[jimboace88]

I took FAR today. Here’s how it went:

My exam was scheduled for 4:00. I got to Prometric at 2:30 because I wanted to make sure I didn’t get lost and figured I would use the time to study. I found the Prometric site easily and went inside so I could review in the air conditioned environment. Within seconds of me sitting down, someone was there asking me for my NTS and getting me all set up. Without much of a choice, I was heading into my exam at 2:40. Was it ideal? No. However, I had just done a 100 question Becker progress test before leaving, so I wasn’t THAT upset.

It turns out the extra study time before the exam wouldn’t have made a difference. I went through my first multiple choice testlet with no problems that I can remember. It seemed like each subsequent testlet got more difficult–they definitely didn’t get easier, although I think “easier” and “harder” is a subjective area that’s kind of hard to judge. For all I know, I could have been on the “easy” ones the whole time.

Anyway, the multiple choice are all a blur to me, really. They have already become a repressed memory. I do know, however, that with 2 hours and 5 minutes to go, I went into the SIMS.

I opened the first sim and just as people on here have warned me, it was not pretty. I thought to myself “what the hell are they asking for?!” It took some fighting through it and taking a moment to reflect before I even realized how I could possibly begin to arrive at the kind of answer they were looking for. Suddenly, it clicked. I motored easily through my first simulation. For the rest of the sims, I honestly couldn’t tell you how I did. I know I got one of my research-based ones for sure, but the other research-based one was a very ambiguously worded question that COULD have been answered with several different sections. Hopefully the one I picked was the right one.

Overall, I think my comment I left in my post-exam survey sums it up best: “Could have been worse!”

Hopefully I won’t have to take FAR a second time through…although I wouldn’t be surprised if I had to.

FAR 07/27/11 - 87
AUD 10/01/11 - 85
BEC 11/15/11 - 87
REG 01/03/12 - 92

[T-rex]

It sounds like you did well, Jimbo! I'll bet you passed, especially given you scores on the Becker tests. You must be relieved to be done with this for now.

Did you spend much time studying the ancillary material in Becker? How necessary do you think it is to review this material (e.g., Conventional retail, cost retail, FIFO/Cost, LIFO/Cost inventory methods)?

AUD - 95, BEC - 85
REG - 85, Rawrrrrrr FAR - 88
Used Becker for all sections.
CA candidate not residing in CA

[gottagetmycpa]

quick question how should one handle the sims??? should you read all do the ones you know then go back and work on the ones that you skipped or do in order?

FAR 76
REG 76(2x)
BEC FAILED (2x)
AUD FAILED (2x)

"When you don't give up, YOU CANNOT FAIL"

[IwannaBaCPA]

I hope you passed Jim! Sounds like it went better than my experience and I managed to pass…

@gottagetmycpa: I do click on each one to see what is going on and pick the research first, then the ones I think I can solve and then the rest…I would rather get points for the ones I know, then spend all my time on the ones I don't…I feel like I would be too rushed. I like lowering the number I have left to do and gaining confidence as I complete them…

BEC: 79 - April 2011
FAR: 78 - May 2011
AUD: 81 - May 2012
REG: 79 - October 2012
Ethics: Passed - March 2013
I am finally DONE!

[T-rex]

@gotta,

I prefer to check each one out first. However, with REG there were issues with screen download times. It took too long for each screen to load, so I quit trying to check each one out first. I think this was a testing center issue.

AUD - 95, BEC - 85
REG - 85, Rawrrrrrr FAR - 88
Used Becker for all sections.
CA candidate not residing in CA

[T-rex]

Wow, Jimbo's not online for a change. I'll bet he's worn out.

AUD - 95, BEC - 85
REG - 85, Rawrrrrrr FAR - 88
Used Becker for all sections.
CA candidate not residing in CA

[pbnj]

I took my FAR today also! Good luck to you!

Just wondering, are the sims that you get random also or is that one section that they somewhat standardize per window?

