[pretendadult]

I graduated late (May 21) and my school isn’t going to post my degree until the 16th, so in my state I can’t even apply yet. I’ve been studying AUD and just hoping my NTS will come in time for me to take AUD the first week of July.

Also I’m doing Fast-Pass and just chose them in order of availability, making sure they don’t overlap. My order is:

AUD: 6/22-6/27 (I’ve already started studying for this though)

BEC: 7/6-7/18

REG: 7/20-8/1

FAR: 8/3-8/15 (Will most likely study longer for this since I have until end of August)

People usually say do FAR first, BEC last. Any advice for me as I take this on in one window?

[Anonymous]

People say to take FAR first as many people find that it's the hardest and covers the most material (my REG book is bigger than my FAR book, though), so people want longer to study. If you're taking them all in such a short period, I don't think the order matters as much, but I would prefer BEC towards the end of the group as BEC tends to cover written questions that can come from any other section.

Good for you taking it while you're fresh out of school. Good luck to you!

[tuanxn]

Wow, what a schedule. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but you'll need to send the transcript once they post your degree. After that, there will probably be a 1-2 month wait before you receive your NTS.

[pretendadult]

@tuanxn I've heard a lot of ranging dated for getting the NTS, anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months. I'm in Maryland and I hope they can turn it out quicker. I go to UMD which is a huge target school for B4 and other accounting firms, the AICPA probably doesn't care, but I hope my state takes into consideration that the biggest school in the state hasn't applied yet.

[MaLoTu]

Why are you planning to test so close together?

tuanxn is right, it will take around 4 weeks (on the liberal end of the spectrum) to get your NTS once they receive your transcripts.

FAR is the most logical to take first because the subjects it goes over pop up again in all the other 3 sections. Not comprehensively, but having studied FAR first you would have a foundation for some of the other topics in REG, BEC, and AUD. Any order is possible though.

[golfball7773]

In South Dakota, it took about a week for the first NTS because they had to verify your transcript, etc. After that, I get my NTS usually within 5 hours of sending them my money online 🙂

FAR: 63, 55, 62
REG: 65, 77*
AUD: Fail, 64, 71
BEC: 72, 74, 81

*expired

[Missy]

I doubt the state board takes the timing of degree conferral into consideration. While some people are very ambitious and want to start the exam just weeks after graduation, its generally not the case. And hardly anybody shoots for all 4 exams in one window but I've heard of people who have pulled it off.

All 4 in one window is exceptional, I wish you the best.

Licensed Massachusetts Non Reporting CPA since 2012
Finance/Admin/HR Manager

[pretendadult]

I'm doing FastPass because I start work in September 2015 and want to be licensed before starting work. Most staff where I work advise getting it down with as quick as possible, so you don't have to study and work at the same.

[golfball7773]

@pretend – have you called your state board because mla is right. Just show them your transcript.

FAR: 63, 55, 62
REG: 65, 77*
AUD: Fail, 64, 71
BEC: 72, 74, 81

*expired

[More_Coffee]

Two months is a really long wait to get your NTS! I received mine 6 days after my application was approved… I live in Idaho though, maybe that's the difference. Hopefully Maryland is on top of it too 🙂

REG - 86 (4/11/15)
BEC - 92 (5/29/15)
AUD - 99 (7/23/15)
FAR - 89 (11/23/15) It's over!!!
>> Becker Self Study

[MaLoTu]

When I say 4 weeks I mean from the time they submit their application to the time they get the NTS … He hasn't even submitted the transcript to the state board for approval …

[pretendadult]

Thank you. I will call them Monday. I sent them an email today.

@More_Coffee I heard accreditation of the school may make a difference in the speed of application approval. If you go to a small school with 100 people, they will most likely have a harder time verifying your courses, but bigger, accredited schools are quicker.

What school did you attend?

[pretendadult]

@MaLoTu

I'm a woman person 🙂

[More_Coffee]

@pretendadult – Ohh, that would make a lot more sense if it was based on school accreditation. I went to Boise State, which is the largest college here (22k+ students). Obviously accreditation would be easier for them to confirm in my case.

@MaLoTu – Yeah, that's true. I'd have to add in another week for the time it took them to approve my app after I submitted it… two weeks total for me then. The longest wait was actually for my school to add my degree to my transcript, which took like 3 weeks or so. 🙁 I wanted to get started ASAP because if I pass all 4 sections within a year of work, I get a bonus. Gotta get it done!

REG - 86 (4/11/15)
BEC - 92 (5/29/15)
AUD - 99 (7/23/15)
FAR - 89 (11/23/15) It's over!!!
>> Becker Self Study

[pretendadult]

@More_Coffee Good luck with the rest of your exams!

My school has 27,000 students – just undergrad!

Tryna get my bonus too!

[golfball7773]

@pretend – what state did you apply?

FAR: 63, 55, 62
REG: 65, 77*
AUD: Fail, 64, 71
BEC: 72, 74, 81

*expired

[Author]

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