[I can and I will]

Hi there,

for anyone who has received a recent non-pass score- I’m looking to accumulate some study tips here. Especially from people who have failed, and then passed. I feel I’ve really done everything I can but obviously receiving second non-pass score- I am open to tips.

as of right now- I read the book, take notes in the book, and I also create my own notes. I go to mcq, and write down any of the objectives behind the answers I get wrong, I write them in a note book. I also look up youtube videos if I have a difficult topic. I also write down all my difficult topics and try to hone in on those in mcq, and my video/ notes. I also listen to jeff’s audio notes when I drive, and some roger videos on youtube.

I don’t practice sims as much as I should- and they are my weakest area.

I am so upset because i was scored above 85 percent average on ninja, and was doing hundreds of mcq a day.. its clear my weak spot is sims. and I think i just need to face the music and practice them all. I got a 64 before ninja, and got a 72 after using ninja.

[felixsphone]

If you're weak on SIMS, use the blueprint and do all the application/analysis topics as MCQ or SIMS. You have to be able to think through SIMS, the AICPA sample test is really representative of their difficulty and applicability. Search up: Feynman Technique, it's a leaning method used to help break down topics into understandable concepts.

[NoName]

I have found that by making custom comparisons it can help a lot.

For example….imagine you are summarizing the different liquidation basis and gain/loss rules of partnerships, S corps, and C corps (each legal entity as its own column)

The rows of the summary would show the rules such as gain/loss, basis, etc when a liquidation occurs. This allows you to see the topics side by side so that confusion for these similar topics can be reduced or eliminated

I did this for many topics in REG as there are so many similar (but different rules). Another example (business law) would be whether consideration is needed for a common law contract, vs agency, vs UCC article 2, vs a surety agreement.

I created an endless amount of these summaries but it takes a lot of time (benefit is that if you master these you can nail most of the MCQ questions for the topic)

[NoName]

Create acronyms! I actually created about 75 different acronyms for REG to help memorize lists and elements of items.

Here is an example for the terms of a contract using the acronym “P I N TI Q”

Price to be paid
Identity of the offeree and subject matter
Nature of the work
TIme of performance
Quantity involved

I adapted this idea from Becker who does have some of these but not nearly enough. I created such acronyms for the various lists in the Gleim book and chapters.

As long as it can sound like a word you can use it.

[Anthony]

Then do sims if you're weak at it. Kind of stupid not to practice something when it is almost worth half of your exam score. Did all of Gleims sims and MCQ and went 3/3 on passes consecutively after my first attempt at FAR.

[Mike J]

I believe you should just toss the failure notice. You got a zero.

Conceptually, you're closer than you think but I would get into the mentality that you have to start over. Fact is, you won't get the same exam next time. Also, there's a curve.

Instead, take the next weekend or two consecutive days of your chosing and seek to become an expert in the 2 or 3 topics you know you didn't understand. Don't go by the letter from NASBA. Which subjects gave you the most trouble. For me it was pass-thru basis and manipulating Corp E&P.

So during this time, put away your CPA exam materials (ninja, Becker, Yaeger, cingage etc). Scour the internet and your old textbook from college. Find YouTube vids, go on IRS.gov. Again, your goal is to just increase your knowledge base.

Then, put what you find in your own words. Then find an example or 2 of MCQ on the subject and compare solution sets to your notes. Then, if you took notes as you practiced last time, incorporate the new stuff with the old.

Basically, you want to increase the knowledge base and start with getting your confidence back.

Everyone's different, but this worked for me.

You'll get it done this time. Good luck.

[Steve K]

Personally, I took the exam 4 times before I passed my first section, I took FAR twice, and Audit once. Failed all 3 with a 70.
This past score release, I found out I passed FAR with an 81 and here is my “two cents.”

If you failed, first try to determine what was the cause. Did you feel that you were adequately prepared? Did you underestimate the difficulty of the exam? Did you put in quality review time? etc.

The first few times I prepared, I felt like I could cut corners and still pass (because I had practically all A's in my undergrad accounting classes). I found out the hard way that intelligence and a passing score don't correlate and that you really need to study.

Another piece of advice, NEVER skip a chapter/module you don't understand simply because you think it won't show up on the exam. Trust me, it will.

Third, I would try to determine if the study method you are using works for you. Everyone has different ways of learning. The first time I studied for the exam, I would watch the Becker vids, do the MCQ's at the end of each module, do some sims, etc.
I found out this didn't work for me and wasted too much time (by the time I finished learning new material after 6 weeks, I forgot the stuff from week 1).
So I switched my study strategy and passed FAR the first time I used this new strategy. What did I do? Ditch the lectures. I would allocate 1 week per 2 chapters plus an extra week for review. (So for example, FAR has 10 chapters in Becker, I studied for 6 weeks; 10/2 = 5; + 1 week for review = 6). I would read the book, take notes on what I felt was important, and skipped the MCQ's. When I got to the review week, I hammered MCQ's, like 300 per day.

