[markfwb]

I work at a Circle K Convience Store and a Sunoco convience store because I can not find an accounting job. I have an Accounting degree and I am qualified to sit for CPA exam in California. According to the CBA, All I need is 15 more credit to acquire the needed 150 credits. I make 9 dollars an hour, I am broke and in debt. I have managed to save $2000 on a review course but i have been out of Accounting for 10 years and I barely remember my intermediate courses but I am extremely motivated. I worked 80 hour weeks to get the money by selling alcohol, lotto, and tobacco to some of the harshest people in one of the most poverty stricken areas in Florida. I want to turn my life around. Im dropping down to one job 40 hours a week to study. I was considering Gleim because of its price but I am leaning towards Rodgers because I like his enthauaiam. I dont have money for retakes because im married with lots of bills. All i have is an Android 8inch tablet and a cheap boost mobile cell phone but ill buy a laptop if necessary. Please i need your input. Once I get my cpa im going to get a job with a local firm but they wont consider my application until I pass this test since I was a medicore college student. Again I can not spend more than 2 grand and my accounting experience is limited to bookkeeping so i need the best guided review. Becker is out of the question. Cpaexcel seems complicated and Yaeger seems boring and hard to follow. I could be wrong. I like video lectures and lots of sims and mcqs most importantly I need structure. Thank you for your feed back and godspeed to everyone.

Using only Gleim. If i can pass this exam then anyone can. I am a stupid idiot.

[Anonymous]

I agree with everyone else. Work on getting an entry level accounting job first. I started as a staff accountant in industry. I was busy at month end and busier at quarter end, but other than that, I had a ton of down time. My boss was really cool and encouraged me to pursue the CPA – even said I could study during down time at work. I was an idiot and didn't take advantage. Anyway, it would suck if you spent all the time and money passing the exams and still had issues finding work. Job first, CPA second.

[Missy]

How are you going to get a CPA if the last time you worked in accounting was 10 years ago? You need experience to get a license, and with all due respect if I'm looking for a consultant/bookkeeping business, I'm going with someone with recent clients/references and experience.

You sound ambitious which is great, but not particularly realistic. Nobody goes from pumping gas to running their own firm without some steps in between. Even if they are the greatest expert in quickbooks.

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

[Anonymous]

Experience is very important when job hunting. I didnt do any internships while in college due to my college athletic commitments and it hurt me when I started looking for a job. I had a strong GPA, but couldnt seem to lock anything down because I didnt do a good job networking and my lack of related experience hurt me. I ended up having to go the local government route, which was a good opportunity, but not exactly what I had in mind.

[Anonymous]

Created with Compare Ninja

[Missy]

Pretty sure all states have some type of experience requirement. I am in MA where the experience HAS to be in attest, private experience doesn't count. I have a masters degree so I was able to waive the experience requirement (even though Ive been in general ledger accounting since 1996).

OP said he is in FL, they do have 1 year working under the supervision of a CPA as a requirement.

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

[markfwb]

Im sitting in california. And ill work for dirt cheap. Ill work cheaper than an illegal immigrant to get my experience. Besides i have friends that can get me a job as long as i pass this cpa test.

Using only Gleim. If i can pass this exam then anyone can. I am a stupid idiot.

[Anonymous]

Hi, I would say go for it, get your CPA!

But make it a priority to find an easy accounting job, like accounts payable,

accounts receivable, bookkeeping.

At the same time purchase NINJA.

[Dantrick]

Your local library may have some books, ours does. There are some good youtube videos out there. I would do the Ninja MCQ for sure.

[GuitarSalad]

I liked the fact that CPAExcel doesn't expire and it worked pretty well for me. It seemed to work pretty well on a tablet for the most part (iPad), but doing some of the practice sims on it was tough. I also liked the few ninja products that I used, but I can't say much for the rest of the stuff. Others really seem to like it.

