[katoato]

This is just a note out there to everyone who didn’t get the news they wanted today, who feels down on their luck or hopeless, or who feels like they are presented with obstacles that make passing this exam impossible.

YOU ARE SMART ENOUGH. YOU ARE DEDICATED ENOUGH. You WILL pass. If you don’t give up, you will pass. My story follows…I joined a Big 4 later in my career and decided late in life that, despite not being a great test-taker, I wanted a master’s in accounting and a CPA while working 70-80 hours a week and going through some very difficult personal struggles. I knew I needed more time to carve out of my schedule to study, but just couldn’t get a ton of dedicated blocks and tried to hack away at it every free moment I could (I do not recommend this approach – being deliberate and planning for the time you need is a much better strategy, and you have some brilliant peers on this board who can help you do this effectively).

My strategy involved Becker, Gleim, and NINJA at different points. When I got tired or hopeless with one, I tried another. I found (for me) that Becker helped me understand concepts well but didn’t help me as much with the application…Gleim had great sims but I would fall into the reading and get trapped in the details and couldn’t get to a high up-enough level w/the concepts to really get them…and NINJA was finally the piece that brought it together for me. From my perspective, passing this exam was like trying to dance on the surface of water – you need to know a lot about everything, and if you spend too much time in one place, you drown. The key is getting the main concepts and being able to apply them if necessary and NINJA did a great job of that for me.

5 very long years (3.5 years getting into my program and taking my master’s, 1.5 years of CPA testing) of this journey later, I learned today that I finally passed. But here’s what I went through to get to that point over a year and a half:

2/17, old format of test (3 MCQ sections, 2 SIM sections) – FAIL FAR with a 74
3/17, old format – FAIL AUD with a 74
— PLOT TWIST – new exam structure !!! —
5/17, new format of test (2 MCQ sections, 3 SIM sections) – FAIL FAR with a 69
5/17, new format – PASS BEC with a 90
9/17, new format – PASS AUD with a 78
9/17, new format – FAIL REG with a 66
1/18, new format – FAIL FAR with a 71
3/18, new format – FAIL REG with a 73
— PLOT TWIST – new exam format !!! —
5/18, new format – PASS FAR with an 81
6/18, new format – PASS REG with a 78

10 tests. It was as easy as 1, 2, 3, 4…passing BEC on my first try, AUD on my second, REG on my third, and FAR on my fourth. 🙂 There was a LOT of heartache, but I just wanted to reach out to anyone struggling and let you know that, no matter WHAT you are facing…you can do this…and you will do this. I promise you will.

Have a wonderful July 4th everyone and keep the faith – you will get there! <3 Good luck to all!

[rahee]

aw congrats! 🙂

[Anonymous]

I got the terrible news today. I have failed REG and FAR. I admire your perseverance, but I am not feeling too ambitious about this anymore. I have taken the exam 8 times now. The only one I passed on the first try was AUD. I've failed FAR 4 times!!! I don't know how much more of this I can take. It's been over two years, and the process has been made worst thanks to all the score delays. I am tired of wasting my money. I am tired of locking myself in the house every night after work and every weekend just to study for this. I am tired of being disappointed. I am putting my health at risk at this point. I just don't know what else to do. Not motivated at all right now, but thank you for sharing your story.

[CPA2018]

well said and congrats!!!

[Anonymous]

I just joined this forum to respond to your post. I’ve been a CPA since June 2012, but your post resonated with me, because the journey was truly a tough one. Had a baby, lost my dad, went thru so many trials,failed so many times, spent money I didn’t have, just to fail again, and cry, and get mad, and scream for missing out from every social gathering, but reading your post, just reminded me of why it was worth it.
Congratulations on passing. I just want to encourage everyone who is still trying to pass all 4 not to give up. It is truly worth it. It will open doors experience and connection may not be able to open.
Thank you for this encouraging post, and I wish you the very best in life.

[Anonymous]

@katoato – my story is similar but started the journey in May 2014 and have been on and off taking these exams for the past 4 years filled with many emotions: feeling down, lots of tears, stress, some anti-anxiety meds, working a lot in public accounting, and then finally i passed all 4 in a row somehow something clicked for me. My journey was as follows

FAR – 62, 71, 67, 70, 70, 73, 79
BEC – 67, 80(lost 02/2016), 70, 79
AUD – 68, 77
REG – 69, 76

I agree with you, and wanted to echo that no matter WHAT you are facing…you can do this…and you will do this! Do not give up!!! It is worth it in the end. Thanks for sharing <3 and Congrats

[Tncincy]

@ katoato mu story is similar. I have been here too long as a cheerleader. my journey started about a while ago as well. well before all the changes and score release delays and etc. but I too have many failures due to lack luster study habits, distractions, grown children, demanding loving husband and the list goes on. I've been through the “you need to get it together”, lectures here and in my own head, spent a lot of money hoping and wishing things would be different only to fail again, but I am determined that neither my age or situation is NOT going to stop me from getting those letters. So I have an NTS for REG that expires in October. I'm going for Reg in August. I am getting my money together to get another NTS for FAR and I am starting again. I am using Becker which I got for a gift. I was using cpaexcel, but it could not hold my attention so I switched to NINJA only, but I have received Becker as a gift so I'll jump in with Becker and supplement with NINJA. I'm working on my schedule, all I have is time now (no tax season or college graduations to attend ) so CPA here I come.

Thanks for the encouragement
@ICanandWILLCPA: I feel your pain mentally and financially, but hey time brings about a change. I hope you change your mind and jump in again. If you need to take a break, take it. Then reconsider. I believe your user name. I believe you can and you will. Just reconsider.

Jeff, I think you should give away the cost of an NTS for the discouraged…..I know you just had a ninja raffle.

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

[Tncincy]

Congrats on a well faught fight. It's good to hear from those trying again or encouraging those not to quit.
Please jump in with strategies or suggestions.

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

[Anonymous]

@Tncincy Thanks so much! You made me feel so much better. I took a good 16 hours or so, but somehow someway my disappointment turned into anger which then turned to determination. I'm back on the roll studying again. This may seem impossible for someone who works fulltime/overtime, but I am going to try my best to study in less than 2 months. I am thankful for those who have inspiring stories of this journey and share them for people like me going through the storm. I knew this would be a rough ride, but its really hurting when you really put your all into it and end up seeing 68-74. Only those who have been there know the frustration. These are the scores you see when you actually had a decent understanding of material and gave it a great shot. You're stuck wondering where you went wrong and what you need to do to improve. The answer is still up in the air to me. The exams I passed were the two I walked out feeling like I failed. Most of my failed attempts I knew while taking the exam that I wasn't going to make it, but these close score are those where I felt like there was a good chance I passed. Congrats to everyone who has passed. I hope to see you all on the other side soon.

[Author]

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