[Anonymous]

Is the study guide supposed to supplement review materials like Becker or Yaeger (Wiley) or is it a review in itself? Also, I’ll be taking AUD next and Im just wondering if It will be more helpful for my information retention to write notecards out myself or will the information provided in the NINJA notecards be more beneficial?

I just know from previous experience, after taking FAR, that while writing my notecards helped me remember things I otherwise would have forgotten in the 2.5 months of studying, reviewing them was overwhelming and the lack of flow from one card to the other made reviewing them almost incomplete. Anyways, guess Im just wondering if these products in this site are worth or will personal efforts suffice. Thanks all.

[kb24]

The Ninja notes are not a review course, but they're a useful tool when making notes and for use during your review. I used them for REG and BEC and found them very helpful especially for BEC. I didn't buy them for FAR or AUD but probably would have done so if I hadn't already taken those exams. I either wrote additional notes directly on the Ninja notes or on a separate page that I added to the appropriate section.

FAR 4/1/11 - 89
AUD 4/15/11 - 85
REG 4/29/11 - 80
BEC 5/13/11 - 85

[Anonymous]

geez you took all four in less than 2 months??

That's insane. ANyway I'll probably end up buying the note cards for AUD.

[kb24]

I had my reasons, but it was insane at times. Just to clarify, I used the Ninja notes and am not familiar with the notecards. Jeff didn't release them until after I was done with the exam.

FAR 4/1/11 - 89
AUD 4/15/11 - 85
REG 4/29/11 - 80
BEC 5/13/11 - 85

[shellgirl]

Kb24-How on earth did you passed 4 in less than 2 months?!!!

Please share your secrets

CPA CLASS OF 2012!

[kb24]

@shellgirl

I planned to get a job right after I graduated with my MS Accy in 12/05, but my mother was diagnosed with dementia earlier in the year. I delayed my job search for what I thought would be a few months while we got her moved into assisted living and prepared her house for sale. However, things didn't go as planned, and I ended up in a situation where I couldn't get a job even on a part-time basis because of frequent crises that required huge amounts of my time. Things finally settled down last year, and I started looking for a job in January. I quickly realized that I would have trouble because my degree was 5 years old, my work experience was so old (I'd been a stay at home mom for 10 years before I went to school), and I had no accounting experience at all. I decided taking the CPA exam would refresh my knowledge and demonstrate that I was a motivated self-starter to potential employers. I set the goal of taking all 4 parts by the end of May with the plan to take FAR at the end of February and the other 3 in April and May. However, there were no slots available in February when I was finally able to schedule so I had to take all 4 in the second test window. This was ambitious but doable because I didn't have a job or young children, I'm a very good test taker, and I'm able to focus for extended periods of time. When preparing for FAR I figured out what were the most effective study methods for me and those were the things I did with the other exams. I studied all day every day for the last 3. Even though I would have liked more time for the last few, especially REG, I wouldn't let myself reschedule because I was committed to meeting my goal. I just kept telling myself that I could always retake an exam if I failed.

FAR 4/1/11 - 89
AUD 4/15/11 - 85
REG 4/29/11 - 80
BEC 5/13/11 - 85

[Author]

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