BEC 7/12/13 - 84
AUD 8/31/13 - 86
REG 4/11/14 - 84
FAR 5/30/14 - 88

Licensed AZ CPA - 10/2014

[Skynet]

markfwb- I feel your pain. I am in the a similar situation too. I work part time at a discount retailer while studying for the CPA exams. I really can't do much because without them passed since I've been out of school for a while and was really affected by the Recession.

Even though I'm and Enrolled Agent currently, Taxes is only seasonal and my goal really is to get my CPA.

You may want to consider Gleim Premium version. It lets you have access until you pass plus they have a great test bank too. You can add Ninja as a supplement too since Ninja is also a great product too.

The only thing I can say is to keep at it. It's going to suck for a while, but if you have the motivation you will succeed and don't let anyone say otherwise.

[Liss, Master of Coin]

I admire you OP, and I hope you pass the first time.

Given the 50% pass rate, it seems that average candidate can not pass all 4 the first time, so if you do fail a few, please don't give up.

My first question is, if you live in FL, why sit for CA?

If you are flexible on what state to sit in, you might look to see what state charges the least amount of fees, and which have the longest NTS. I'm guessing the NASBA exam fees are the same no matter what state you sit in, but you might look to see if sitting in another state could save you money there.

I love Roger; he explains things well, gives great examples, and his energy makes boring topics seem not so bad.

But it is pricey. If you do go his route, and if he still offers it, buy the 2 years access option.

Again, he's is pricey.

If you want cheap, buy the Wiley books.

I myself couldn't learn by just reading the Wiley books, but that's just me. I have heard people here have success with the books. Lilla comes to mind, and she passed them all the first try. She's offered pointers to others; you should look for her posts and see what she suggests.

You need a test bank, and I think Ninja's is the best, and is the most cost efficient.

I also strongly suggest the Ninja audio.

Since money is tight for you, I suggest that you hold off on paying for the NTS until your MCQ Average & Trending score is in the 90s for your first exam (probably FAR, since that is the biggest).

If I was you, I'd read the FAR Wiley book, when done, go to Ninja's FAR MCQs. Go through all the MCQs once.

Then send off the application for your NTS.

That'll take 2-4 weeks. By the time you get that, if you are scoring in the 90s and about to hit the review phase, then send the payment info to NASBA right away. You'll get the NTS within the week, and hopefully can schedule your exam within 2 weeks of that.

If you aren't scoring that high yet, then hold off on paying NASBA until you are either scoring in the 90s, or their payment window is up.

It costs $25 to reapply through CA. if you have to, pay for all 4 sections at once. But if you can afford an extra $25 to CA, then for your first NTS only sign up for 2 exams. When you've taken those, then you can reapply for the last 2.

I know the CA NTS takes 9 months to expire, and that seems like a long time; but life has a habit of getting in the way (as well as the blackout months) which makes that 9 months go by fast, which is why I suggest waiting till the last possible moment to pay for NTS for your first exam.

Also, try to schedule it so your NTS doesn't expire during a blackout month. If it does, then you're basically wasting a whole month of possibilities (e.g., if it expires June 15th, you have to sit by May 31st; but if it expires July 2, then you still have the whole month of June to study).

I agree with everyone here that says experience is a must.

I know you said that you have friends that can get you a job when you pass, but am wondering why they can't get you an entry level job now? If they have that much pull where they can ‘guarantee' you a job once the exams are passed, why not help you now and get your foot in the door? I can't help but find it odd that there isn't even a reception job or filing clerk job they could give you at an accounting firm.

The CPA license isn't a golden ticket, but CPA + Experience will help open a lot of doors (even then, that's not a golden ticket).

Good luck!

CPA (MA, Non-Reporting)

The difference in winning & losing is most often, not quitting - Walt Disney

B - 33, 71, 79!
A - 32, 61, 70, 83!
R - 33, 58, 73, 69, 81!
F - 47, 78! 🙂
After 3 long years, I'm finally DONE!
I could not have done it without NINJA MCQs.

Used: Roger for his Videos, WTB, and NINJA Audio, Notes and Test Bank.

[Author]

Replies