[lggoldman1]

Anyone have any successful methods to studying for the exam with diagnosed ADHD? I failed all 4 sections in 2010, all of my materials are outdated, my funds are limited, and I’m committed to passing this exam. I just got my NTS for audit but havent scheduled yet. Planning for first week in April. Whats the best study materials to use? Thanks.

[KasiaS]

First, kudos to you for not giving up! I hope 2012 will be your year!

I don't know much about ADHD so I'm afraid that I won't have much to offer there, but the best course is the NIU Correspondence although it may be a tad pricey if you say that your funds are limited (prices range from $475-750). This course is spectacular for focusing only on the stuff you need to pass without any unnecessary fluff.

To help you focus, try using the Pomodoro Technique (www.pomodorotechnique.com). It helped me focus all of my energy on my studies in bite-size chunks rather than bucking down for hours of nonstop studies.

FAR 88 (07/15/11)
BEC 83 (08/31/11)
AUD 81 (10/15/11)
REG 83 (11/26/11)

Used NIU Correspondence CPA Review

[jenuno01]

Great attitude. Someone on this site mention Adderall?…Might be worth checking out.

Class of 2012

[Sherrid]

@lggoldman1

A co-worker of mine has ADD and he was allowed accomodations by NASBA- I think he got time and a half for each of his

tests. You should call NASBA and check it out.

[Anonymous]

Everyone has some level of ADHD. There have been numerous times when I just started starring off during class or while studying, and I almost have to force myself to “snap” back into focus.

At some point it was so frustrating to me that I'd spend 8 hours to get 3 hours of reading done, that I really wanted to see a doctor. The only thing that held me back was the fact that I didn't want to rely on some drug to make me feel “normal”.

Just out of curiosity, how has your ADHD affected you? Do you think it's so severe that it would hinder you to function as a normal person would? This is informational for me as I can compare my symptoms with that of someone who has had it diagnosed.

[Peanut]

I have terrible ADHD. The Pomodoro Technique has actually been really good for it.

AUD 81 (X4) Previous scores 59, 72, 72
REG 80 (X3) Previous scores 59, 60
FAR 75 (X2) Previous score 67
BEC 79 (X2) Previous score 58

[hhiccd]

Someone mentioned Adderall, perhaps in jest, but in all seriousness I have a 20 year old son that was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 17 and Adderall has made a huge difference in his academic life. I never suspected he had ADHD because I assumed someone with it would be bouncing off the walls and he was not. What he was, and as you can imagine it became very clear in his teens, was impulsive, somewhat reckless, lacking in motivation, and unable to focus on anything for any length of time. I was skeptical at the diagnosis at first but after seeing him on Adderall I am a believer (and I am generally a no-drugs kind of person). The difference in him when he is taking Adderall is night and day as far as his motivation and ability to focus. He doesn't take the Adderall all the time but rather only takes it when school is in session as it sometimes affects his sleep patterns. If your doctor hasn't prescribed Adderall or a similar medication you may want to discuss with them whether it could be beneficial to you. No sense suffering in silence if there is something that can help! Best of luck — you can do it!

BEC 11/2009 87
AUD 10/2010 75
REG 11/2010 73, 2/2011 80
FAR 02/2011 85
Licensed FL CPA as of 10/5/2011 Yay!!!

[mla1169]

I have ADHD and am medicated for it. I am not what you'd think of when you think ADHD because I was a straight A student, but years ago, I was (LITERALLY) putting down a hardwood floor with school books on the floor in front of me to study while I was tapping the floor together. There was no way I could give one thing my undivided attention……ever.

The Pomodoro technique is the best suggestion BUT also try light background music when you are studying (for some people white noise makes it easier to focus for others it is just a distraction) and do some quick research on the link between food allergies and ADHD. Someimes changing what you eat will make a difference. I also found it helped to wear soft ear plugs while I was studying (and taking the exam) to kill any background noise.

FAR- 77
AUD -49, 71, 84
REG -56,75!
BEC -75

Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

[mla1169]

cannotpass, the drifting off like that is different than ADHD. True ADHD means focusing on too many things at once, not just the lack of focusing on what you are supposed to. And I don't take it likely. I INSISTED on a diagnosis from my primary, a psychiatrist (not a psychologist) AND a neurologist before I would consider medication. I tried 3 years worth of other medications (depression, anxiety, etc) before I would even entertain the idea of concerta even though the three types of doctors above were pushing it like dealers!

One day into the meds I was a happier person (many times adult ADHD is masked as anxiety)

anyway I know TMI but wanted to let you know that sometimes the thought that everybody has ADHD is a bit of a misconception.

