[Journey to Fate]

Hi all,

I think this post is about almost 4 years in the making but I thought it was finally time to share my journey with the Another 71 community.

Basically, my journey started in 2008, not spending enough time led to two horrible failing grades in BEC and Audit respectively. After way too long of a break, I am back at trying to beat this exam.

I recently studied very hard but found out today in the score release that I scored a 63. The positive that I took from this is that I vastly improved since I last took AUD in 2009, but did not think I was that far away. How does everyone suggest I get those last 12 points? I am using Yaeger home study and the cram. It was the first time I thought I was really prepared for the exam and walked out thinking I had a chance to pass. Clearly, I fell short.

My next plan of action is to take BEC on 4/14 then retake AUD on 5/21. Does this seem like the way I should approach it, as I have been studying for BEC since I took AUD.

I look forward to reading about the advice that the Another 71 Community has and I look forward to sharing my journey towards passing this exam, finally.

– JTF

BEC- 67, 69

[yankeeaccountant]

@Journey

I am sorry about your news. For me, Audit was the hardest of all the exams. Everybody has their “beast”, we are all different.

First, I would like to say welcome to the forum. This is such a wonderful outlet in addition to a source of information and camaraderie, glad you found it. My first thought is, I am wondering if it wouldn't be best to hit Audit first then BEC? If you just started BEC, I would get back to Audit while it is still fresh in your mind if you can. There are so many little details and layers in Audit. What testbanks were you using? I really like using two testbanks if it is feasible. And I would also take time to understand why the answer is wrong and why it is right. I usually take notes while doing the mcq's and then reread those notes each night after working the questions. I think with the retake of Audit, I probably wouldn't watch the lectures again, but if I had time, I would listen to the cram. I found that I was surprised to have so many “light bulb” moments every time I took Audit (4x!!) I have heard alot of good things about the Yaeger Audit . alot of people swear by Gary Bulmash.

Keep the faith, this is a tough ride. Best of luck to you going forward, I know yesterday was a tough pill to swallow, been there many times, give yourself a bit to regroup, and then get back on the attack.

Take care!!

[Journey to Fate]

Thank you for your kind words. I am looking forward to recieving support and advice from the Another 71 community and hope that it will help overcome the struggle to passing this exam.

I am using Yaeger for the entire study process….wiley book, test bank and the cram. Audit, or so I thought came naturally to me, so it was the biggest comfort level.

The reason I am taking BEC in 4/14 instead of Audit (5/22) is I dont want to spend another two months studying for the same part. I figured I have already spent the last two weeks studying hard for BEC (im halfway thru the material) and if i stopped and re-started Audit, it would have basically wasted the last two weeks. I dont know anymore.

I think that I can take BEC then just do as many MC's and re-do the cram for audit in that month or so and see if I improve. The difficult part is I have a great memory, so I just dont understand why I cant get past this thing. The only positive I have been able to take is that I did considerable better this time then I did in 2009, so I am definitely improving.

How can I get those last 12 points? Any suggestions for BEC? I am open to all suggestions.

As you know, some days are better than others, but sometimes I wonder how I am going to pass this.

BEC- 67, 69

[RedStorm45]

What's your schedule like (family, work, etc.)? Write, write, write. Writing is so much more effective than highlighting. Consider the NINJA notes.

Don't sleep on the WC for BEC. Know the basic setup and you should get most of those points.

Cannot help you with AUD at this time because I cannot figure that one out.

Starting all over.

FAR - 11/27/13
AUD - 1/4/14

[nebraska]

Hey journey–I bumped up my score by 13 points by using the RTFQ method (read the … question). I totally thought I nailed it the first time I took it, and was shocked by my failing grade. I finished two hours early the first time. When I retook it, I slowed down and paced myself because I knew that 4 hours was plenty of time to finish. The questions can be deceivingly tricky, so making sure you understand the question can make all the difference. Best way to get this down is by doing as many MCQs as you can.

Also, I agree with yankee on retaking audit while it's still fresh in your brain. It's not like the two weeks you've spent on BEC are going to be a waste of time because you're not going to completely wash it out of your brain. Might have to go back and review the things you've studied in the past two weeks, but you won't be starting from scratch.

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

[Journey to Fate]

@yankee, redstorm and nebraska

Thank you so much for your support and advice!!

After reading your thoughts, I re-applied for the NTS for AUD today and hopefully in the next day or two, i can re-organize my scheduling to take Audit in April then BEC in the May time frame. After thinking about it, you guys are right. With my score in audit, it seems like I have a lot more work to do (i am not sure how i studied so much for it!).

