[Jsmi77y]

I was 1 point shy of being a CPA, so I’m back at it and don’t want to mess this up again. I’ve taken my fair share of tests but I’ve never really changed my study habits all that much. I want to for this BEC retake because I think it’s the edge to actually put this behind me.

A short history – I learned mostly from Roger videos and doing infinite MCQ. Probably mastering the MCQ to the point I knew the test bank but lost the concepts, or never grasped them.

I rarely take notes, and when I do it’s once. I realize people say write it over and over, but what does that even mean? What does that do for you? Are you just writing it, only “sort of” thinking about it in hopes it clicks? Or are you deeply in thought about every word/calc you write down as you are writing it? I think I get frustrated with notes not doing anything so I resort to more MCQ because sometimes I can get into them.

My other hangup is when I read a concept from my books over and over again (generally I don’t read much unless it’s a concept I’m not getting). What happens is that no matter how many times I read it, I need to see it done in a problem, but a lot of the time when I see it, it only leads me to another question. And at that point I don’t know where to track down another similar question, or if I go back to the book I still get left with blanks. This usually ends up in me missing why something is happening, and it’s often theory and concepts that I’m weak at. Usually on top of formulas, but I do get mixed up on how to put the formulas together based on presentation.

This is being pretty honest with myself and I’m sorry if it’s unclear. Does anyone relate similarly? Any suggestions? So so so appreciate it ahead of time. I want to be DONE DONE in july. First BEC then the REG I lost.

All of this because of 1 point!

REG - 68 | 71 | 88 | 86
FAR - 72 | 74 | 79
AUD - 66 | 70 | 77
BEC - 62 | 74 | 80

Guess that means I'm a soon-to-be CPA!

[jeff]

Nerves are frazzled today…you might not get a lot of responses until things die down 🙂

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

[Tncincy]

The thing with rewriting is at some point it will stick. I'd rather learn by doing as well so when I am doing mcq's I do the example over and over until I can do it without looking at the steps. Then I do a few questions, if I miss the question, I go back and review the steps again. I even make flash cards of the steps to help remember what to do when facing certain problems. Missing by one point….I think its something simple.

It begins with a 75
Been here too long as a cheerleader....ready to pass

[Anonymous]

Writing notes or anything down is how I learn. I never had to study in high school or college because I took notes. I had wrote it that one time, so it was in my brain. When you are writing something down, not only are you seeing it on the paper, but you are also saying it to yourself as you are writing it. That helps reinforce it in your brain to know it.

[LPMI17]

I write notes because it forces me to look at the material again, and it usually helps me condense the topics to the bare bones. I also found it really helpful to explain topics to someone else (If they'll stay awake), because it forces you to think through the topic, logic, etc. I picked a family member with NO understanding of accounting, and if I could explain it to them in a way that made sense (without looking at notes), I knew I had it. That may not be for everyone, but it helped me a lot.

FAR: 91
REG: 84
BEC: 90
AUD: 94

[evesocal]

Missing by one point (or passing by one or two) – IMO there is an element of luck.

I admire your determination.

I agree with the writing notes approach and also, very much so, with the explaining it to someone else approach. Really helpful but time consuming. Even saying it out loud to yourself helps, if there is no one who will suffer through listening.

Best of luck!

B: 75, R: 80, A:77, F: 81, Ethics 84, 92

Licensed in California

B: 75
R: 80
A: 77
F: 81
Ethics: 84, 92 and done!
Licensed in California

[Jsmi77y]

When you guys re-write notes, do you literally copy them word for word? Do you just do repetition and less deep thinking? Or is it more about re-writing it to understand the concept fully?

REG - 68 | 71 | 88 | 86
FAR - 72 | 74 | 79
AUD - 66 | 70 | 77
BEC - 62 | 74 | 80

Guess that means I'm a soon-to-be CPA!

[Jennifer241]

I write notes on things that stump me, or things I just don't get. The actual act of writing them down somehow helps me to understand it more.

AUD - Jan 9,13 Pass
REG - Aug 30,13 Pass
BEC - Oct 26,13 Pass
FAR - Dec 4,13 Pass

Licensed CPA in the state of Oregon

[tessablkwd]

I have a whole notepad full of “fact nuggets” as Jeff calls them. Writing down a quick sentence after I miss a MCQ has really helped, and they're easy to read back through w/o having to search the text or full notes. Plus, it's a pad full of information I was unclear on in the first place, so I know I need to review it, unlike my full notes that I may not need to read fully.

AUD: 71, 87
BEC: 85
FAR: 80
REG: 12/6/13

[SeattleAccountant]

Those that read my posts probably noticed that I advocate & practice very thorough preparation. Over the past two weeks while preparing for BEC, hopefully my last exam, I decided to run a little experiment. Normally, I write flashcards and record almost all missed questions. I did this for three sections that were taken and passed on the first attempt. During review the overall MCQ results are around 80 -91% during the first round and around 85 – 98% during the final review.

