[larzetme]

Hello guys, please share your study techniques with Becker? do you follow the book the videos, and then reread the book. Or you start by reading the book, then watch videos. Do you highlight the book, and do you make your own notes? or you use just ninja notes?

thanks in Advance

 

 

[red07]

Hi there,

i am a current Becker user. Started off with FAR 2 weeks back. i am watching the videos, read the book and make any imp notes that i think would be helpful for me in remembering the little details and also go through the flashcards while Im reading the book and find that it is very helpful when I am reviewing the flashcards again later and then do the mcps and sims and move on.
Though I find this method effective, I also think it is very time consuming as I am already way behind schedule.:(
i have purchased the ninja notes and usually rewrite them at night.

I would also appreciate anymore inputs on the study methods.

[12tang]

I watched lectures and attempted all examples before it was shown in lecture. I then read the chapter and again, tried to work the examples. I used a dry erase board very extensively for FAR for the examples and homework. After I read the chapter, I would answer the questions (about 70 to 80% of the MC). No matter how badly I did on the MC, I moved on to the next chapter. I was able to do a lot better with the MC in my review phase and that's where it all came together for me.

FAR is very time consuming and covers a TON of stuff so it's important to not get bogged down and to stick to your study plan. Just note your trouble areas and nail it in the review. I didn't bother with notes, unless it was stuff I was really lost on. You simply don't have time to write extensive notes for this one unless you dedicate a massive amount of hours each day.

Using Becker self-study
FAR: (82) 175 hours - 1st attempt
BEC: (XX)
AUD: (69) 45hrs of study - 1st attempt
REG: (XX)

[sar_rah]

I don't watch the videos. Lectures just aren't for me. I copy in the e-book notes for the chapter, then go on and read each section doing the MCQs after each section. I take notes in a different color directly in my book on the MCQs I get wrong and/or print out those problems to make my own ‘final review' packet. I then like to spend a day reviewing each chapter and completing the sims before moving on to the next chapter. Rinse and repeat, except on the review days I try to take some comprehensive quizzes as I move on to keep the topics fresh. I also have NINJA notes that I refer to and fill in my own notes while reading the chapters.

For final review: I spend one day per chapter (re-reading, doing missed or important problems, taking notes on the hardest topics), then about 4-5 days after that to nail it all together when I'll take the Becker final exams and tie all my loose ends. Contrary to how you feel in the beginning, it eventually all DOES come together. For BEC I felt like I had no idea what I was doing up until about 2 weeks before my exam when things finalllllly started to click. Hang in there!

AUD: 98
REG: 91
BEC: 86
FAR: 83

DONE DONE DONE and DONE all on the first try! It IS possible, just keep on studying!

[mitchmatch]

Did three times so far, and it worked three times so im sticking to my format. Watch the video and highlight what ever they tell you to highlight while watching the videos. After your done with the video immediatelly do the mcqs. after all the videos and mcqs are done do the Sims. Leave all the optional questions until the end for review. Once you finish the chapter and did the mcqs and sims, do the progress review( i usually do about 60 questions). Once you finish all the chapters do both finals, and then just start doing review question as many possible.

FAR-76 First attempt.
AUD-79 First attempt.
REG-79 First attempt.
BEC-79 First attempt.

Done!

BECKERS

[Mosborne2192]

I usually do the videos and skim through the chapter and maybe take some notes.
Then I go through all the MCQ's for that chapter, read through the chapter (for the areas that I didn't understand while doing the homework), and then work through the problems until I've gotten most of them correct.
I try to do a short progress test after each chapter so that I won't forget everything.
To review, I read the entire book again and went through all of the multiple choice questions that I had marked.
For FAR, I re-wrote ninja notes and read through them a couple times.

AUD - 81
FAR - 74, 75

[MOAC]

Have used Becker four times so far. 2 For FAR and one time each for AUD and BEC!

First time I studied for FAR I watched videos and solved the questions, one subtopic at a time. Didn't go over optional questions. After finishing once I went over the incorrect answers and simulations. Then I took the review Becker Exams. That's it. Made flashcards from the only highlighted material. Never even once went over the non-highlighted/underlined text. Thought it has be enough. It was enough but there were questions on the exam which I didn't know.

2nd time I watched the video and went over the MCQs just like the first time. However this time after finishing the material first time I wet over the all of the material again. Read text book page by page and highlighted which I thought were important points. Didn't make flash cards though. This time in exam there wasn't a single questions which I saw and said, “I haven't studied this”.

for AUD and BEC. I watched the lectures once and read text twice page by page and went over the MCQs once. Highlighted more stuff which I thought was important. Didn't make any flashcards. Did so many progress tests. Took just one Becker review exam.

Found FAR exam to be easier then Becker material and exam. Found AUD tougher and BEC was par except the COSO and ERM material.

FAR May 2012 81 (lost credit, didn't sit for other sections.)
FAR 86 Aug 2015
AUD 85 Nov 2015
BEC 84 Dec 2015
REG 78 Mar 2016

Passed ALL sections in first attempt!!

