[kukuna2008]

Hey Ninjas, I feel like falling in a no bottom sinking hole now.I put more and more time preparing FAR, however, when I taking MCQ, my correct rate always stay at 60%, there are always some topic I get wrong. Also I forget things so fast and easily, if I left the topic alone for a couple of weeks, I have to restudy it, then the same thing will happen to another topic.

So far, I put 120 hours in, but feel like I need another 120 hours to get myself ready. I start loosing confidence. Any better suggestion? Maybe I am not smart enough to pass the test at all 🙁

FAR - 83, 04/2015
AUD - 73, 86, 08/2015
REG - 75
BEC - 71, rematch in 04/2016

[mkrohmer]

In my eyes the CPA is not about mastering the content, it's about having a general idea about all the topics. Some topics get more in depth than others and you should probably focus a good amount of time there. I'm not sure what review products you are using but I found that when I took BEC the practice problems in Becker were much harder than the actual test questions. I heard the same is true for FAR. I did not feel too confident walking into the BEC exam but when I walked out I honestly thought it was pretty easy.

I'm similar in the fact that I quickly forget prior material, that was my major issue on BEC and I had to relearn a lot of material during review. I'm studying for FAR now and I go back and take short progress tests (10-20 problems) every few days on just the old material so that it stays somewhat fresh in my mind. I think it is helping tremendously and I think you would benefit from this. Good luck on the rest of your studies.

BEC - 83 (1/23/15)
FAR - 80 (4/3/15)
REG - 88 (5/14/15)
AUD - 81 (7/3/15)

[kukuna2008]

Thank you mkrohmer. You are right, I should allocate more time in the topic tested heavily then others. that's a good point!

wish you a good luck on passing the CPA!

FAR - 83, 04/2015
AUD - 73, 86, 08/2015
REG - 75
BEC - 71, rematch in 04/2016

[scubacamper]

I took FAR first…and am studying for it again. 🙂

It's no-doubt one beast of a test. I don't know what material you're using, but I'm using CPAExcel. One thing I noticed when I took the actual FAR exam was the difference in perceived difficulty of the questions.

I'm pretty sure the only reason I didn't pass was because I started studying for it waaaaaay too early (like 3 or 4 months out – don't do this!). After listening/reading Jeff's game plan, I'm only studying the maximum out – 8 weeks prior to exam, and no more.

As Jeff says – any more than 8 weeks out, you'll start forgetting material you studied early on.

He stresses that the whole purpose in your studying is to pass, not be an expert. Therefore, the best way to pass is to focus on short-term memory. Understand the underlying principles and you'll do fine.

Anyway, as I was hinting at before – It seemed to me, the actual questions on the exam were not quite a tough and in-depth as the ones in the study material. The ones in the study material – a lot of them require several steps in order to reach the answer, but it seemed like the questions on the actual exam only required a couple of steps. But then again – each exam is different and it's a total crapshoot as to which topics they'll focus on and whether or not they're the ones on which you're strongest.

So – all that to say: My advice would be to not get down on yourself – you're doing great – 60% on study material is a good score (not great, but not bad either!) (I got a 47% on my FAR simulated exam and was feeling quite depressed about the actual exam) – as you can see below, I scored a 62. While I didn't pass (boo), 62 I thought, was a great first-time score for someone who:

Has ADD (and not on medication, I might add),

Is not in a traditional accounting-type role at work,

has 2 kids and a wife to support,

and would much rather be outside!

So – fear not my brother (or sister!) – keep plugging away, bring that score up, and you'll do fine!

This was my post last week when I was feeling really worn out – there are some great motivational videos that folks have posted:

https://www.another71.com/cpa-exam-forum/topic/feeling-burned-out

NO one ever died from pain – keep working hard and the result will make all the pain fade away.

B TBD
A TBD
R 57
F 62, 70, 65

[kukuna2008]

scubacamper, i am so grateful that seeing the encourage from you. I am between normal and abnormal now ( about going crazy). I am actually at 2.5 months in now, will take FAR at the end of 3rd month, I were thinking about extend a couple of weeks, but I am thinking you r right. I should just take it, otherwise, i will never be ready.

