[cpagal]

Gleim Question –

So I just finished study unit 5 doing 1 MCQ, watch audiovisual, T/F, read book, 2nd MCQ, 2 MCQ tests and 1 SIM per subunit.

I have been looking at my progress and have noticed that I am not doing nearly all the MCQ they offer for each chapter. I know to get the money back guarantee you have to do at least 90% of the MCQ.

My question is, do you go ahead and do the 90% of the MCQ for each subunit as you go, or wait until the end when you review so that you are seeing new questions in the review process. I am afraid I am moving on to the next unit too soon.

FAR - 08/30/15 - 90
AUD - 11/12/15 - 92
REG - 01/19/16 - 82
BEC - 02/29/16 - 83

Passed all on 1st attempt using GLEIM (full program) and NINJA (MCQ only)!!!

Louisiana Licensed CPA

[Skynet]

I go through all units questions after reading the unit using the Study Sessions.

[cpagal]

Thanks. I'll go back and do all the ones I missed. I am going to purchase NINJA MCQ to go over after I finish all Gleim units.

FAR - 08/30/15 - 90
AUD - 11/12/15 - 92
REG - 01/19/16 - 82
BEC - 02/29/16 - 83

Passed all on 1st attempt using GLEIM (full program) and NINJA (MCQ only)!!!

Louisiana Licensed CPA

[Anonymous]

I used to insist on doing every single question available and getting them all right until Dr. Gleim himself called me and told me I was focused too much on the details, to use the Gleim suggested approach instead, and that I would fail if I kept using my current approach. I was floored that he would take the time to review a random customer's study habits and discuss them. I was asking tons of questions and it was before they had the Q&A section so maybe I was the squeaky wheel.

I listened to him and started using the Gleim suggested approach (which states you keep doing random MCQs for that chapter until you get to your desired proficiency level, eg 75%) except I kept going until I could do around 85% or better consistently per chapter.

I still have 600+ questions in REG that I've never seen, not including questions never answered correctly. You can see my scores below, all first attempts. (Other sections were older, questions have been updated, so I can't say reliably how many I had unanswered.)

Gleim is high quality review material. Use their approach and you should do well (even though it initially did not make sense to take a MCQ on information I had never reviewed and score consistently around 25% on pretests, it actually helped tremendously when I studied the material). The only thing they are lacking for me is flash cards, so I made my own. They are working on making this part of the Gleim set so I sent them copies of mine to help with the process.

Also I did all the SIM wizards as well, so two SIMs per unit. They take a while, sure, but SIM 2 usually tests on things SIM 1 did not, and they are worth the time.

PS: There is a very big difference between doing a certain % of the total questions and doing as many questions as you can (randomized, so some new and old) and scoring 85%-90%. The latter is actually more difficult and better predicts how you will do. I may not have done 90% of the roughly 2,500 questions, but I've probably answered certain questions 10 times. I used randomized sessions almost exclusively.

[cpagal]

Thanks. I hate that first MC quiz as I always score 40%, sometimes lower.

FAR - 08/30/15 - 90
AUD - 11/12/15 - 92
REG - 01/19/16 - 82
BEC - 02/29/16 - 83

Passed all on 1st attempt using GLEIM (full program) and NINJA (MCQ only)!!!

Louisiana Licensed CPA

[Anonymous]

Yes, I hated those initial MCQs. Once in a while I got a 55% or 60% and I'd be so happy! They take a while because you have to spend a lot of time thinking it through, then you have to review most if not all your answers as you start to develop an understanding of the rules. Seems useless to take a quiz when you have no idea what the rules are and you consistently do very poorly, but time and time again, I'd come across a concept and think, ‘oh, I remember this because of that one question'. I found the concepts I hit on the pretest (MCQ 1) and reviewed were the ones I remembered best.

[Skynet]

Those initial mcq's are there just to gauge your understanding of the materials and determine your weak areas. I wouldn't worry about the low scores.

[Anonymous]

@skynet, agreed. I was just contributing my opinion that they really do aid in the study process even if you have to guess at all 20. 🙂

[Skynet]

All I can say is the “Study Session” is very useful. I know Gleim recommends doing sets of 20 practice test, but going through all mcq's for each Unit Subunits using the “Study Session” will be most beneficial before doing Practice tests with the questions.

[Anonymous]

I stuck with practice tests for AUD and FAR because that's what Dr. Gleim told me to do, and everything else he said got me a passing score. However, once I was more comfortable with the process (the last two exams), I did mostly study sessions. In chapters when I felt especially clueless, I'd read the subunit, then do a study session just for that subunit in addition to the ones in the book (before moving on to next subunit and before the other quizzes). I may do all questions for a subunit if it's short, but I do not set out to do ALL questions for a unit (let alone the test bank).

[thehip41]

This is how I used Gleim for all sections.

Read whole chapter.

Do 1/3 of the MC in groups of 20.

Study the ones I got wrong (and right)

Move on to next chapter

Repeat.

Then I would go and do 1/3 of the MC for each chapter straight through. Chapters 1 – 20

Making flash cards and study notes as I go.

For review for the time leading up to the test, I would do the last 1/3 of each section.

After that I used Wiley and Ninja MC to supplement. Also, if you don't want to spend more money, look at the breakdown of your scores.

Pick the chapters with the lowest 5 scores and do 20 MC questions from each one until you get 80%.

Then just do MC until test day.

The key is, do like 3,000 MC questions 🙂

FAR - 83
AUD - 73 92
BEC - 83
REG - 88

Licensed CPA in the state of Michigan

[thehip41]

One other thing:

On all of my exams, included the exam I got a 73% on, my Gleim scores were 5% lower than my exam scores.

I looked back at REG, I averaged about 83 over 2,500 questions. Scored an 88

On AUD try 1, ran out of time and hail mary time. My average score was 67% on GLEIM.

The point being, if you are getting 80+ on every chapter in gleim, you are going to pass.

FAR - 83
AUD - 73 92
BEC - 83
REG - 88

Licensed CPA in the state of Michigan

[Anonymous]

To add to what thehip said, all my exam rehearsal scores in Gleim were very close to my actual scores, but I always took two weeks to INTENSELY review all my weak areas after the exam rehearsal.

[Author]

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