[jeff]

Welcome to the “I Passed the CPA Exam” thread for CPA Candidates who are DONE and have their Life Back.

[Mouse]

@El. Congrats! Glad that you got your life back. REG is my last one too and I took it last Saturday. The wait is no fun at all. I find myself more anxious about REG than other sections. Maybe it is just because this is my last section. 8 more days. What shall I do in between? Honestly I have a feeling of throwing up when I think of reviewing and practising again before I know the result. What did you do when you are waiting for your REG result to come out?

[thunderlips]

Congrats to those recently passed. I hope to some day post here with my passing story

[El]

@Mouse – I only had to wait about 10 days for the results so I took that time off to try and relax. I was really anxious and bummed though because I thought I failed. I may have spent an hour that entire time to study keep things “fresh”.

Good luck to you guys. I would say that there is a huge weight off my shoulders but with the YE scramble at work, trying to put together the CPA application, taking the ethics exam, and the small fear that I may have not met my educational requirements (not an accounting major), it's not over until I get that letter saying I'm completely done. So I am still tired and stressed.

[3Countries]

I’m finally done! If you count my senior year CPA review course in college, I have been studying for these exams since January 2018. I managed to pass them all while working in public accounting full time. Not gonna lie, it was really challenging but I got there in the end with four months to spare.

A big thank you to the Another71 community for its encouragement and camaraderie.

Soli Deo Gloria 🙂

[Journeyman]

Well, that’s it! 87 on Reg wraps it up.

I began this journey 4 years ago, almost exactly when I had my wife and a good friend urge me to go to college. I was active duty Marine Corps planning on 20 years, so at the time I didn’t care much about college, but went with it anyway. I didn’t want to spend a lot of time in college, so I decided to get it done quickly and I attended at a hyper accelerated pace, and took clep tests on the side and finished college in 2 years and did surprisingly well.

About the time I was coming up on college graduation, I injured my knee pretty bad and I was medically separated from the Marine Corps. Not sure what to do with myself I decided to jump on the CPA journey and network like crazy to find a job. I was extremely fortunate as I was able to land a job with PwC to start getting work experience to CPA (only spent a year here though, hours mixed with study schedule was rediculous). Just 4 years after deciding to go to college, I am sitting here now reflecting on the journey that has led me to this monumental accomplishment.

I never thought I would go to college, no one in my family has and academics were never prioritized in my family. I viewed college as reserved for a class of people that is above my status, not for someone like lowly me. When I passed my first CPA exam, that’s when I decided this was an inevitable journey and I will stop at nothing. I passed aud, failed far, passed bec, passed far, and just completed the journey with Reg. The Far failure (score of 58) came right after busy season when we extended our audit due to 2 material weaknesses, but made me question again if I was cut out for this. I locked down, left PwC and found a job with more flexible hours to allot me time to study. This last test I studied like a mad man, left the exam thinking I failed because of items I knew I messed up (sounds like a familiar sentiment?).

It’s done, I could not have done this without the support of my 1. My wife, 2. My friends and family, 3. My employer, 4. All of you beautiful people on here posting stories to keep me motivated.

For anyone still climbing this mountain, focus on what’s right in front of you and accept becoming a CPA as an inevitability.

[laney713]

I passed AUD, so that makes 4/4 and I'm done! This has been a very long and not-so-easy journey for me… Working full-time for a public and having a busy season that seems to last 6 months..I finally got it all done just as FAR was about to expire. Just got to buckle down and study, it does hurt a bit at the time, but it'll all be over soon. Thanks Becker lectures and NINJA MCQ! And big thanks to the Another 71 forum and all the advice on here. It is nice to know there is a whole community of strangers out there going through the same thing as me. Good luck to all the candidates who still have exams to go! You got this.

[Anny]

Finally, I am done. Thank you, Jeff. This forum gave me so many encouraging words whenever I had hard times to study CPA Exams.

[MJ44]

Can’t believe it but I’m done. All Glory to God and a little help from NINJA CPA review. Drilling those MCQs helped me pass my last 3 exams in a row after previously using Becker. It’s all about study strategy and determination. Create your own flashcards, drill MCQs, re-read Ninja Notes, watch videos on your trouble areas and do the AICPA sample tests.

[Lindsey_p87]

I'm officially done. It's so surreal but I couldn't be happier. Thank you Jeff for creating the Ninja materials, I wouldn't have passed without them!

