[jetablack4]

New to the forums and the test – my friend who recently passed told me about this site. Over the past two months I took REG and FAR (definitely will not take both these tests so close together again), and on both of them I ran out of time. I use Becker study materials and place some of the blame on them as the simulations given are much easier and much less time consuming then the actual CPA exam. On both tests I left myself about an hour for the simulations and both tests I was unable to finish them. I feel that I did really well on the MC but very poorly on the Sims.

Would you guys think I even have a chance of passing either of these exams?

REG – 1 sim completely blank, completely guessed on the research as I ran out of time

FAR – 2 sims completely blank, research was a general guess, did not feel so great about the other sims.

On a side note does anyone else find it extremely hard to complete the sims when they have two tabs (which you have to scroll up and down) and also have to use the calculator on such a small screen. I feel like it takes forever to organize all the info given and it is very time consuming to wright everything down compared to having information given to you on a sheet of paper. This very frustrating especially when I know the material so well and feel as though I did great on the MC and just got straight up hosed on the Sims.

REG 81
FAR 70,85
BEC 81
AUD 91

[mena je twa]

Jetablack4

What is done is done…You can't change it..But just a simple advice

In this new format where SIMS count for as much as 40% of your score, i believe they give partial credits for a lot of little things. If the simulation is asking to fill a dollar amount say AGI, and even you have some number in there you will get a partial credit. Also, it takes 1 minute to just put zero's in cells where numbers are required and also i think if you just even touch a TBS you get some credit…even half a point…. But leaving a SIM completey blank is a cardinal sin….in this new format….

Just my 2 cents.

Licensed CPA, Texas - 2012

[Anonymous]

It's hard to tell how much time you need for the Sims.

I gave myself only 1 hour to do the Sims for FAR and REG and was able to finish just in time. With AUD, I gave myself 1 hour and a half for the Sims and almost ran out of time. I had to rush through the last Sim. Very weird!!

[Anonymous]

I'm not an optimist by nature, so I personally don't like your odds. I would recommend that you keep yourself refreshed on the material because Hail Mary passes in the end zone get dropped more often than get caught. But hopefully you will be pleasantly surprised by the end of this month.

[Anonymous]

@jetablack4- You'll just have to wait for your scores. People here can predict all they want. It's not going to change what the real scores will be. I'm just as anxious to get my scores as you are, but we'll just have to wait. Good luck!

[jetablack4]

@CPAMan – agreed, I was just curious if it was even a possibility, which it looks like there is a a remote chance. I completely understand that this test is different from 2010, which is why I posted on this forum to see if I had a chance – as I mentioned my friends were encouraging but they did not take my test. I am not getting my hopes up but I am hoping for a miracle.

I always look at everything as a learning experience, good or bad, and now know what I have to do to pass (more time for sims and better prep) if I do in fact fail these exams.

REG 81
FAR 70,85
BEC 81
AUD 91

[zooyuka]

Wow! Minimorty is a moderator? Usually forums have moderators to keep jerks out threads, in this thread the moderator is the jerk!

BEC 71,77
REG 65,85
FAR 7/1/13
AUD 8/24/13

[jeff]

Minimorty is an active poster and is helping me keep an eye on exam disclosure.

Let's all be nice to each other…the common goal is to pass the beast and move on with life.

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

[khachik2003]

speaking of exam disclosure, there's a thread on factoring of A/R that probably should be deleted

[Anonymous]

Yeah, there's a lot of exam disclosure posts here.

Jeff, maybe you should consider adding a “Report” button on each post. CPAnet has that option. Maybe there should be one here. That way, people can just click the Report button so you and the mods can be immediately notified.

Just an idea…

[jeff]

Report button added back (it was lost when I switched servers). Thanks!

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

[Anonymous]

For 2010, the SIMs weren't usually pretest questions. Last year the sims were worth 30%, this year it's 40% — so think about it, if you miss one sim under the current format you stand a better chance than last year.

