrote will reinforce the topics you study. Do this especially for topics you are weak at.

Oh and…take a small break from time to time. You don't want to burn out before the exam.

[Anonymous]

Exam tip: This is for 1st time test takers: Don't walk into an exam stressed out. You did what you could to prepare yourself for the exam with the amount of time you had. Do your best and forget the rest!

[keri]

Get it done asap! Relax when life gets in the way. And tons of MC.

[Anonymous]

Tip – Read and re-read your study materials! When you think you've got it down, read them again!

[Author]

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