[jeff]

We have a lot of “I took __ today threads” so to consolidate, here is the official thread.

Please – Not even a hint of exam disclosure per AICPA rules.

Links to other Exam Experience Threads:

AUD

BEC

REG

[56_Moves]

@katie, I scored 64 on becker's mock exam and a 77 on the actual exam.

[Broken Toy]

FAR was much easier then everyone hyped it up to be.

[isoceles]

I had to take FAR with 4 days of studying as my NTS was going to expire. I would not recommend this. I passed BEC and REG without any issues, but cramming for FAR is impossible. There is 0% chance I passed, but I did realize FAR is doable and probably less difficult than people think. You do need to have a good grasp of all sections (YES, including Gov't and NFP).

[Recked]

What did you think of the SIMS?

[PNS2CLT]

@ISOCELES – the issue with FAR isn't the depth, but rather the breadth of material it covers. Do not be deceived — it covers a very wide range of material and many of the questions are “exceptions,” so proficiency is required. FAR's passing rate is ~45% since the content of the exam was last changed (2011), the lowest of any exam. Definitely not impossible, but hardly a walk in the park either.

[Wannafree]

“You do need to have a good grasp of all sections (YES, including Gov't and NFP)”. On top of that you need to optimize the time management during exam and to test the time management skill they give the SIMs in chunks.I believe to have the grasp of subject is only one part of the solution .

[isoceles]

Definitely agree on the time management part. I did 2 hours MCQ 2 hours SIM; I would recommend 1:45 and 2:15 or even more towards the SIMs. Another huge mistake I made was not doing a SIM beforehand. It took me a bit to become comfortable with the navigation and how the resources worked, which just ate into the time. Tough test.

[Anonymous]

I wasn't exactly thrilled with my SIMS. I had a question that I swear didn't have enough information. I wish I could explain it to get an opinion on it, because it boggles my mind still. The worst part is that I'm sure that wasn't my pretested question, because I had 3 Document Review SIMs. One of the DRS was about a topic that I thought was only tested in Audit – I was shocked to get it as a question on FAR. I really don't recall seeing it in my Roger FAR stuff, but maybe I was too busy focusing on other areas that I expected to be tested. I'm both looking forward to and dreading score release day already. I'm afraid I'm set up for a second FAR failure, hopefully I'm wrong though. I did feel better going into this test than I did the first time I took it, and I walked away with a respectable, but not good enough, 70.

[Lentilcounter]

@bhuekels

Sorry about your exam experience. I hope you passed. Did you get a chance to look at the “potential FAR topics straight from the AICPA thread” before the test? Technically, one shouldn't get any SIMs outside of what is mentioned in the blueprints or it should be “pretest” material.

Btw, very nice Reg score. Any tips for doing well on it? I'm taking it in q1 2018. Also, did you take and pass it in Q3?

Thanks.

BEC = 72 (6/08/16)
FAR = ?
REG = ?
AUD = ?

[Anonymous]

@lentilcounter

Looks like it was on the blueprint, but basically the only area I didn't study recently. I don't think I completely bombed the question, I just didn't see it coming, so I may not have done as well as I could have. As far as REG, I actually took that back in January, so it's been a while. For most of my tests I've just read, watched videos, then hit MCQs like crazy. I honestly usually don't look at SIMs much, just a few in the week before the test. My thinking is that as long as I know the info, I should be able to do all questions. I guess I may have to adjust that in the future if it's not working for FAR and AUD… In REG I didn't really do anything different, just focused on the areas that I was struggling with, but I feel like it came pretty easy to me for some reason. It's been so long that I can't really remember what areas I really tried to dial in on, other than Business Law.

[Recked]

So here goes…
First the cliffs/tips. Suggestions if I were to do it again tomorrow. The rest turned out way longer than I originally intended.
1, Get enough sleep.
2, Time Management is crucial.
3, READ THE QUESTION AND INSTRUCTIONS!!!
4, Do longer blocks of time for study/practice questions (brain training)

Roger review, 100% lectures, read the book, did all the ~1700 MCQ's and SIMS (besides research). Gleim book for any question areas, 600+ Gleim MCQ's and SIMS on trouble areas. Gleim book has an index which was extremely helpful during review if I came across a topic I needed to refresh on. ~250 hours.

Similar to sleeping with your significant other while camping, this test was f'n in-tents (intense).
Similar to what other have said, nothing prepares you for the SIMS.
I am an anxious test taker and could not sleep the night before, maybe 4-5 hours tops.

I've done 2 practice sessions of 66MCQ's. One was a little slow, one was on target. If your mind has adjusted to doing 2 hours and then getting a break, don't be surprised if you run out of steam under the pressure of the exam.
I finished the first testlet in 45 minutes, things were going well. I feel like the first few questions of the second testlet were wordier, but overall I am not sure they were more difficult. 2nd testlet took me an hour (hoping this was due to increased difficulty). I felt like there was more computations on the 2nd. 2:15 left.