Thank you so much!

FAR - 83, 04/2015
AUD - 73, 86, 08/2015
REG - 75
BEC - 71, rematch in 04/2016

[Last Chance CPA]

You got this. Read all the posts about FAR and how hard it is…

I passed (on attempt #3) and was one fail from abandoning the entire CPA. I am glad I passed it though. It gets easier after FAR.

Study all the topics and do MCQs based on categories in Ninja. Hone in on what topics you are struggling with, and kill those MCQs. I am on REG right now and I know tax is killing, so I am focused on those MCQs.

I studied FAR for 6-7 months before I FAILED it the first time. It's a beast to get through…

FAR - 76
AUD - 75
BEC - 75
REG - 76

Now I need some experience!!! And some networking...

[Skynet]

I guess I'm the exception as I tend to push my exams out by months. For BEC and REG, spent 6-7 months studying before I took them. With AUD and FAR, it will be 5 and 7 months out respectively.

[ChiCPA258]

FAR was my first exam ever and I studied for 8 weeks ( evenings/weekend). I was scoring in high 60s low 70s on Becker progress exams and got 71 but mainly because I didn't know JEs very well. You still got time so you will be fine, make sure you know the JEs because you will see a lot of them in SIMs and even a few in MCQs. Good luck!

“Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don’t quit”

F - 71, 76
A - 59, 70 ( 3rd time is a charm?)
R - 2/16
B - 77

[leglock]

the way i did it for all the sections was to read each chapter and do the m/c questions to see what material was new to me or topics i did not understand. I was not memorizing anything. I was merely searching for those areas I did not understand. Once these areas were identified, I then sought assistance to clear up any confusion I had. Once that was complete, I was ready to begin my final preparation of which involved the memorization aspect. I did it this way to minimize the amount of time it would take me to memorize the things I needed to memorize. I did not want to prolong the memorization process by getting 4 chapters in and encountering 8 topics I didn't i understand, then having to go find clarity on these 8 topics meanwhile I begin forgetting the first 4 chapters. Once I began memorizing, I knew there was nothing I was going to encounter that was going to throw me off and I was able to go straight through.

I used Becker and for FAR, governmental was the topic I really did not have much exposure to. I had an outstanding instructor in the Becker review. HOwever, I had to study these chapters and his materials to clear up alot of the issues and took many notes. Before my final memorizing review, this was one of the topics that took a lot of time. This was actually the last topic I had to clear up before moving on to my final review. I think governmental is ch 8 and 9. Had i studied and memorized ch 1-7 and then encountered governmental, I would have wasted alot of time because by the time i cleared up governmental, I would have forgotten much of my memorization of 1-7.

I thankfully passed all on the first try at my advanced memory-fading age.

[lab2008]

@kukuna2008

hang in there. I am also studying FAR to take it May 31. I will be finished if I pass or lose credit for audit if I don't finish by August 5. I have never gotten thru this FAR material before (on F3 right now) and super scared it's too much material and I won't pull it off. I think that I can take it may 31 and still squeeze in retaking it beginning of august (anyone have any confirmation on that?) if I was to fail. I took BEC and REG multiple times before I passed so I don't know how I can take the last one and pass on the first try but I guess you can do anything with motivation.

anyway, hang in there. I can't say it gets easier. i'm near the end (hopefully) and I feel like i'm going crazy. i'm isolated from friends, my neck hurts, my allergies suck, OH and a big problem. I just passed REG and I had a really good study routine. ever since I found out I passed I am barely studying at all or get way distracted. I don't know what's up. any suggestions on that one? we will be done someday! 🙂

3 out of 4 passed and sitting for FAR on May 31. Will lose credit for Audit if I don't pass FAR by Aug 4. I love leases and bonds.

[kukuna2008]

Hey Guys, thank you for the suggestions. I am going to take the exam no matter what at the end of three months. Good luck to all of you too !

