[zi007ad]

Really its getting tougher and tougher for me ! its my 3rd year studying the CPA and my 3rd try in a row in less than a year with REG and and the 3rd time in a row to SEE the 74 ! what shall i do !!! now i lost BEC credit, tried becker/ wiley / ninja notes and no luck ! for an international student travelling to the US for each section is not financially and mentally easy at all …

i guess its time to quite and try something else ! any suggestions ?

*COLORADO*
REG: 58,41,74,74,74,74,77
BEC: 67,76*,79
FAR: 62,68,60,75
AUD: 76*,64,66,81
* Expired

[ImaCPA168]

@zi007ad

Dont give up! You can do it! I looked at your approach. I did the same thing and struggled with REG 3 times before I finally passed. I struggled with REG for so long that my BEC and AUD expired. Anyway, with a similar study approach as yours I got, 70, 70, 72. I was so frustrated and blamed my study materials instead of myself. I got the two 70's using Becker. I got the 72 from using Yeager. I was contemplating buying Rogers for my 4th attempt.

But how I was able to finally pass when I started listening to Jeff. I followed the NINJA plan. You're already doing almost everything. You're just missing the re-write your notes part. When I finally gave in… I re-wrote all my notes into one condensed book of REG gold. I incorporated notes I took during watching all the lectures, notes from the review books, and notes from when I did practice questions. I even researched tax laws online to make sure that what was in my study materials was still current. I found a handful of tax laws in my books that were out of date even though the book was suppose to be for the year that I was studying for. So it happens more often than you would think.

After all that trouble…I was scoring much better on practice MCQs and SIMS. And on test day, I actually felt prepared. More prepared than I felt for all the other parts. After I took the REG exam for the 4th time, I knew I passed even before the scores came out. And when I they came out, it confirmed that I was right.

So just tweak your plan a little and try re-writing the notes. It's tedious and takes forever, but it really worked for me. And I always recommend it to people who tell me they're struggling with a section and thinking about giving up. One person even borrowed my notes and failed their exam. But I think they missed the point that they have to write their own notes. Not read mine. Anyway, not everyone believes me about taking the time to re-write notes but those are the same people who are still struggling. Go figure.

P.S. Don't overlook practicing SIMS. I think it is the most important for REG. You won't pass REG if you score weaker on SIMS no matter what you get on MCQs.

B - 83 Done
A - 88 Done
R - 81 Done
F - 77 Done

Ethics - Done
Attest Hours - Done

Licensed-May 2013!

[homerun07]

you're soooooo close!! don't give up.

have you tried rewriting and taking your own notes??

it's very time consuming but you remember things better when you write them down, especially if you're writing it in your own words.

i failed FAR and on my 2nd time studying i rewrote notes and passed.

i also failed AUD and on my 2nd round studying i rewrote notes and passed.

when you study make sure you are doing progress tests after each chapter in becker.

and when you're doing the MCq make sure you not only understand why one reason is correct but also understand why the others are wrong.

i felt that when i took reg, the sims were pretty similar to becker… so study those real hard!!

i hope that helps and you will get it the next time! good luck :))

[zi007ad]

@nolifecpa: I guess i need to focus more on simulations ! thanks for pointing that

*COLORADO*
REG: 58,41,74,74,74,74,77
BEC: 67,76*,79
FAR: 62,68,60,75
AUD: 76*,64,66,81
* Expired

[zi007ad]

@ImaCPA168: Thank you for the motivation .. i guess i need to add the re-write my notes / Ninja to my study plan maybe it would help to re-enforce the studying 🙂

*COLORADO*
REG: 58,41,74,74,74,74,77
BEC: 67,76*,79
FAR: 62,68,60,75
AUD: 76*,64,66,81
* Expired

[zi007ad]

@homerun07: Thanks for the motivation 🙂 .. do you take notes while watching the videos ?

*COLORADO*
REG: 58,41,74,74,74,74,77
BEC: 67,76*,79
FAR: 62,68,60,75
AUD: 76*,64,66,81
* Expired

[zi007ad]

as a general question, i consider myself below average performer .. how much time do you take per section of studying ?? i am planning to book 4 hours daily for studying starting from next week 🙂 ??

