[Anonymous]

Hi! Newbie here!

I’m using Yaeger, which of course uses the Wiley textbooks and online testbank. I finished the video series this past weekend so now I’m working back through all of the suggested MCQs and Sims (in the textbook). I find that I’m struggling to break 60% correct on any given section… is this abnormal? Some of these practice questions depend on rules that are SO specific there’s no way you could reasonably be expected to have them memorized.

I’m taking note of the ones I’m unsure of or get wrong, then I go back and try to make sure I learn why it’s wrong, so I’m not just zipping through the questions and not gaining anything from it. This is my first time working back through these questions (I already worked the ones covered in the videos, but these comprehensive lists cover more than was covered in the videos), so I’m trying not to get discouraged over it, but it’s pretty depressing to repeatedly look at a question and think “I seriously just don’t know this.”

Any other Yaeger students have a similar experience? I study about 20hrs/week and my exam is scheduled for Feb 27th, so the clock is ticking!

 

 

[Anonymous]

@Dave- I disagree with that “do what Yaeger says” advice. Yes, the advice they give you can be very helpful, but each person comprehends things in different ways. You need to also do what you feel will help you grasp the concepts of the material. Don't be afraid to experiment and develop your own way of studying.

And yes, FAR has a lot of material and any topics covered in your Wiley book can be tested. So, I strongly suggest you try to understand as much you possibly can.

[hopeful_cpa]

i agree you need to understand as much as possible, but dont think you need to understand EVERYTHING… thats insanity and waiting for a mental breakdown.

BEC: Done
REG: Done
AUD: Done
FAR: Done

I'M DONE!!!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Anonymous]

Well, I did almost exactly what Cindy suggested to do and I got an 84. For the most part, I memorized what she told me to memorize, skimmed what she told me to skim and did all the problems she suggested. You are welcome to take that advice or leave it – up to you. Just trying to be helpful – sorry if you don't like it. And you are not supposed to memorize all of the handouts b/c that would be impossible. However, you should try to understand the concepts as much as possible. A lot of the exam is luck with what problems you get. I was heavily tested on some modules and only got a question or 2 from others. In fact, there was one entire module that I didn't get one question on.

Cindy does really know her stuff. One of the things she suggested we know I just totally skipped b/c I was like there is no way this will be on the exam. And sure enough, it showed up in a SIM!! I ran out of time to do it, but if I would have taken 5 minutes to memorize how to do it, I could have easily gotten those points.

[Anonymous]

@CPATerminator I'm aiming for 100 but I guess I can settle for 99 😛

@hopeful_cpa I think you're right. To really understand all of this would take months. The vast majority of it I learned within the past 2 years in college, but it has just faded out on me so I'm refreshing, but it gets frustrating trying to juggle it all and be fresh on everything all at once. Mental breakdown achieved!

@CPAMan I think you're right too. I don't mean to cast shadows on Yaeger because the instructors DO seem like nice people and I'm sure they're just trying to help, but being told to memorize page after page of material doesn't mesh well with me I guess; it's certainly not the way I got the grades in my undergrad.

@PeanutButterandJelly I just figured out what your name means. I always thought it was initials or random letters or something. Anyway, sometimes I get frustrated and need to vent. I don't mean to sound unappreciative because I do value everyone's input. It gets to be overwhelming, and that's when my internal struggles with this tend to boil over. Of course she doesn't explicitly say to memorize the entire 50pg handout, but she does say to memorize the financial statements as well as several handout pages she wrote up. Maybe memorization and regurgitation works for some, but I'm much more comfortable working problems so I can directly see the fruits of my knowledge and I can feel myself getting a grasp of the material. I am also better able to gauge my understanding this way, and I think that is why I find comfort in that method. After doing it for 4 years in my undergrad it's just what I'm used to :/

I also agree that there is a lot of luck involved. You might know 20% of the material exclusively and get tested on just those topics, or you might know 80% and be tested on just the other 20%. I am not a fan of uncertainty, and that is why this makes me uneasy… Going into the exam with a very real possibility of failure doesn't make me feel too good. Thanks everyone for the encouragement! Having a bumper to bounce off of is nice when things are feeling rough.

