[Topo30]

Et al,

I am sooooo bummed and frustrated!! Why? I just found out I Failed AUD for the 4th time. My scores were 60, 65, 65 and 69, respectively. Been at this for WAY too long. two years to be exact. Not sure how much longer I can take defeat!!

I do not know what to do!! I study, do MCQs, rinse and repeat. I go over and over the ‘weak’ areas. I am starting to think that the review course I purchased may not be for me! Prepping with Becker 2014 materials. $3,500 down the drain.

In addition, I am embarrassed to tell friends and family that I neglected them for weeks ie., missing parties, etc., to only fail and fail time, and time again, let alone tell the wife! More importantly, I CANNOT bear the look on my 4 year old son’s face to only find out that Dad gave it all come test day, to only once again FAIL the CPA Exam, after promising the little one I would make up for lost time.

What a way to kick-off the Memorial Day weekend! Close ones were not only looking forward towards paying homage to our nations heroes, but to also celebrate my own ‘personal’ triumph.

Suggestions, thoughts, opinions.

-Real name: Jimmy Haney

AUD-FAILED X5
FAR-FAILED X1
BEC-FAILED
REG-FAILED

[Lisa_Jane]

I was really touched by your story and I understand what you are going through. I also heard that a candidate isn’t likely to pass the AUD exam if they were never an auditor. This is not true because I passed it and I had a lousy auditing teacher and I’ve never been an auditor. The exam is mostly theory so forget the notion that you can’t pass.

Some people I know get great results from Becker but the cost is high. Others don’t do that will with Becker. I’ve read the textbooks, and the summaries are well written and the charts and graphs are nice, but you have to take it all in and digest it for yourself. I had a hard time with the reporting area of the exam. I started to make my own notes and charts and put them in those plastic sheet protectors and kept them in a notebook. I could refer to them any time I needed them and that really helped because the notes were created by me. A big help was the Wiley Online Test Bank. I did those questions over and over until something clicked and I started to get all the questions right. I also printed the Authoritative Literature and put it in a notebook. The AL is written so well that it really helps you understand the rules. When you are doing the SIMS in the exam and don’t know something you will be a whiz at looking it up because you will really know the AL. I created a spreadsheet with all the ins and outs of audit reports. It wasn’t until I got involved with making my own notes (and not Becker’s or Wiley’s) that I passed the exam.

Friends and family just don’t understand how tough the exam is for some of us. Whatever you do, don’t give up. Reschedule your exam for the next window and don’t take too long to review- just get in there and do it again.

You can schedule some time with your family and friends. Set a study goal and stick to it. I study an hour in the morning, some at lunch and some after work and a lot on weekends. You should still be able to go to parties and events. It’s all about time management and you can do it, too.

Lastly, if you feel you need a change in your review class, I highly recommend Ingram CPA review. The instructor is a college accounting professor and he makes very concise summaries for students. He will ship the audio CDs to you and you can call him and email him and get personal attention and advice. The course is very affordable and it might give you a much needed change in perspective.

https://www.ingramcpa.com

Best of luck!

FAR Passed 5/28/14
AUD Passed 1/22/13
BEC Passed 7/12/13
REG Passed 5/9/14
Virginia CPA license issued July 2014

[Lisa_Jane]

I was really touched by your story and I understand what you are going through. I also heard that a candidate isn’t likely to pass the AUD exam if they were never an auditor. This is not true because I passed it and I had a lousy auditing teacher and I’ve never been an auditor. The exam is mostly theory so forget the notion that you can’t pass.

Some people I know get great results from Becker but the cost is high. Others don’t do that will with Becker. I’ve read the textbooks, and the summaries are well written and the charts and graphs are nice, but you have to take it all in and digest it for yourself. I had a hard time with the reporting area of the exam. I started to make my own notes and charts and put them in those plastic sheet protectors and kept them in a notebook. I could refer to them any time I needed them and that really helped because the notes were created by me. A big help was the Wiley Online Test Bank. I did those questions over and over until something clicked and I started to get all the questions right. I also printed the Authoritative Literature and put it in a notebook. The AL is written so well that it really helps you understand the rules. When you are doing the SIMS in the exam and don’t know something you will be a whiz at looking it up because you will really know the AL. I created a spreadsheet with all the ins and outs of audit reports. It wasn’t until I got involved with making my own notes (and not Becker’s or Wiley’s) that I passed the exam.

Friends and family just don’t understand how tough the exam is for some of us. Whatever you do, don’t give up. Reschedule your exam for the next window and don’t take too long to review- just get in there and do it again.

You can schedule some time with your family and friends. Set a study goal and stick to it. I study an hour in the morning, some at lunch and some after work and a lot on weekends. You should still be able to go to parties and events. It’s all about time management and you can do it, too.

Lastly, if you feel you need a change in your review class, I highly recommend Ingram CPA review. The instructor is a college accounting professor and he makes very concise summaries for students. He will ship the audio CDs to you and you can call him and email him and get personal attention and advice. The course is very affordable and it might give you a much needed change in perspective.

https://www.ingramcpa.com

Best of luck!

FAR Passed 5/28/14
AUD Passed 1/22/13
BEC Passed 7/12/13
REG Passed 5/9/14
Virginia CPA license issued July 2014

[Author]

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