FAR - 83, 04/2015
AUD - 73, 86, 08/2015
REG - 75
BEC - 71, rematch in 04/2016

[nevertoolate]

I completed my FAR study plan last week and skimmed the amount of material……wow! Now I know why everyone calls it “the beast.” I started studying last night and will hope to have a 2-3 week review with Ninja MCQ before taking the exam at the end of May. I had a 3 day review for my first REG take and failed, then had a 1 week review for my REG retake and passed. I think the review is a vital part of preparation. Ninja MCQ with the right amount of effort was the key to my pass.

REG - 68, 81
FAR - June 2016
AUD - 58, 63, 84
BEC - 71, 79

CPAexcel (Gold), Ninja Audio, and Ninja MCQ

"Beware; for I am fearless, and therefore powerful"

[FullTimeStudier]

@kukuna2008 Don't give up! If you've already studied for 120 hours and are scoring in the 60% range on MCQ you are well on your way to passing FAR! You are smart enough and 120 hours so far means you are determined to put in the effort to pass this exam! I studied for around 180+ hours and only used GLEIM (This was back in July-August 2014). I was scoring in the 50-60% range on MCQ in GLEIM (btw, I think NINJA MCQ are closer to what you see on an actual exam). I studied for two months straight, 6-7 hours per day (80 hours was just reading the study unit outline text. The most boring thing I've ever done in my life, but I know it helped.) I felt like a ZOMBIE. Some days I got burned out and just watched TV and slept, but after a day or two of being unproductive, I found renewed energy to press on and study the next unit. FAR was my first exam and I just tried to study as many MCQs and SIMS as I could and told myself, “You've studied for two months, you can do this. Just go take the exam and if you don't pass you'll try again”. I passed…with a 75.

The most helpful advice I had was to UNDERSTAND why a MCQ answer is incorrect. In GLEIM quizzes, after the quiz was graded I could click on incorrect answers to get the reasoning why they were incorrect. This helped me tremendously. I know NINJA MCQ gives explanations for all answers together, so pay attention to why the other answers are incorrect. Also, be sure you can do SIMS fairly well. You don't need to do SIMS perfectly and get 100%, but you should be able to get over 60-70% on lengthy calculation SIMS and then understand why you didn't get 100%. Good Luck!

FAR - 75 (Q3/2014)
AUD - 70 (Q4/2014), 73 (Q1/2015), 78 (Q2/2015)
REG - 75 (Q1/2015)
BEC - 77 (Q2/2015)

DONE!! 6/11/2015
CPA Licensed 6/19/2015 (FL)

[JessF]

I don't think studying too far out is necessarily a bad thing, depending on how you go about it.

I am studying 14 weeks for FAR (began end of Feb, test end of May). I do two study units during a week (read the material, note take, make flash cards, T/F questions, MC practice questions). On the weekends, I quiz myself on all my notecards from past weeks and do several MC practice exams that pull questions from all study units. It helps the material I studied previously stay fresh in my mind. I actually think I know the material from Week 1 better than I know any material because I've looked at it over several weeks now! I intend to be done with all my study units after 10 weeks. I'll have 4 weeks left to go back over topics I am post-noting as “need more in-depth studying” and then do general review and lots of MCQs…

BBA Accounting 12/2013
FAR - July 2015
BEC - Aug 2015
REG
AUD

Gleim

[OnMyWay732]

I passed on the first try and I STILL don't feel ready for FAR.,

I feared it the second I listened tot he first word of the first chapter and it still haunts me. but you'll be fine.

AUD - July 2014 - 76
REG - August 2014 - 82
FAR - November 2014 - 78
BEC - January 2015 - 81

DONE!!!!

Used Becker online. Who needs a text when you can burn your eyes out staring at the screen for months on end?

"Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It is a very mean and nasty place and it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't how hard you're hit; it's about how hard you can get hit, and keep moving forward. How much you can take, and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done!"

[Author]

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