[Anonymous]

Last time I aimed 75 , I got 74. I think this time I am aiming high, even if I get 75 I am happy .

So fellow members who got 90, what were your study strategy? I am willing to do anything to achieve my goal.

[Anonymous]

I didn't score a 90 but I can offer advice on passing. Restudy everything. If you thought you knew a topic, study it again, I assure you'll pick up a few things that you didn't first time around.

I went over the whole book and if I didn't study an obscure topic I made sure I at least had a general idea on it.

I got at least 5 questions in the MC on topics that I skipped over saying they won't show up, only to finally decide to at least reading them a few days before the exam. Can't stress how much I'm glad I did.

Best wishes.

[ty58527]

I got a 93 on AUD and I took it this past July. I used Wiley Books and CPA exam for free. I would suggest these three items:

1. Be sure you understand the concepts. A lot of the questions can be figured out conceptually if you understand the full audit cycle, where the different procedures fit, and what the intent is of the individual procedures (specifically, what objective do they fulfill).

2. I would make sure to study all of the material and make sure you have a grasp of things included on the test not specifically related to an audit such as independence rules, compilations, and reviews. These are also a part of the exam and could make the difference between passing and failing.

3. On the SIMS, you can look up a lot of information in the authoritative literature so take advantage of it. On my test, I was able to look up over 50% of the answers to 3 separate SIMS.

AUD - 93
BEC - 85
REG - 89
FAR - 86

I am DONE!!!!!!

[jalban1324]

I agree with ty58527. I had two research SIMS (I don't know if we assume one was pretest). Two other SIMS – straight out of the authoritative literature. Yes, I studied a lot since AUD was my 1st one, but I really think the SIMS turned it for me.

A (05/23/12) 92
R (07/02/12) 77
F (08/29/12) 69 Retake 2/27/13 80
B (10/22/12) 79

[goodluck2everyone2]

study as if your life depended on it= pass

half ass study= fail

thats what it comes down to

cool story bro

[Anonymous]

You're going to encounter several questions that are word for word from your review course; it's just the nature of the material. That being said, grind MCQ like your life depended on it. During my final review, I made sure to do a 100 question progress test every day leading up to the exam, in addition to the actual review. Good luck and remember, all you need is that 75!

[momto5]

I printed the MCQ's in Becker that I either struggled with, always confused me, or seemed quite random (like I hadn't seen them covered much in the material). That way I could write notes on them. (I still prefer paper and pencil to electronic data many times). Took these with me the morning of the exam and made sure I reviewed those. Also printed the SIMS (copied screen) with their answers so I could review all that. I spent the entire morning of the exam reviewing (exam was at 2:00 p.m.). Progress tests are very helpful to keep things fresh, and knowing the concepts, of course, is key.

FAR - 92 (4/27/12)
AUD - 96 (7/17/12)
BEC - 92 (8/30/12)
REG - 91 (11/12/12)

[Anonymous]

The whole mindset about you only need a 75 to pass is exactly what allows people to fail. It's good that you finally have the mindset of trying to get in the 90s. Personally, I don't have any number in mind when I study. My goal is to just master the material, and that goal is not that hard to achieve. To be honest, the material on the CPA tests is not difficult at all. Most everything being tested is being tested at a pretty elementary level (sure, there may be a few tricky questions but with practice you should be able to learn those tricks and be aware of them). The only thing that makes the CPA test challenging is the amount of material covered, so you just have to be dedicated enough to learn and even memorize every small detail that could be tested. It certainly takes effort and time, but even then, it doesn't take an absorbent amount of time, just look at my test schedule (sure, I'm studying full-time, but still).

[Mr. Mini]

@cardinal – I want to know more about you. What is your story?

[Anonymous]

Haha anything specifically you have in mind? I just graduated college which is why I'm studying full time before I start work next month doing finance/accounting work.

[Anonymous]

How was REG, cardinal? Good luck in AUD next week.

[miniedeCPA]

I read the book three times, did wiley MCQs and Becker MCQs 2 times, made index cards to use on the subway, and wrote 22 pages of notes.

CPA CLASS OF 2012!

AUD-85
FAR-85
BEC-79
REG-77

Licensing in progress~

[Mr. Mini]

@cardinal – Did you go to Stanford? What was your major? What firm are you joining? (or type of work if that is too personal). Will this be your first job? What do you want to be doing in 5 years?

You seem sharp and I like that.

[Anonymous]

I'm glad that you figured out my username! No, I didn't go to Stanford, but I'm a huge fan of Stanford athletics, especially football. Are you from the area? I went to the other university that my username refers to if you can figure that out haha. I was an accounting and finance major, and I'm going into mergers and acquisitions type of work. No idea what I want to do in 5 years. I definitely think I'm going to end up in business school at some point in the next 5 years as I've already gotten the GMAT out of the way. Maybe consulting after that? But, really I have no idea. Originally, in college, I wanted to do investment banking, but after I talked with my friends who went into it, I rethought that. Then I ended up in M&A/accounting work, and I'm really open to anything that sounds interesting at the time. I should probably eventually figure it out though.

[Mr. Mini]

Interesting stuff. The M&A market has sucked for the past few years but may be picking up some steam here. Good line of work. Seems like the CFA would be pretty relevant if you want to tackle that during or after business school.

I'm an old dog (29) and live in So Cal. I spent 6 years at a national business valuation firm (we had an investment banking arm as well) before i went out and started my own firm.

Good luck on your remaining exams.

[Lizzerz79]

I skipped the videos, after watching 1.5 sections I figured out it was a waste of time for me. I read the book, read flashcards (Becker & ninja), ninja notes, rewrote ninja notes, and worked tons of m/c questions from Becker & cpareviewforfree. I think the key was consistently going over and over the stuff until it stuck. Took me about 5 weeks because of working full-time and I'm pretty sure the other parents at my kids baseball games thought I was the worst mom ever because I would be reading ninja notes & flashcards on my phone at the games but oh well, I passed!

AUD 4/1/12 98
FAR 5/30/12 96
BEC 7/1/12 92
REG 8/18/12 94

[Author]

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