[pickanicken]

I’ve only been on this forum for a couple of months, and have noticed a wide variety of stories and exam experiences. I have seen some people who are making their way through each exam without any retakes while others have struggled and have had to take some of the exams multiple times. So I keep asking myself: What is “the edge” the some people have that has allowed them to pass on the first try? Is it because they are fresh out of college? Is it because they put in 300hrs of studying? Is it because they studied smart and focused on the right topics? Looking for anyone to contribute to the discussion, but I am curious to hear what some of the 1st time passers have to say.

REG - 81
BEC - 83
AUD - 86
FAR - 78 (Done!)

[Anonymous]

I passed all 4 exams on the first try.

My “secret” was that I didn't take an exam until I felt prepared and ready for it. This meant that I was only taking 1 exam per window but I was ready for that 1 exam. It took me 10 months to finish the whole thing (from the time I started studying FAR to the time I took my last exam). You will see a lot of people taking multiple sections of the exam in a window. If they pass they will be able to finish the whole thing a few months sooner than I did. But if they fail any portion than their timeline gets bumped up similar to my 10 month timeline.

Other than that it's just study, study, study. Understand the questions and don't memorize answers. Even if you remember that the answer is Elephant remind yourself why that is the case and what the concept behind Elephant actually is.

[Anonymous]

Some people are just better test takers than others.

[Ag12thman]

Good stuff in this thread. Thanks for all the advice. Very helpful.

FAR: July 2016

[Mamabear]

My two fails were due to lack of preparation. I took AUD two weeks after BEC because I had no idea what I was getting into and was dual studying for the two. By the time I took AUD I was burnt out. My first REG fail was due to not fully getting my weak areas even though I knew they were my weak areas. I kept studying my strong areas because they made me feel confident instead of hammering out the weak areas until I understood them. Neither fail was due to having a full time job, being married, having 3 children under the age of 5, or due to study materials. It was just poor planning and execution on my part. If you have a game plan, stick by it, and make your hours of study quality hours you probably won't need to question your materials or put in an obscene amount of hours like you are shooting for 99's. You need to figure out how you study best and put in the time, quality time, and don't be afraid to ask for help from friends (to baby sit) or from the forum (to explain things you don't understand), etc.

CPA Exam - Finally DONE (November 2014)
BEC (08/10/13) 80
AUD (08/24/13) 65 (11/13/13) 85
FAR (04/12/14) 81
REG (07/19/14) 69 (11/29/14) 87!!

[jlee1086]

I agree with Lilla: knowing yourself is key. The people who pass the first time learn quickly what works for them. The first time I took FAR, I did Becker self study and couldn't stand the lectures. I tried pounding through questions without finding any alternatives to Tim Gearty. Long story short, I just ended up memorizing much of the questions. The 64 and 68 came from doing more of (mostly) the same. I got higher percentages with homework but they didn't mean much.

This time around, I went to the live courses, did Wiley/Ninja questions and made lists of things to review based on questions I got wrong. I also went to a tutor and made my own flashcards. I used the Becker ones for my 2nd time at FAR and found that there were too many to go through. Never again. Although I didn't feel good walking out of my exam, it was enough to make the 3rd time a charm! I also happened to be a late bloomer in school too (went from a C in Intermediate I to A- in Intermediate II by changing things up).

FAR 57 (11/2014), 64 (1/2015), 79 (7/2015)
AUD 68 (2/2015), 79 (11/2015)
REG 79 (1/2016)
BEC 81 (4/2016)

[Author]

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