[IwannaBaCPA]

WOAH! You totally just violated the confidentiality and disclosure rules of the AICPA…

BEC: 79 - April 2011
FAR: 78 - May 2011
AUD: 81 - May 2012
REG: 79 - October 2012
Ethics: Passed - March 2013
I am finally DONE!

[pbnj]

Didn't know that I couldn't do that… sorry!

[MOMCPA2B]

Yay! Jimbo survived.

I cant wait for this to be over.
AUD-7/25/11-77
BEC-11/27/11-Failed(UGH)Back to the drawing board
REG-2/27/12
FAR- Aug 2012

[IwannaBaCPA]

@pbnj: Just wanted you to know right away so you could correct it! You can only make generalized statements, but nothing at all specific like what you originally said or things like “I had 3 questions on this topic and none on this other topic…” Be very careful…

The SIMS are random. They must have a huge bank of them and the “random fairy” picks 7 for you and likely a different 7 for me. The odds of 2 people have the exact same 7 are pretty slim…

BEC: 79 - April 2011
FAR: 78 - May 2011
AUD: 81 - May 2012
REG: 79 - October 2012
Ethics: Passed - March 2013
I am finally DONE!

[jimboace88]

Thanks for all the support, everyone! @T-Rex yeah I am beat…hence my longest hiatus from the board in a while, lol.

@T-Rex I glanced over the ancillary material. If I found something was hit hard in the Becker questions (despite it being “ancillary”), then I looked over it. An example of something I looked over that was “ancillary” was coupon liabilities. Whether or not that was on my exam I can't tell you (and I don't remember anyway), but I remember seeing it quite a few times.

As for the retail inventory pricing methods, I said to hell with those. That would have been a kind of item that pushed me over the ragged edge, so I did my best but didn't spin my wheels on it.

@Iwannabacpa I hope I passed. As time goes on I am not feeling too confident. Nothing I can do about it now, though! Leaving for a nice week-long vacation with my family to our lake house in NH. I'll be starting Audit review around mid-August and starting my full-time position shortly after.

@gottagetmycpa — I took an approach somewhat different than the other posters who have responded. Since I had a little over 2 hours to do them sims, I just took them as they came. If I felt like I was spending too much time trying to figure out a sim, I moved on and came back to it. I had two sims that I had trouble with. One of them I know I bombed because I drew a total blank on it and could not find anything in the codification to save me. The other one I think I did mostly alright on but never got the figure I knew I needed to come out. I would say your strategy for your sims is dependent upon how much time you have to complete them.

FAR 07/27/11 - 87
AUD 10/01/11 - 85
BEC 11/15/11 - 87
REG 01/03/12 - 92

[Peanut]

@Jimbo I'm in NH!!! I didn't know other people actually visited here! I was culture shocked when I moved from NYC back to here ahahah

AUD 81 (X4) Previous scores 59, 72, 72
REG 80 (X3) Previous scores 59, 60
FAR 75 (X2) Previous score 67
BEC 79 (X2) Previous score 58

[SamBam]

I had a similar exam experience to jumbo. I could not say that the mc testlets got harder, they certainly were not getting easier either.

BEC 91 08/22/2010
AUD 96
REG 90
FAR 81 07/24/2011 Done! I can't believe it

[IwannaBaCPA]

@syakoub: I agree, I have taken 3 so far and have no clue if they did or didn't get harder…I think it is hard to even know what the AICPA judges as more difficult. Perhaps there is just some detail in the question that is commonly overlooked , but then you notice it just fine, so it seems easy to you…who knows?!

btw, you took FAR in May and no score?! Your other scores are impressive!

BEC: 79 - April 2011
FAR: 78 - May 2011
AUD: 81 - May 2012
REG: 79 - October 2012
Ethics: Passed - March 2013
I am finally DONE!

[RedRage00]

He took the wrong exam. He took FARS 🙂

Texas CPA
Licensed, March 2012

[Author]

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