FAR - PASSED 11/14
AUD - TBD
BEC - TBD
REG - First take 2/16

[DogMommin]

I can't believe it but I'm officially done! Found out I passed FAR this morning after a loooong wait on KY scores. Started this journey last September, failed FAR twice, and decided to start 2019 with a different section. Don't give up and don't be afraid to try something new! I'm so glad I didn't let the “don't take FAR last” advice drag me down.

[KDFCPA]

I can't believe I can actually say I am officially done! I haven't posted on here before but this blog has been my best friend the last two years of this CPA journey. Reading everyone's motivating and encouraging comments really helped me when I was questioning if I could really do this. I passed AUD, REG, and BEC, back to back on the first try. Then I got to FAR in May and life got in the way. I had two failed exams and my credit for AUD expired. I was really scared I wouldn't be able to pass it and would continue to lose other credits. I had used Gleim for the first three tests and two attempts are FAR, then switched over to NINJA and took the test on 11/30 and passed with a 75 on the 12/10 score release. Jeff- asking Santa for 75's really did work!! I decided to wing AUD and take 10 days later and found out last night I received my highest score yet! I only wish I would have started using NINJA earlier.
I really believe this exam is more of a mental test than anything. I don't think the reality of being done has set in yet, but this is the best Christmas gift I could ever receive! Thank you to everyone on here, and keep chugging along to those of you studying. The feeling I have right now is definitely worth it!

[Revenger]

I could not be happier to say that I am finally done with this process!!! I started back in February of 2018, studying for FAR. Due to everyone telling me the insane difficulties of these exams beforehand, I lacked confidence in myself to book a specific date to take the exam at my local prometric center and ended up letting my first NTS expire. It wasn't until after March of 2019 (over a full year), where I finally had the confidence to take the exam based after having started to work full time in October of 2018 at a public accounting firm and I had passed it! From there, I gave myself the end of each new testing window to take a new test, passing each one without failing. If there is one thing I could tell younger me back then, it would be to take a chance and take the exam in a closer testing window, because you never know what score you could get, and you could be saving so much more time. As for materials, I had used Becker throughout the entire journey, with supplement from Ninja via the Ninja notes and the audios, which are amazing btw and definitely recommend to anyone. I was worried that it would expire since I initially had the 18 month window license, but then they ended up releasing the u.limited version and I was “grandfathered” into it.

If there are some things this exam process has taught me, it is the following:

1. Determination: you do not need to be the smartest person to pass the exam, but you need to make it your goal, put the time to put some work in studying and have the perseverance to never give up on what you want.

2. Time Management: balancing real life, job, and the cpa exam were incredibly difficult, but I have learned to set a schedule for myself in trying to accomplish my goals by setting deadlines for myself in order to keep me active.

3. Learning Style: Even in school, I simply would listen to lectures and copy on how other people were picking up things in class because I believed it would make me also learn at their pace. This exam has taught me that I am not a person who can learn through lectures, but rather through actively completing multiple choice questions and reading the book on my own.

After all this time, it is done, thanks to the support of my family, friends, and peers, as well the wonderful people on this forum. As a long time lurker, I can say that from now on, I will voice my own opinion and comments on responses. To everyone that is still studying or beginning to study; sometimes it isn't about the destination, but about the journey you take in getting there. Hopefully everyone will also grow and learn from the hardships they take in taking this exam, and I wish everyone nothing but the best! DON'T EVER GIVE UP ON YOUR GOALS!!!

[Puppykoala]

Guess this is the victory lap equivalent posting?
2 years of hard work (1 year getting accounting credits + 1 year sitting for exam), finally as of yesterday, completed! A lot of struggles, anxieties, early mornings and late nights. Almost shed tears getting my score back yesterday. Not an easy journey, but hope its worthy it!

[I can and I will]

Here I am- 2.5 years later I am done.

From going failing three in a row when I first started this journey, to passing the two hardest in a row, on the brink of expiration for BEC. I can't believe I did it. I'm so proud of myself and thankful for everyone who has supported me along the way. I have my life back. and a massive headache from all the champagne.

2 jobs, 2 eye surgeries, lots of exams later. I AM DONE

[413cpa]

I'm Done!! Passed all 4 on my first try.

Big thanks to Jeff!! I totally used your strategy of NOT practicing sims. I did not look at any sims for FAR or AUD. I looked at like 2 for REG.
MCQ'S and notes all day!

Thanks again Jeff and good luck to all!

BEC – 83
AUD – 82
FAR – 78
REG – 83

[Author]

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