FAR- 77
AUD -49, 71, 84
REG -56,75!
BEC -75

Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

[lggoldman1]

Wow, thanks everyone for your comments. Just to clarify my own personal situation, I was diagnosed with ADHD when I was 16 years old, and have been on some sort of medication (Adderall, Ritalin, Vyvanse) to treat it since then. I hated taking meds when I was younger, but as I've grown up, I've accepted the fact that medication does indeed help. I blew off my first two years of college, and eventually I got my B.A. in Psychology after taking almost three years off from school. After that, there was no way I was going back to school! But sure enough, knowing from the beginning that I was never going to work in psychology, I went back to get my Masters in Accounting after being out of school for 4 years. I did extremely well getting my Masters – I attriubute my good grades to maturity. I started studying for the CPA exam and took Becker in 2010 and I (stupidly) tried to fit all sections in before the end of the year in hopes of passing and avoiding all the changes to the exam that I knew were coming in 2011. In truth, I don't think I gave myself enough time to study. But, I figured I would take my chances. Unfortunately, the dice didn't roll my way at all. (FYI, I did have special accommodations – time and a half and private room.)

For me, and maybe this is because of ADHD, Becker was a waste of money. There's just sooooo much information!! And it's particularly frustrating to do so well in my Masters program and then completely bomb the exam. As far as ADHD is concerned, I'm the kind of person that can get completely lost in a game of tetris or a jigsaw puzzle. That's how accounting has always seemed to me – like a giant puzzle. So I think that's what has attracted me to the field. I am just so uncertain as to the approach I should take to studying for the exam. When I went in to take AUD the first time, I felt like I was taking an exam for something I had never even seen before! It just went downhill from there. But, maybe I just need to order some Wiley materials, sit down and just GET IT DONE!

By the way, thanks for mentioning the Pomodoro Technique – I've looked into it, and it seems very interesting and appears to be something that would be helpful to me.

Does anyone make their own flashcards? If so, what do you put down on them? Has this been a successful method of studying for people? Do you study the flashcards, or is it the writing of them that is actually the studying? How do you avoid not writing down every little detail on them?

AUD – 70, 60

BEC – 60

FAR – 47

REG – 47

[KasiaS]

I absolutely used flashcards for my studies. To avoid writing down everything I studied I did the following:

First, listen to all lectures completely while highlighting/taking notest in my books. Next, I read through the materials and took the related quizzes. I made notecards ONLY for topics I was getting wrong on the quizzes or things I didn't completely understand or consistently forgot. Then I'd do more MCQs and continue making flashcards for the topics I was scoring low on until I was scoring in the mid-70s at least. Eventually, I ended up with a stack of about 50-60 cards that covered all my weak areas. I read through these on the way in to the exam so all that information was fresh in my mind going in to the exam.

FAR 88 (07/15/11)
BEC 83 (08/31/11)
AUD 81 (10/15/11)
REG 83 (11/26/11)

Used NIU Correspondence CPA Review

[lggoldman1]

Thanks KasiaS!!

[Anonymous]

So, I'm not trying to be insensitive here, I'm just curious…but if you are medicated for ADD (thus, bio-regulating your brain to be of equal functionality of a non-ADD afflicted person), why do you get special accommodations (e.g. more time)? If ADD people get more time, prometric should start dispensing adderall! Haha

[mla1169]

Baseball I think thats a fair question and my best guess is that the medication doesn't exactly “cure” ADHD but is one tool (of many) available to help deal with it, the extra time is another tool.

Actually I am entitled to take the entire exam orally (could you IMAGINE?) because of a neurological condition that makes typing and writing far more difficult for me than people who don't have Dystonia. Obviously as you can see I've worked my way around it and manage to type, so I never asked for accomodations for either issue. Just never felt it was worth giving up a second of my valuable study time to pursue the accomodations.

FAR- 77
AUD -49, 71, 84
REG -56,75!
BEC -75

Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

[ReneeNC]

@BaseballCPA – Unfortunately, ADD meds do not work quite that well. They help, but it doesn't make the brain neurotypical. I wish it did!

As for the best study materials, I chose CPAExcel for this very reason. Each topic is broken into small pieces to focus on. This was easier for me than larger sections to study. For REG, I copied down all the flashcards that CPAExcel has. However, for BEC I am not doing the same thing – I just make cards for things I need to memorize. I have the flashcard app for my phone, but I can't process them very well. Promodoro is good, too – I follow it as much as I can.

I didn't have many issues at Prometric due to the headphones they provided, but I did get distracted when the person working walked to the back of the room repeatedly to do something (I never turned around to see what, but they seemed to be monitoring something.) Annoying, but not terrible.

REG - 89
BEC - 82
FAR - 87
AUD - 81
Used CPAexcel, Wiley Online Practice, and NINJA!

[Anonymous]

Fair enough…I was just wondering. I'm definitely in favor of accommodating legitimate learning disabilities. I did not realize that ADD medication was so ineffective. I took it once in college and I was a study machine…I didn't like the way it made my heart just about beat out of my chest though. Then again, I don't have ADD, so maybe that's why it worked for me. Hey, that's why I went into Accounting and not Pharmacology or Bio Chemistry or something lol

[Author]

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