*COLORADO*
REG: 58,41,74,74,74,74,77
BEC: 67,76*,79
FAR: 62,68,60,75
AUD: 76*,64,66,81
* Expired

[homerun07]

for FAR- i studied for it again as if it were my first time taking it so i rewatched all the lectures and redid all the hw and sims– did progress tests (i didn't do them the first time i took it) and then i took notes as part of the “review stage”. leave out like 2 weeks of review- one week to rewrite notes of each chapter and the other week for practicing hw/sims/ practice exams–

however for AUD i didn't rewatch the lectures bc i felt like i knew it. i was actually pretty shocked to find out i failed! but instead of rewatching the lectures i just wrote out notes from the book then practiced the hw/sims.

[ImaCPA168]

@ zi007ad

I have to really know the material. I'm not able to guess my way into anything. Also, I am married and have a demanding job. So I take a long time to study. I took 2-3 months for FAR and REG and 1-2 months for BEC and AUD. I can only take one exam per window. I've tried taking two, but never passed both so I stopped wasting my money.

I try to study 4 nights a week during the weekdays. And I try get 3 to 4 hours of studying in each day. I study for 1 hour during lunch and 3 hours at night. I get home from work around 6:30. I get food on the table by 7. By 8 or 8:30, I'm hitting the books and my husband does the dishes. I go to bed around midnight. Sounds horrible but I usually take Fridays nights off.

On weekends, I try to get 8 hours of studying in each day. I try to start early so that I have the rest of the day to run errands and hang with my family. It doesn't matter how I want to do it. Sometimes I have nothing going on and I'll do 12 hours on Saturday. Then the following Sunday, I'll go light and do 4 hours. I just try to hit 16 hours total on the weekends.

Once I'm done with watching videos, taking notes, practicing MCQs, re-writing notes… I give myself 2 weeks before the exam to focus solely on taking practice exams (MCQs and SIMs) and re-reading my notes. In these final 2 weeks, I ramp up the hours especially on the weekends–studying for 12 to 16 hours a day on Saturdays and Sundays. When I do the practice exams, I don't move on to the next question until I figure it out and understand it. It takes a long time. Re-reading (not skimming) my notes takes time as well. So in the 2 week span, I'm only able to complete 8-10 practice exams and read the notes 2-3 times.

Just when my head is about to explode, it is exam day!

B - 83 Done
A - 88 Done
R - 81 Done
F - 77 Done

Ethics - Done
Attest Hours - Done

Licensed-May 2013!

[Anonymous]

Hey, I am an international student as well and plan on cracking all four of my exams mebbe in the last quarter exam window. As zi007ad's mentioned above, it wont be possible for me to come to the US to write my exams one subject at a time but now I am having second thoughts, I want to plan my studying according to my travel plans and have a few questions for all you nice ppl 🙂 on this thread.

– Taking into account the number of hours and suggestions mentioned above, is there a possibility for me to take up all four exams together, mebbe with a gap of two to four days of each other?

– If so what order??

– If not do you think even two exams sounds sensible?

– @zi007ad did you take all four exams during the same exam window? For how many hours before taking up these exams do you suggest I study.

I loved accounts when in college and tend to pick up things fast, I have also enrolled myself into a live review programme which offers about 10 hours of lectures per week spread over 7 months. My work timings are fairly flexible and my job isn't all that demanding (am sure all these are major contributing factors).

Would really appreciate a response.

Cheers!!!

[Anonymous]

@Allwynster22 – There is a thread on here somewhere of an international CPA candidate who passed all 4 in 10 days. My manager at work is originally from Germany and he took them all in one week. It's difficult, but possible if you put a lot of time into it. The order is really up to you, especially if you're thinking of taking them all so close together (at that point you have to study for all at the same time anyway).

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

@k917, thank you so very, its comforting to know that all four exams can be cracked together after all the negative vibes I've been getting online (one reason why I registered on here).

I tried searching for threads on candidates who did crack all four at one stretch but found none….if you rem anything about that link please do lemme know…..

Good luck on AUD and BEC 🙂

Cheers!!!

[Anonymous]

Here you go: https://www.another71.com/cpa-exam-forum/topic/all-4-parts-in-11-days

[Anonymous]

@k917,

Thanks again, you are a star 🙂 I read both the threads (in like record time :P), I understand its tough but i think ill have to make up my mind right now and work towards it I suppose…..

Cheers!!!

[wissam]

I think the examiners need to have some mercy, you passed three parts and then scored 74 three times on the last one? on the CFA exam if you do well on some sections and fail by a few points you will still get a passing grade. The CPA exam should have something similar.

[Author]

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