Again, this worked for me but might not work for you. Once you find the ideal study strategy for you, you'll be set. Definitely don't get discouraged though. I wanted to give up many times after finding out I failed some sections but I didn't let that stop me. Hopefully i'll be halfway done by the end of the this yr.

[Spence]

I did not fail an exam but I thought I would give some tips anyhow. While review courses are great, I think many individuals rely on the format and information in the course too much. I consistently would Google and search for similar problems and alternative ways to solve problems that proved difficult. You must understand the material inside and out which will help if something is thrown out of left field critical thinking will help you work through it. It's easy to get comfortable practicing topics and problems you are familiar with, however, searching and understanding the reasoning behind the questions you missed will give you a leg up on the exam.

As many say, it's not a test of intelligence but a test of discipline and critical thinking. I'm a senior associate at a public accounting firm and while I work with a number of CPA's, they all vary in experience and expertise. If you have a good work ethic and a thirst for knowledge (i.e. want to know why the hell that problem/answer/entry) is correct, you will do fine. As long as you keep pushing forward, gaining experience and questioning why, you will do fine. I never thought I would be a CPA or in public accounting so anything is possible. You can do it and its worth it. Just stick to it.

[Jgabbay]

I work 8am-6pm and studied from 8pm-11:30pm every night (monday-thursday) + a few hours weekend mornings, with the following plan that has helped me raise my failing scores about 20 points:

5 days a chapter… Do not watch the lecture…
Day 1 and 2) For each Module in the Chapter, go through the annotated textbook on Becker and take down concise notes, pay attention to what's highlighted etc. From those notes, create hand written flash cards on white index cards for topics you believe to be important.
Day 3 and 4) Go through the MCQs with your flash cards. If a topic is hit more than once in the MCQs, transfer that topic to a different colored index card. Any time you encounter a MCQ that you are even the slightest bit hesitant on answering, create an index card for it.
Day 5) Do the sims and run through all index cards, with particular emphasis on the multi colored index cards.

Then during your lunch breaks, commutes, whenever you have a spare 15 minutes, run through your index cards – carry them with you, its the textbook in your pocket :). Rinse and repeat – this is the best way to ensure you are retaining the material. By the time you sit for review, the multi colored index cards should be the main topics on the exam and you mainly study those. Most importantly, you must review these multi indexed cards before you go to bed.

Again, rinse and repeat- you have to ensure you are taking progress tests and going through these flashcards for past sections as often as you can.

At first this seems like a lot of work, but in reality its less than you think. Its efficient and still allowed me to have a free night Friday, Saturday, Sunday nights.

Try it out! Hope it helps!

[ILIQEX]

To give some context, as an IQEX candidate, I only had to sit the REG exam – however all of the material was brand new to me, coming from abroad. I work full time in public accounting. Throughout my study period I typically worked 8am – 7pm. I used the Gleim preparation materials.

In terms of time dedicated to studying, I would spend 1.5 hours/night during the week, and 4 hours on both days at the weekend (the joys of a 1 year old child!). On average I would say I got through a few chapters a week (there are 20 in Gleim).

My studying would consist of watching the lectures, which I found to be really good summaries of the material, without going into the sometimes minute details that were unlikely to come up regularly. Once I had watched the lectures, I would just hammer MCQ's and SIMS (more so MCQ's). I found that by reading the feedback from incorrect MCQ's, I learned a lot of the detail that the lectures maybe didn't hit on, so I would strongly suggest making sure you understand why the other 3 answers are wrong, not just why one is right.

Finally, to give people some hope, I was absolutely convinced I had failed upon walking out (historically I have been pretty accurate on evaluating my performances in exams), and yet came out to an 85. It's not rocket science, it's just putting in the hours.

[I can and I will]

with all due respect ILIQEX- there are plenty of people on this site who have put in plenty of hours and have still failed.. purely because of not studying the right methods or they are not the best test takers..it might not be rocket science but some of us need more time than others

thank you all for the helpful advice

[ILIQEX]

Sorry I guess that's what I was saying – it's a time thing rather than a complexity of the material thing. I guess I just read a bunch of posts from people trying to cram exams in to a set time frame rather than being honest with themselves and allowing for the time they need to do it properly. Didn't mean it to come across as condescending.

[I can and I will]

thats okay… i Understand what you mean. I think I spent about 125 hours on BEC- passed pretty nicely. I've spent over 200 hours on audit and I am IN AUDIT, and I've been struggling pretty hard.
open to any advice people have.

[Author]

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