So that takes me back to audit. I have been using Yaeger. How do you suggest I tackles Audit over hte next month and a half to get my score up 12 points?????

BEC- 67, 69

[NECain]

@Journey

I had good luck with the Wiley book and NINJA notes combo to help pass Auditing. I also ordered the Wiley online testbank and hammered out all those MCQ's. Following Jeff's ELL Plan, I was able to get the book read, the notes reviewed, and the MCQ's all finished up in about a month and a week. I was then left with a week of solid review. You will get this done. Just don't doubt yourself and put in the necessary effort. Best of luck to you.

REG - 79
BEC - 75
AUD - 84
FAR - 75
Done...Thank you Wiley Books, Wiley Test Bank, and the NINJA Notes

[Marivy22]

@journey

Taking Audit 1st during next testing window was a great decision. Adding BEC to your brain will certainly make you lose some audit information. I passed AUD on the first try with a 79 (not a huge score, but passed) with Becker and Wiley test bank. I will have to say that both were good, and I saw similar questions on the exam. I also, went and reviewed testlets 1-3 twice and testlet 4 like 4 times LOL. For the SIMS, I used the research tab a lot.

Good Luck!!!! You are not alone; we are all fighting for those 3 letters.

Done 😉
Class of 2012!!!!
Lots of prayers and hard work....

[Journey to Fate]

@redstorm – studying an hour before work, at lunch and as much as possible after and on weekends. Some days are better than others.

@mar. Is the ninja notes good? Does anyone else recommend them?

I really need to get 12 more PTs!

BEC- 67, 69

[mla1169]

I definately recommend the Ninja notes, look what it did for my AUD score the 3rd time around!

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

Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

[Journey to Fate]

So…question…

For the retake, do you take that table they send you into account very heavily (i.e. what areas you were weaker on, and what areas you were stronger on)?

I want to make sure that I spend the appropriate time on each section to make sure I get that extra 12 points next time around.

BEC- 67, 69

[RedRage00]

This is how I passed AUD on the first try just using the Wiley book and online test bank.

I didn't use Yaeger or anything else. I taught myself so keep that in mind.

If I remember correctly the Wiley book had 8 modules.

I answered every single question in the Wiley book in a study mode. I would read the question and then read the answer in the back. AUD is all theory so it was easy to just read the question and then read the answer and “study” the material at the same time. I didn't care so much about whether I got them right or wrong because I knew it would get easier as the weeks went by.

After that I hit the Wiley online test bank. I would make 20 question mini tests in study mode. I would start out with a 20 question testlet for Module 1….done…65%…..move onto module 2…done…maybe 50%…..who cares? I was studying. I knew it would get better…..module 3…..4….5….6…..7…8…..Notice I did a 20 question mini test for all 8 modules during a study session. I would then start back at module 1 and this time I would make sure I entered into Wiley “questions not seen yet” or something like that so that I wasn't getting the same questions. I did that over and over and over again for all 8 chapters until there are no questions left….this helped me to not forget any one section. I know some people do all the questions in one module before moving to the next and by the time their review starts they forgot everything from the earlier modules. That was never the case for me. I was constantly doing questions for all 8 modules.

After a couple weeks you'll see the modules where you need more work and you can concentrate more on those modules, but don't forget the other ones. Continue to study the material with 20 questions testlets just do a little more on those sections that are hurting you.

I think I answered every single question in the Wiley online test bank 3 or 4 times before sitting. I didn't memorize though. I made sure I understood why it was right and why it was wrong.

I hope this makes sense lol

Texas CPA
Licensed, March 2012

[Journey to Fate]

Thank you so much redrage!

BEC- 67, 69

[Ridefast600]

All the above is good advice. My advice to you is to make sure you get enough sleep. I studied like a madman my first attempt and got a 72. I was always tired. The retake i really made sure i had good concentration for the study time. Some one recommended to get quality time in rather than quantity. I didnt study more than say 60hours for the retake as i always made sure i was rested. That mademy study time way more productive. For the test, I finished the first time in 2 hours. The second time I tested was 3 months later (after i took far and reg) i used most of the clock ensuring I completly understood the question. They like to give ?s that have great sounding answers but do not really answer what they are asking. So make sure you are 100% rested and that will add to your score, i amsure of it.

BEC. 81
AUD. 72, 78
REG. 87
FAR 76

After 6 long months, I AM A CPA! Good luck to all!

[Author]

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