So, I thought perhaps I'm doing way too much, as in inefficient/over studying, and decided to forgo flashcards, and wrote only bare min notes for first two BEC chapters. Result: 76 – 80% on the first round 🙁 While it might not be completely bad, it lacks the confidence edge personally desired comes the exam day.

There are literally gaps in my knowledge with doing it the latest way, so last night went back to the old studying method (completed flashcards, read book carefully, took sufficient notes).

Conclusion: Better stick with hard but effective studying rather than worrying about being efficient and compromise passing chances.

Becker Class of Jan - Aug 2013: FARB DONE!!!!
CPA license pending 🙂

[SeattleAccountant]

Oh, urghh, I just (hours later) realized that posted in wrong thread. This should go into BEC prep thread, not here! Sorry for inadvertently high-jacking it.

Becker Class of Jan - Aug 2013: FARB DONE!!!!
CPA license pending 🙂

[Anonymous]

@SeattleAccountant: I thought you gave study tips. BTW it matches very well to this topic (study strategy) too.

Good Luck.

[Jsmi77y]

Thanks for the responses guys and gals, they definitely help.

One more question, when you write down something about missed MCQ, is there any organization to it? Or do you just write it down despite jumping from Cost to Fin Mgmt to econ, etc?

I really never took notes before so I'm trying to get a grasp of what works for most people. I wish I could be a fly on the wall to see exactly how some of you do take notes! It's not really time consuming to jot down a sentence or two after a missed MCQ, so I feel I'm doing something wrong and I have no comparison to make sure I'm doing it effectively. I'm not terribly worried about efficiency, once I pass this test I'm golden because REG is an easy area for me.

REG - 68 | 71 | 88 | 86
FAR - 72 | 74 | 79
AUD - 66 | 70 | 77
BEC - 62 | 74 | 80

Guess that means I'm a soon-to-be CPA!

[Zaq]

Keep it simple.

– Get a question wrong? Write out the “fact nugget” for both the right answer choice and the wrong answer choice.

– Don't quite understand a topic? Write out the procedures you are unfamiliar with.

– Mnemonics? Formulas? Write it down. Repetition helps with memory for those items that don't require conceptual understanding.

– The things you normally say in your head after learning something? Write it down.

I have about 20 pages (and going) of single-spaced typed notes that I copied from my written notes. I list the notes in bullet points so I can separate each idea. When I'm in my review stage, or if I'm too tired from MCQ's, I read through those notes which help reinforce all the concepts I was weak and/or struggled in. Constant reinforcement of topics and ideas that you miss help eliminate that weakness.

And that's it.

FAR: 50, 76!
REG: 74... (ouch baby, very ouch), 76!
AUD: 65, 91!?
BEC: 80! Aaaand doneskies!

May 2012 to August 2013. Can't believe it's over.

[Jennifer241]

I watched the video's, then I do the reading in Wiley book, take notes and make flashcards on new content, then I do the required MCQ's from that section in the book. Anytime I get an answer incorrect I look at why. Then I plan to hammer our questions in WTB during my final 1-2 weeks of review.

I keep my flashcards in my purse, so I can review them on my commute or on break at work or during lunch. I even write out examples of calculation problems on them so that I can see the calculations all the way through. (Visual learner here)

I am currently in my 1-2 weeks for review stage. So now I am working through in the Wiley test bank all the Corporate Governance questions in 1 Practice session mode. Then I go to the Reports section in Wiley, click on incorrect questions, and go the Corp Gov practice session. Now I take the NINJA notes, turn the page over and right down all the Question and correct answer as well as the reason why it is correct. I am done with Corp Gov, and almost done with IT, and hope to be on Economics tomorrow. So today I will be reviewing my NINJA notes, including my nuggets on the back, for Corp Gov. Tomorrow I will review my NINJA notes for Corp Gov & IT. It doesn't take long to read the notes, maybe 15 minutes.

Try not to do all your NINJA reading at once, do some before work while you are getting ready, do the next on break at work, do another at lunch, then some after work.

I also practice my brain dump. I write down all the things I want to have written down when I get to the exam center. I haven't made one for BEC yet, but I am sure that some of the things I will want to write down are:

CRIME, PURE DADS, y = mx +b (helps me if I have this written to see which is dependent variable and independent)

*Just to clarify as to why I do a brain dump, it isn't that I don't know these things it is the fact that I want to be able to easily refer to them. For me, it is a time management function. This is a timed test and sometimes I have a brain fart trying to recall something that I already know.

AUD - Jan 9,13 Pass
REG - Aug 30,13 Pass
BEC - Oct 26,13 Pass
FAR - Dec 4,13 Pass

Licensed CPA in the state of Oregon

[tessablkwd]

I don't have a real organizational pattern to my fact nuggets. They're just bullet points, but I be sure to write enough in the sentence that they don't require anymore context to remember the fact.

AUD: 71, 87
BEC: 85
FAR: 80
REG: 12/6/13

[Author]

Replies