[Anonymous]

..and I’m simultaneously excited and nervous. I’m having a lot of pre-employment anxietiies. I’m currently studying for FAR using Becker and although I’m putting in a lot of time for study, I’m only achieving 50-80% correctness on my chapters.

I averaged a 3.7 GPA in the last 2 years of my college studies at a State school, not because I was smart or worked hard, but because I was good at cramming. This is the laziest way to get through anything — because you put a lot of pressure on yourself to study a lot of information, in the shortest time possible — yet you do not retain any information as soon as the exams are over. Obviously, this tactic will not work for the CPA exam.

Anyway, I’m starting my first job in less than 2 weeks and I’m hoping you guys could relieve me of my anxieties. I don’t have a lot of confidence when it comes to the FAR exam and I feel like this low self-esteem is going to carry on into the workplace.

I’m afraid my employer will throw me in right away and feed me to the sharks, expecting me to know everything. And then I’m going to feel doubt and eventually discouraged from asking a bunch of questions and trying to dignify my 3.7 GPA.

For those of you who have jobs and are doing audit/tax (I’ll be doing both when I begin), how similar is it to the material you learned in school? Or to the material in the CPA exam?

[NolaCpa2Be]

OOh good thread! I also start a new job as a staff accountant on Monday, so I feel your pain. As for FAR, I think I made over 80% on only a handful of homeworks my first go around. Most of the time I averaged in the 60s. FAR is quite the beast, so don't get discouraged, I'm sure you will do fine.

[misanthrope87]

I'm working as an auditor and studying for the audit exam at the moment. I think the best thing is that when you read the material you wont be completely confused. If the material talks about “audit reports” or “gaining an understanding of internal control” and whatever else, you can visualize it in your head and go ” ohhh yea, I remember seeing that!”

B 2/12 87
A 11/11 90
R 8/11 86
F 5/12 88

[markiux88]

I want to be like you guys when I grow up…lol…I began to work about 4 mos ago after college as staff accountant. All I do is account summaries, adj. entries, invoices, and meaningless work..lol

I think from what I have seen that public accounting is way more demanding than private when it comes to time. FAR is a bamf beast. I would say that on 50% of the topics I get 60% or less the first time I try them. Then the second time is usually much better because you know where you went wrong and can actually analyze the problem. I plan on redoing all the MCQ once I'm done. I will give myself 3 weeks for review because I don't feel like wasting my money (retake) just for lack of study.

[Anonymous]

@cannotpass again

Glad you realize that cramming will not work for the CPA exam! I was a total crammer in college, and it took me a few missed attemps to realize that I really needed to take the time and master the material for the CPA exam.

Don't worry about your performance on FAR being a reflection of how you will do as a staff accountant. Being a staff accountant in real life is very small, menial, task based work that is often repetitive. When in doubt, just do what they did last time! Not sure what the adjusting entry is? just look at the entry they made last month. What account do we record this expense to? Well what account did we record it to last time we got an invoice from the same vendor? So much of the transactions are recurring, so there will almost always be something to reference if you get lost.

And as a staff accountant, no one expects you to be awesome. I mean, its probably your first real job ever, and if not, then its probably you're first accounting job ever. People know that, the bosses know that, so the expectations really aren tthat high.

And stop talking/thinking about your gpa in college. You are in the real world now! GPA means nothing and is not a reflection of how you should be, or will be, at work.

[Anonymous]

@CannotPassAgain

Please do post how the job goes. I will be in the same position as you after I pass my all 4 part of the CPA exam. I have no experience in field regrading accounting beside doing little small business and person taxes. I feel same as you that when I get a job im going to look like a idiot and get fired right away, because I wont know what I'm doing.

I passed FAR in my second attempt in the last window. I also used becker and scored between 50-60% for most sections. I never thought I would be able to pass FAR, but I did 🙂 You really have to keep doing the questions, understand the BONDS, leases, and KNOW the JE's!! Thats a must! Its a lot of material, but its not impossible.

Good Luck!

[Anonymous]

Advice – have a good attitude, make friends, put in 100%…..it takes about a year before you know anything….and forget about GPA etc…everyone around you is smart (that's why they were given job offers)

[Anonymous]

@CalCPASoon :

Thank you so much for your advice and input. I felt immediate relief upon reading your comment. I've got 1 more week left before I start work so I'm just trying to get as much done as I can before I start my 8+/hr workdays! What you said about referring to past year's work has got so much truth to it, it's just never come across my mind before. I guess why they have this accountant joke:

Why did the auditor cross the road?

Because he looked in the file and that's what they did last year.

I just hope they don't start me off on a brand new audit client! Ha

@chakey :

So you're saying based on your 2 occasions of taking FAR, they tested heavily on JE's? that's good to know, because I've been only peering over them in my becker books and haven't been putting any focus on them at all

[Yvonne570]

Lucky. I can't seem to get out of low-level accounting that does not even require an associates degree. In the wrong state or just too busy to job search. LOL.

AUD - Passed:)
FAR - Passed:)
REG - Retake TBD
BEC - Missed by 3 points Retake TBD

[ROACH]

Yvonne, what do you consider low level accounting work? like AR AP stuff? or are you talking lower.. like data entry?

BEC: 66 | 69 | 7/23/2013
AUD: 8/28/2013
REG:
FAR:

[Anonymous]

@yvonne your exam dates are awfully close together. only 3 weeks between AUD and FAR? i know you're eager to pass the CPA as the rest of us, but 3 weeks may be a little too short, especially for FAR. but don't let me discourage you. study hard, good luck, and prove me wrong!

[markiux88]

Yvonne570…My position could be filled by someone who does not even have a hs diploma, so don't feel bad…I do nothing, but google all day…My nickname in the office is “Senior Partner” cuz I don't do chit…

[Author]

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