[Laura]

What isn't being factored into comparing the exams (which really is just not even logical) is that 10% of the 30% was the written communication….which i would think is a freebie of 10% for most people.

REG-80, 77, 77
BEC-67, 68, 71, 67, 71, 74, 71, 74, 72, 77
FAR- 72, 65,67, 53, 75 (truth be known the 53 was with 4 hours of studying)
AUD-58, 62, 72, 74, 74, 75
took 5 years but I'm DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[senbi575]

I think overall the study materials out there need to be updated for the recent changes in the exam format. The new simulations in my opinion are tougher than the old and require a huge amount of time. I left 90 minutes to do my REG simulations which I thought was more than enough time, I left with only 5 minutes remaining on my exam time, and could have easily spent another 30 had I not been so frustrated and fed-up with it. I didn't even understand what one tab was asking and I barely knew 70% of the others, but I still ended up with a score in the high 80's. I did feel very good about the multiple choice, and clearly had lengthy quesitons on my 2nd & 3rd testlets. I am not sure how they grade these sims, and probably never will, the “fill-in-the-cells” style responses gave me the impression that you either got the right answer or you didn't (how would they give you partial credit on these?), add to that the heavier weights on the sims and it makes the grading and guessing of your score even more of a head scratcher.

[NoScores2Display4thisSection]

im pretty sure i had at least one FAR TBS tab (2011) that was likely 100% incorrect (or close to it). It might have been a pre-test tab though. to my surprise i got an 88

CPA scoring guide says that all MC questions are weighted on 3 factors which are: (quoting from

https://www.nccpaboard.gov/clients/ncboa/public/static/How_the_CPA_Exam_is_Scored.pdf)

“Difficulty – whether the question is generally easier or more difficult for candidates,”

“Discrimination – how well the question differentiates between more able and less able candidates, and”

“Guessing – the chances of candidates answering the question correctly just by guessing.”

My take from all of this (and I could be wrong) is you could say CPA exam is curved in the sense that all of the operational questions you receive on your exam previously appeared in prior testing windows as pre-test questions, where they were then weighted depending on the statistical results of “Difficulty/Discrimination/Guessing” -> the 3 characteristics above. So how well you are scored does depend a great deal it seems (if not entirely) on candidates' past performance when they encountered the same/similar question/topic.

For TBS, we know that having 6-7 tasks is new for these 1st 3 quarters of 2011. Approx 40-49% of people are passing, yet I doubt 40-49% of candidates are nailing TBS tab after TBS tab. If you completely miss a TBS tab or two that was a b*llbuster for most candidates, I could be wrong but I bet there's still a pretty good chance at passing. Best bet I'd think is to just fill in as much as possible on every TBS tab, even if you have no clue. Then if you have any extra time, re-read the instructions more carefully and if you're still stuck, check out the authoritative literature and see if you can figure it out more.

I just took AUD and might have passed/might have failed (dont know yet). I passed it the last time I took it in 2008 under the old format. I found that when I first got to the 2011 TBS tabs my heart was beating incredibly fast and I felt overwhelmed like I didn't know where to even start! Then I start to fill out what I know on each tab and nail the research questions next. Then if there's time go back and fill in more with a guess. Then if there's more time, re-read instructions and try to perfect the tabs. Then if with any remaining time if you can read the literature to get some hints that might help.

from

https://www.nccpaboard.gov/clients/ncboa/public/static/How_the_CPA_Exam_is_Scored.pdf

“The statistics are generated when the questions are administered as pretest questions and used in the scoring when the questions are operational.”

done

[mnCPAwannabe]

There is hope my friend. Both FAR and REG I left thinking Becker had not prepared me well enough – and both times I passed. I've learned to trust the Becker process and let the chips fall where they may.

I'd recommend enjoying the time away from FAR and REG while you can, just in case you end up back with them.

FAR: 84
AUD: 95
REG: 78
BEC: 88
ETHICS: 100

[Author]

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