[CPA Slayer]

What worked for me was the following:

1. Watch the lectures once and highlight where they tell you.
2. Go to the M/C. Write down on legal pads what you got wrong and why you got it wrong. Go back on the questions you got
wrong until you reach 100%.
3. Perform the sims the same way as the M/C and do the progress tests.
4. On the review, repeat step 2 and 3 except for doing progress tests. We will save that for later.
5. Don't get discouraged by the Final Exams. There is a great chance you will fail them and most people do. If you get 65 or
above, I would say you are in good shape.
6. The days you have left, each day do (2) 100 question progress tests covering all of the material. Keep going until you hit
the 90s and you are GOLDEN.

FAR - 84
REG - 86
AUD - 90
BEC - 88

KO the test in 5 months even though I am a dummy!

Through God all things can happen!

"But, in our defense, accountants aren't really boring people.
We just get excited over boring things."

[jcf175]

watch lecture, do mc with book, try sims without book, fail sims, read book move on. then when you're done doing your review do as many mc and read as much of the book as you can. I didnt take the finals tho.

Passed all sections between 5/15 - 10/15 order AUD REG BEC FAR (used Becker only)

[Larry]

I watch the lectures, highlight what they tell me to highlight and I write them down on a notebook to make notes as it goes on. Do the homework (MCQ) and whatever I got wrong, I write down on another notebook on why I got it wrong. After each section of the chapter, I copy the flash cards (if it's long, I shorten them).

When I finish the book, I buy the Ninja MCQ and do as many as I can to test all areas of the section. You have to become an expert when studying for one of the 4 sections. Live and breathe the material until test day.

Like CPA slayer says, don't get discourage by the Becker Final Exam. Both sections that I passed, I failed the becker final exam miserably.

Becker is time consuming, but preparation is key for the exam.

Writing down notes exactly from the book where they tell you to highlight and making your own notes will help your brain absorb the information.

REG - 82
FAR - 78
BEC - 76
AUD - 8/27/16

[mjbriggs]

Here's what I did…

1) watched the videos while reading along in the books and taking notes.
2) walked thru chapters after watching videos and MADE my own flashcards <<<—–this was the most important thing I did. I would take flashcards wherever I went. I'd say I did about 25-30% of my studying in the gym.
3) worked thru MCQs and sims at NAUSEA.
4) passed all four parts.

you'll do great.

FAR - 75
AUD - 83
BEC - 85
REG - 72, retake October 2015 - 85 PASS!

And I'm DONE. Praise!

[mjbriggs]

Oh and I never looked at the progress tests or practice exams. Ain't nobody got time for that. Bingo bango.

FAR - 75
AUD - 83
BEC - 85
REG - 72, retake October 2015 - 85 PASS!

And I'm DONE. Praise!

[Jive36]

Watched the videos one night did the MC the next. Left the optional questions for review and did roughly 150 progress test questions throughout each week. Using this method I was able to study for and pass all tests in about 20 days per section except FAR which took about 30.

Go Bonas!!
Aud 6/15 - 88
BEC 7/15 - 83
FAR 3/15 - 82
REG 11/14 - 88

[Tscape16]

Definitely watch the lectures. They provide some tips that aren't in the books. Whatever lectures I watched, I usually read the corresponding pages the night before. I would then complete the multiple choice right after the lecture. My last step after each full chapter/module would be to write notes by hand.

I would wrap up every week by doing about 5 30 question progress tests, only including the chapters/modules I have under my belt at that point. Worked out pretty well, one and done on each section in about 4.5 months.

FAR - 90 ✔
BEC - 86 ✔
REG - 82 ✔
AUD - 92 ✔
ETHICS - Passed

*Licensed CPA

[Anonymous]

dont watch lectures.

read the book and highlight on your own based on the annotated e-book becker has up thru their website portal.

focus only on the highlighted part and again DO NOT WATCH lectures (except for Peter OIlinto's for entertainment to switch things up here and there)

your welcome- i just saved you 30+hours per module

[Jostrowski]

@eesti

I would have to completely disagree. I 100% recommend watching the lectures and even re-watching them. First exam I took I only read the book, took notes, did MC and sims, and only watched a few lectures. I failed. I watched lectures for my next four tests and passed all four. I know there are probably more variables affecting my scores rather than just the lectures, but I know they helped tremendously. Some people told me the lectures were just Olinto and Gearty reading the book which is partially true, but they give excellent examples and put it in non accounting terms at times that make memorizing things MUCH easier. I would recommend going section by section of each chapter at a time. Watch the lecture, do the MC, take notes and move on. Even if you struggle and score poorly move on to the next section. I found that spinning my wheels in a section I struggled with took up more of my time than usual and left me more frustrated. When you are done with the chapter briefly go over the sims just to see if you “get it.” And again if you struggle don't worry about it, the Becker sims are meant to be hard (probably harder than the actual exam's sims). Once you have finished all chapter this is where you want to heavily focus on the sections you struggled with. Rewatch the lectures 6 times if you have to until you finally understand it, and crank out the MC and keep reviewing your notes. Finally, take the practice exams a week before your exam date. These exams are meant much more for you to find out your weaknesses rather than a memorization tool since you don't find out how you did until you complete the entire test. Hammer away at what you struggled with the last few days before the exam. I found this to be the most effective strategy for me.

P.S. I found going over my own notes much more effective than Becker's flashcards.

AUD: 62 [2/27/15], 87 [5/29/15]
REG: 76 [5/1/15]
BEC: 86 [7/20/15]
FAR: 76 [8/28/15]

DONE!

Becker self-study, Illinois candidate

[Author]

Replies