[nfs480]

So i’m on to my second exam now after having taken FAR and frankly I was expected audit to be easier since it was only six lectures in Becker as compared with 10 for FAR. So far i’ve discovered that I must just be better at mathematical problems than memorizing concepts because the passmaster problems are just destroying my confidence. I have my test on May 14, any advice on how to pass this thing?

FAR 93
AUD 89
REG 81
BEC 87
Ethics 100

Becker 2012 Self-Study

[Anonymous]

Memorize the standard audit report. Just about every review course I have seen says to memorize it and the first three times I took AUD I didn't. I was familiar with it, but I didn't memorize it. The fourth time I knew it like the back of my hand and got an 83. You will be surprised at how easy the questions on the report and the exceptions are once you have that memorized. Good Luck!

[Tina82]

Keep going through the chapters and don't get hung up on the first few. Not sure what materials you are using (Becker for me) but for audit it starts making sense and everything sorts of clicks together.

Also what worked for me was taking many notes before doing mcqs (outline type notes on the whole chapter). It's time consuming but it worked for me. Used ninja notes for last day review.

R - 74;88
A - 84
B - 74;89
F - no study = 67; May 15 = 87 & done

[Texas27]

I didn't memorize the standard audit report word for word but I could tell you what the most important parts were, what paragraphs contained certain phrases, and which paragraphs to modify when you don't issue a unqualified report. In my opinion, the best way to study for audit is do multiple choice questions but pay attention to why you get one right or wrong. Honestly, I didn't feel ready at all for audit after studying for 3.5 weeks and after I took the exam I was convinced I failed but I ended up with an 84. I just took FAR and the biggest difference between the two is time management. You can fly through audit homework in Becker which is also true on the exam. I finished the multiple choice with a little over two hours left for the simulations and I used the crap out of the research tab for the sims. Knowing how to use the research tab for audit can be the difference between passing and failing.

BEC - Feb 2012: 80
AUD - Feb 2012: 84
FAR - Apr 2012: 78
REG - May 2012: 90

Thanks Becker!

[oneFREAKINGpoint]

I found that writing out all of the opinions for each type of engagement and noting how they differ from the standard opinion helped me a great deal. It takes some time but it definitely helped me see the big picture and made the concepts stick better than passively reading it.

[nfs480]

Thanks guys, that helps a lot. The thing i'm struggling with the most is A4 where the roles of different departments in proper internal controls during the seven cycles come into play. But I definitely do need to pay more attention to the audit reports.

FAR 93
AUD 89
REG 81
BEC 87
Ethics 100

Becker 2012 Self-Study

[Tina82]

Transaction cycles are a pain. I can't say I learned these inside out; was definitely struggling with them. I tackled these by doing many multiple choice and getting a grasp on the bigger picture concepts. Eventually it made sense – maybe 75% of it :). Wish I could help more, but definitely go over many mcqs on this, hopefully it will help – the becker book itself was very confusing to me on this topic.

R - 74;88
A - 84
B - 74;89
F - no study = 67; May 15 = 87 & done

[nebraska]

totally agree with tina! the second time i took audit i just skimmed through the transaction cycles lecture/book but mostly just focused on the multiple choice. i feel like the A4 chapter is applying what you learn in the other sections to different transaction cycles…it's not necessarily new material. don't let this chapter bog you down!! i went through the multiple choice in that section and learned by looking at why i would get answers wrong. i mean still don't think i understood it very well by the time i took the test. at the end of the day i think knowing the audit report is SO much more important than transaction cycles. and it's good that you've already taken FAR, since i felt like a lot of the simulations overlapped with financial topics.

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

[KassiusKlay]

transaction cycles are the Devil's work. Becker has a few pages which are very very helpful in terms of audit reports, and what paragraph is modified, omitted, or unchanged. That is a pretty helpful chart.

Form is temporary, class is permanent.

Audit 4/19/12 - 77
BEC 5/31/12 - 75
FAR 8/30/12

[Anonymous]

Ugh, Tran cycles are pain.

First time I took AUD (73), I pretty much skipped that section in A4…not the best idea. Second time (75), I read the section in Becker mulitple times, and attempted few MCQs (there's over 100 for that topic, I believe). Honestly, don't worry too much about it. Def. don't ignore it, but if read it 3-4x and really understand the concepts, and you'll be fine.

As far as other sections in AUD go, make sure you really understand compilation, audit, all the differences in reports, etc. Do as many MCQs you can and you'll be fine!

Good Luck!

[nfs480]

Thanks for the advice. I studied A4 twice and did all the practice problems including the optional ones and I think I got about 70% of them correct. Hopefully that's good enough.

FAR 93
AUD 89
REG 81
BEC 87
Ethics 100

Becker 2012 Self-Study

[Anonymous]

That's actually not bad!! I'm sure you'll still improve that score during the review stage!

Good Luck!

[mla1169]

AUD was absolutely the hardest for me! I think it's because I'd rather solve an equation than memorize rules. English and literature classes bored me to tears and that's what AUD reminded me of. You're doing all the right things just hang in there.

FAR- 77
AUD -49, 71, 84
REG -56,75!
BEC -75

Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

[Texas27]

A4 in Becker suuuccckkkkksssss! I still had no idea what I was doing with regards to transactions cycles and audit procedures the day before the exam. About 25% of the time I could narrow it down to two answers but I would always guess the wrong one. Funny thing is I actually ended up preforming “stronger” on that area according my score report.

BEC - Feb 2012: 80
AUD - Feb 2012: 84
FAR - Apr 2012: 78
REG - May 2012: 90

Thanks Becker!

[Keely]

I agree with mla. I've already made 40 flash cards and I'm only on A1. I started with BEC and even though it was all over the place, at least there were some calculations. I definitely prefer those to memorizing an entire book.

BEC: (4/2012) 88
AUD: (5/2012) 91
REG: (8/2012) 82
FAR: (1/2013) 78 🙂

VA CPA #42010

[MChro12]

I'd recommend memorizing/understanding (know the mnemonic) the standard audit report. It is a great building block to know for all the different types of opinions since they are all variations of it.I wouldn't get too caught up on the transaction cycles, but understand the basic flow of them.

Reg 77 (Aug 11)
Aud 80 (Nov 11)
BEC 79 (Jan 12)
FAR 80 (April 12)

[Author]

Replies