[wraffert]

Hey! I just took FAR a few days ago… I think I passed.. I hope, anyway. I plan on starting REG in about two weeks. How much effort needs to go into REG compared to FAR? Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Depends on what your strengths and weaknesses are. I felt much more confident going in to REG than FAR (actual exams were a different story). I started studying right after a business law class, a tax season, and a tax class though. A lot of people think FAR is “easier” thAn REG though.

[T-rex]

I just took FAR, but I have no idea whether I passed. I do know that it took me three times as long to prepare for FAR as it did for REG. FAR is much more voluminous than REG. With that said, the REG exam seemed to be more difficult, especially the sims. The sims were a complete nightmare. I couldn't understand what a few of them were even asking for and English is my first language. My recommendation for the sims is to try to stay calm when you get to them and work through them as best as you can. Going into panic mode won't help anything.

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

[pshustler]

I actually found FAR to be a little tougher. FAR was more material, and I was already familiar with some of Bus Law and didnt find that difficult at all

BEC - 86
AUD - 94
REG - 88
FAR - 89

[Anonymous]

In order of difficult (from most difficult to least), in my opinion: REG, AUD, BEC, FAR. That plays to my strengths and weaknesses, though.

[kb24]

You'll probably not need quite as much time for REG as for FAR. It doesn't cover as much material plus you should be more efficient since you have learned from your experience with FAR which study techniques are most effective for you. However, a lot will depend on how familiar/comfortable you are with tax and business law. If you are using Becker, I strongly recommend that you study the ancillary material just as much as you do the rest. No matter how well prepared you are, the exam can be really tough. Many people, myself included, think REG is harder than FAR – more obscure topics, more poorly worded questions. Give yourself about 1 1/2 hours for the SIMS, and stay calm if you're not one of the lucky ones with reasonable SIMS.

FAR 4/1/11 - 89
AUD 4/15/11 - 85
REG 4/29/11 - 80
BEC 5/13/11 - 85

[pshustler]

Baseball – you found FAR the least difficult? Wow

BEC - 86
AUD - 94
REG - 88
FAR - 89

[Anonymous]

Yeah, I did. The general theory of accounting and the double entry system always came very easily to me throughout school. I always thought people were joking when they said journal entries were difficult or confusing. But it's really not that impressive of a topic to be good at…I mean, we have accounting information systems capable of making adjusting entries every month and computing amortization tables in nano seconds. So with the exception of Governmental and NFP (which I found highly counter-intuitive), I thought FAR was a breeze. I took it in 2010, however, so I got to take it sans IFRS. Additionally, I also took it when there were only two simulations (one of which was complete nonsense; I think it was written in Greek). So pros and cons I suppose.

REG on the other hand…completely destroyed me. I studied the hardiest BY FAR for REG and still barely squeaked out a passing score.

[kandisjoy]

I'd say in order of most difficult to lease difficult (for me): REG, FAR, AUD, BEC

Reasoning:

1) REG – I hate tax and law. And then even when I felt like a REALLY knew it, I had a monstrous exam. I'm pretty sure that I failed my third attempt.

2) FAR – So much information! The good thing is that I work in accounting and I was familiar with a lot of what was on the exam.

3) AUD – I hated auditing when I audited, but I actually didn't mind studying the material. It's very, very boring, but it's not that difficult to understand.

4) BEC – Less material to study, and I really enjoyed economics in college so that helped.

FAR: 71, 77
BEC: 70, 82
AUD: 62, 78
REG: 71, 68, 85

CA Licensed 11/2011

[Anonymous]

I agree. REG is worse. It's less material but you get tested a lot on small details. With FAR, you can concentrate on big topics like Business Combinations, Inventory, Bonds, Gov't Accounting, etc. and ignore smaller topics like Debt Restructure, Dollar Value LIFO, etc. and you can still pass. With REG, you have to know EVERYTHING. Something that may be covered in just 1-2 sentences in your review book could end up being on your exam. It's a lot more detailed. REG is a pain!!

I am going to hunt down my Accounting professor that I had in college. Can you believe that he actually told our class that FAR is the hardest part and that the other 3 are a lot easier? He even went as far as to say that if we can pass FAR, we're pretty much near the finish line. Yeah, right!!!

[HazeEastwood]

Hmmmm….here is my two cents. It all depends on the person. I am and I have always been challenged by tax accounting. I simply hate it. I have always done far better in financial accounting. I found REG to be far more challenging than FAR. My scores doesn't indicate this but its very true. I suspect had I taken FAR 2nd or 3rd my score would have been higher. I was learning how to study for the CPA when I took FAR. Some people sttruggle with BEC or AUD. The time required depends on your background and strengths and how long you've been out of school

FAR-81
BEC-84
AUD-91
REG-89

[ExhaustedCPA]

Reg doesn't have as much material as FAR but it can test on the smallest of details. So I say you can probably do 20 hours less than FAR and still be good. I found FAR to be the hardest, by far (ok, ok, bad pun). It just depends on the person. Some people might think AUD is the hardest, believe it or not.

Aud 4/2/11 - 86
Far 5/27/11 - 83
Bec 7/1/11 - 82
Reg 8/13/11 - 86! It's over!!!!

[Anonymous]

(rimshot) make sure to tip your wait staff, folks lol

[gottagetmycpa]

you guys are scaring the crap out of me! REG is my next exam.Although I have always considered myself very knowledgeable in taxes I must admit there is a lot of detail and missing one step cause you to get the wrong answer 🙁

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

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

[khachik2003]

@gotta

May god have mercy on your soul. REG is the difficult and so boring to study for.

[Megan]

I took FAR in 2010 twice and in 2011 twice. Even though my scores don't show it, 2010 was easier. I didn't study for either attempt in 2010 (started to for the first attempt but got laid off, so I spent all my time on finding a job–then found out I was pregnant and was sick for forever and blew off the second attempt), but it was fair. Both 2011 FAR attempts have been super tricky.

For me this is the order of difficulty from least difficult to most difficult:

AUD (2010)

BEC (2011) — tied — REG (2010)

FAR (2011)

Baseball – you can have my Governmental and NFP skillz if I can have your JE skillz!

BEC 52, 61, 74, 77
AUD 80
REG 75
FAR 50, 60, 70, 74, 83...DONE!!
..Texas.. Baby #2 born 4/11/11

[Author]

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