[diabloargentino]

Hi All –

I was knee deep in studying for the CPA coming out of college and starting work in Big 4 and got distracted by several things. I lost 2 parts as well as motivation and left the exam behind.

3 years later – I’m now working in private, still have fairly tough hours (especially in Q ends) but have decided that I want to come back and conquer what I should have before.

I was very well educated in the exam, how it works and the in’s and out’s. Now that I haven’t even thought about it for about 2+ years, I wanted to ask this community what major items have happened that I should be aware about going into it. I’ll be using Becker for my review (worked very well the first time around). I believe that AUD may have changed in some way recently? Perhaps also BEC?

I plan on starting with BEC as I consider it the “least-heavy” and getting through it quickly should give me some motivation in tackling the more comprehensive parts.

Thanks in advance for any information and advice.

DE

[Tncincy]

Since you've been gone a few years, I suggest getting updated or new materials. They should cover updates. Instead of trying to get a list.

It begins with a 75
Been here too long as a cheerleader....ready to pass

[Anonymous]

Start with FAR, trust me.

and not much has changed, def some content, but in terms of the exam format and what not, it's all relative to when you tried taking it.

– Some changes are coming in 2015, I believe to FAR, so make sure to inquire with your review materials provider about updates.

Def pick up new review materials.

[Anonymous]

Becker did just do a comprehensive update to their materials so you really should pick up the updated version… Especially for REG.

Also, I highly recommend you start with your most difficult subject area. Remember that the clock starts ticking…

[CPA soon]

If I was to do it all over again, I would personally choose Roger, just my 2 cents. I think all 4 sections had some noticeable changes since 3 years ago, so you will need to update your course.

I personally did FAR first to minimize the risk of it expiring since it's the biggest. As a side note, BEC is less material than FAR but it is not easy by any means, I know many people that consider it their worst section. I think it's more manageable than FAR since it's less volume but it's a crap load of formulas and garbage from all topics they didn't know where to put lol.

Whatever your study plan is, make sure you use a testbank because practice is the key to passing.

FAR - 71, 68, 74, (8/31/14) 78 ✔
REG - 67, 71, 71, (10/18/14) 78 ✔
BEC - (11/29/14) 86 ✔
AUD - 73, (4/4/15) 86 ✔

I can't believe this is over! 2 years and 3 months..

[Mamabear]

I had the same method as you by doing BEC first. I regret it. Start with FAR or REG and knock one of the big guys out first. That 18 months will go by quickly and it won't take as long to study for BEC as it will for the other ones. Just my opinion.

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!!

[Rocky123]

Personally, I went with my easiest section first. I didn't want to get discouraged and quit. The first pass propelled me forward.

Everyone is different. That's what worked best for me.

The tallest oak in the forest was once just a little nut that held its ground.

AUD-PASS
BEC-PASS
REG-PASS
FAR-PASS

Rocky123, CPA

[Laura M.]

This was me! I took about 6 years off and a lot has changed! I had used becker in the past, but this time I purchased CPAexcel for a few reasons but the main two were 1) Costs (they give you free updates until you pass) and its fairly inexpensive 2) Lesson Size – I am a mom to three and work full time and needed something I could start and stop without feeling like I was in the “middle” of something when I had to walk away.

Good Luck!

FAR - 82
AUD - 79 (lost credit), 75
BEC - 76
REG - 91

CPAexcel and Ninja Notes and Ninja MCQ

[Garion]

Took the Exam in 2000 as it was required by my firm. Narrowly missed passing each section as I was in the upper 60's without studying much. Thought I could waltz back in whenever and make up the difference. My career progress did not require a CPA so I just kept going for 15 years without it until I was laid off this past year. Ummmm… an opportunity knocking?

My advice… Do it NOW!!! if you are ever going to. Waiting hurts your career is so many small ways you won't notice or care until it's too late.

I wanted to finish the four exams in six months so I intentionally set it up to take a longer section with a shorter one with the harder pair during the first session, take a small break, and the easier pair during the second as I knew the energy would run out.

I committed to Becker self-study, followed the program and worked my butt off to get it done. Oh… and my lawyer girlfriend made me do all of the MCQ's at least twice. That's just how I did it so I could clear this endeavor off the bucket list in short order.

Depends on how you want to do it… but commit and get it done! Don't wait until your in your 40's… it sucks. Good Luck!!!

FAR 84 (7/24/14)
BEC 87 (8/28/14)
REG 84 (10/14/14)
AUD 86 (11/24/14)
Ethics 98 (1/19/15)
Licensed CPA: March 13, 2015

[diabloargentino]

thanks for all the responses.

the wiley cpaexcel does look pretty good and fitting for studying while working. truthfully, my plan was to get one of the first years/interns at the big4 firm i worked for to share their becker with me so i don't have to spend any cash for reviews. now i may actually see if my firm would be willing to cover the wiley version as it's not too expensive.

i also like the idea of splitting the exam into 2 “parts” each with one of the longer exams. definitely want to knock off FAR sooner than later but as some others said, getting through BEC will put me back in study mode before i dive into FAR.

unfortunately, we have year end coming up which took my team through march last year. once i come up with a plan, though, i intend on asking management to allow me to leave early at 530-6 whenever possible to get home to study.

[smeech8000]

If you're comfortable with BEC content, especially if your current job focuses on a lot of Cost-relevant material, then I agree with your plan. I had the same attitude as Rocky, start out with what you feel confident in to get the ball rolling; better to knock out BEC than invest a lot of time in FAR and miss by a couple of points.

That being said, I would make sure you plan out your study approach and adhere to it and/or adjust based on exam performance and/or comfort level with the content. Becker worked for me according to my study plan, and I'm sure it will for you too as long as you put in the time.

BE AWARE that there is a huge difference between BEC and the other three sections because of the Written Communication portion vs. the Simulation exercises present in FAR/REG/AUD. Sims are much more demanding relative to the WC (especially if you are a good writer), both in terms of time and knowledge required. As such, more prep will be required… you want to be familiar not only the content for Sims but knowing how to maneuver the format will save you precious time as well. The Prometric/AICPA system for navigation in the Sims is absolutely horrible; you have no options to alter screen resolution/font size, Tab/Enter commands are counterintuitive… it seriously needs overhauled.

As far as changes, I do know that there has been a change to AUD since I passed (I believe Becker's 2014 edition reflects this change). I can't attest (pun intended) to changes made for any other section.

Good luck!

B 92
A 99
R 90
F 92

Becker Self-Study

OH CPA since 2/18/14

[leslie4real]

I agree with 4corners and Mamabear. But Smeech 8000 has also a good point. If you do alot of cost accounting, BEC might be a good start.

Like you, i gave up a few years ago because of the merry-go-round of losing credits. This time around, i started with FAR and REG to get the big monsters out of the way. I've always passed Audit so it was not an issue. And as for BEC although it has less chapter, i would not call it easier, it was the exam i had to make the most educated guesses, so study well for at least the questions you should know.

Also, for this time around, i started with the easy chapters first that are easier to review, so that way, the harder chapters are more fresh in my mind. There's nothing worst (given the amount of material) to review the first few chapters and realize how it is easy to forget everything. So for instance for REG i started with the law section and Individual tax (chapter 1), which are easier to review and gives you some confidence and then i tackled, chapter 2,3,and 4. For BEC I studied chapter 4,5 and 6 and then did chapter 1, 2 and 3. Everyone is different, but this worked well for me.

FAR: 80
AUD: 81
REG: 78
BEC: 76

[Author]

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