3rd testlet took about 45 minutes. I got snagged on something that should have been pretty straight forward. I tried to use AL but ended up wasting time, not finding the answer, and proceeding along. I made a math/number error that threw me for a loop, went back to the AL, still did not find any satisfactory results. Trust your instincts/gut. Do the question to the best of your ability and MOVE ON. You could spend too much time getting one question 100% correct and end up missing out on “low hanging fruit” in other sims, or worse yet, rushing through and not reading instructions properly and messing a whole SIM up.

So 1.5 hours, took the 15 minute break. Ate a snack, stretched and paced.
1.5 hours for 6 TBS. 4th testlet took about an hour. 30 minutes left for 5th testlet. Checked out each SIM and target first the ones I could do quickly, then focused on any TBS that I thought I could do quickly. My goal was to answer as much of the SIMS as possible.

After thoughts. Left the exam feeling “hopeful” but as time went on and I started replaying the test in my head, with my review materials, I started to realize that I made some stupid mistakes, and there is a decent chance that I didn't actually do what the instructions said on one of the SIMS. I cannot stress how important it is to read the instructions. And as my review course advised, skim the question to know what the question is asking. Don't waste time answering a question or calculating things that they aren't asking for. I am still hopeful that I did well enough overall to get the magical 75 points, but I would not be surprised if I had to do this one over. It was definitely a learning experience.

If I were to do it again I would probably focus on the MCQ's. Doing longer MCQ sessions to work on stamina and speed.
I don't think any of my description in this post is disclosing any specific exam info.

Test day and testing facility. Life tips before a big exam.
Don't remove a 15k BTU air conditioner a week before your exam. I ended up pulling something mid-back. Feels like I pulled a rib out of place a little below the shoulder blades. I was too concerned with the upcoming test so I chose not to go get it worked out. I took advil the morning of the exam, but as I sat in my car in the parking garage next door I felt my back tighten up to the point it was hard to breathe. Did not really affect anything, and its not an excuse, but don't make foolish decisions as you get close to your exam date.
The parking garage that is next to the testing facility was being repaired. The garage is within direct line of sight from the room with the testing computers. Top floor of parking garage, test center is on the 5th floor directly overlooking parking garage. Repair work included jackhammers and small equipment/skid steer. They gave me earplugs that were fairly effective. Again, a distraction but overall once I got focused on the exam I was able to tune it out. Tip – if you have multiple prometric facilities near you call and ask if there is any construction going on. If yes, choose a different facility. If no other facility, try and schedule for a weekend as most construction/municipal people don't work on the weekends.

Prometric staff were friendly and helpful. The woman said I looked shell shocked when I came out of the exam. They asked which number I was on and I said the first. She said they were tough, and she is on first name basis with some repeat test takers.
On break I was advised I could only enter the hallway to access the bathroom, but I was welcome to pace in the waiting area before going back through security. I appreciated them allowing that, and not being wary/creeped out by my pacing.

If past experience is an indicator I would expect about 80% on the MCQ's.
I am estimating SIMS results conservatively of 55-65%. Expecting 68-73 without any factor for weighting, but really hoping for 75+.
I have no idea which was pre-test, they were all pretty bad.

[Bourne]

Well said Recked, well said. My feelings about passing/results are on par with yours. Honestly, that's probably how most of the people taking the exam feel. Let's hope for a good Christmas gift!

[Anonymous]

@ReckedRacing-congrats on being on the other side of taking this test! You potentially got the first (and most difficult one) out of the way! Having taken 3 of these, I suggest don't look at your notes, try not to replay your test in your head, it's all going to convince you failed (that's how I always felt) but it sounds like you did reasonably well to have passed.

[Wannafree]

@Racing,u could finish 3 SIMs in 30 minutes that's awesome.I would have got nervous but you are proving it can be done.did Blueprint help ?

[Recked]

To clarify – I ran out of time. Of the last 3 one was research. I feel pretty confident on that one.
One of the others I did half of, but looking back I made a foolish error so perhaps credit for a quarter of it.
The 3rd one is the one that I think I did incorrectly. Some of it was right but I would estimate 75% incorrect on that one, depending on what the instructions actually said. I really wish I could describe it to get additional feedback but it would possibly reveal too much.

Also, if you run out of time it automatically submits for you. I was worried it would glitch or something, but it just ends.
I was really hoping I would not have to find out this way.

Prometric computers are slow and buggy. Don't crap your pants if the screen freezes for a bit between testlets or trying to access materials.

The staff did receive notice of my request for pencil and paper that was placed a week before exam. I will definitely allow 2 weeks advance notice next time to be safe.

[Author]

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