[Anonymous]

@Dave, like apbandj, I followed Cindy's advice on FAR and passed. Following Cindy's advice actually significantly reduces the amount of information you have to know. I worked the recommended MCQs and a few extra on topics I was having trouble with. I also used Gleim Test Prep software for quizzes. Also, just memorizing topics can lead to trouble with FAR. You need to understand the concepts because, from my experience, you will be asked questions that test your understanding of concepts more than whether or not you have memorized everything.

Good luck

[Anonymous]

Ha ha – it is actually initials but they are apbj. Didn't plan it that way but realized it a few months after our last child was born. I'm Amy, my 2 sons are Parker and Brandon and my husband is John.

I totally get where you are coming from and when I reread my post, it doesn't sound very supportive and I'm sorry if it came across the wrong way. The difficulty in FAR lies not so much in the concepts but in the volume. It's a lot to master. I studied for 4 months and did not feel 100% ready when I walked into Prometric. And when I walked out I was 99% sure I hadn't passed. But I guess I got the score I did b/c even though I know I missed a lot of questions, I missed less than a lot of others did. I was an average student in school and have been out of college for 10 years and out of the work force for 7 years, so everything I knew on that exam (except for basic accounting knowledge which you have to have anyways before doing a review course) was a result of Yaeger and Cindy's plan.

Best of luck to you. It is a great feeling to get FAR out of the way.

[Anonymous]

I pound on MCQ's on Wiley's Test bank and I know I'm ready for the real thing when I consistently score in the mid to high 80's. And so far I've scored in the 80's on the real thing. So remember, the actual MCQ score is likely to be lower but you'll get more in SIMs. I rocked at SIMs every time on the practice tests, and it was the MCQ's I needed help on, and worked extra hard on.

I also recommend CPAreviewforfree too. Those tend to be harder than the real things.

[Anonymous]

To answer initial post I found both Becker and Wiley were harder and had extra information. Every single time, my final practice test (after TONS of review) for the section I was about to take I would average in the 70-80 range. It was progressive though, before that final practice test my scores averaged worse but over time (perhaps due to seeing the same questions over) i scored higher. Then for the real test, I would always get a higher score!

I used both Becker for 2 tests and Wiley for the other 2, and for all 4 tests I read those books word for word and did every problem/simulation in the current section before moving on to the next section… Then when i finished the books I did review problems. I quit watching the Becker lectures as I felt they were a waste of time.

I passed some of those test and I believe I went overkill on the studying… I believe I could have easily just cut out the majority of readings (so long as I had some familiarity) and just done problems.

I did problems and if I did bad (like only answered 40% right) I still moved on (after checking the answers) and left my retry for the final overall review… I know people who would just retake the incorrect problems immediately after getting them wrong (they saw the answers too) and I felt like that was cheating yourself, let some time pass and then take another shot. Always take notes on the problems you miss and stuff you think important, and who cares if your notes get redundant. I had to actively try not to write notes on the stuff I l believed I would remember, if you write notes for everything you will find yourself basically writing a Wiley book. Good luck.

If all else fails read everything once then do every problem/simulation over and over!

[jkey57]

200 hours of study time!?!? That's roughly the equivalent of taking 2 classes in a semester (including class + study time).

I think the companies pitching these reviews are just covering their a$$e$ because they know if you have the Acc requirements (so at least you know something) and put that much effort in studying, you have no excuse for not passing.

I genuinely think that if an intelligent person with little/ no accounting education studied for 200 hours just to take one section, they could pass it. We know the breakdown of the conceptual material that we need to cover, the format of the exam, the number of questions on the exam, etc… Let's be honest, these aren't medical board tests.

The reason these tests are hard is because when everyone works 50 hrs a week, family commitments, mortgage, bills, it's extremely difficult to find 15 hrs a week to review. Life makes these exams hard…

[Author]

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