[Anonymous]

Please share the real deal with us

[misanthrope87]

I used becker and I felt that the real test was more in detail than becker that's for sure. Did a lot of educated answering and changing my answers.

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

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the feedback, what part are you takeing next? Is Aud a good match? I am saving Far for the final showdown agains popular advise.

[Anonymous]

I took REG yesterday and I thought the Becker MC were very similar. Of course, there were some MC on later testlets that were more difficult, but probably because I didn't know some topics in as much detail as I should have. Becker goes into a lot of detail about thresholds / phase-outs (I thought this was overwhelming when I read through the book), but as you can tell in the Becker MC, there's only a few that are important to remember the actual dollar-amounts.

The Becker simulations aren't very similar to the actual test. When I saw my actual simulations yesterday, I wasn't too sure on how to answer any of them. However, it's really important to use the research tab. I ended up using the research tab and found “the rules” to solve all of them. I spent 15 min / 45 min / 30 min (my 2nd testlet got extremely difficult) and then 1 hr 30 min for the Sims.

[Lynn1234]

I took REG last testing window and passed. I used Becker and I felt the actual exam had quite a few questions from the ancillary material. the simulations in Becker were easier than the ones on the actual exam. i remember one of my simulations seemed like it belonged in FAR and I took FAR prior to REG so I was able to get a little understanding of the simulation.

[Anonymous]

Based upon how difficult your mcqs were, you probably passed. Very best of luck. This is doable with lots of studying. I hate the people that whine. Keep it going.

[Anonymous]

So hard. Whatever material you are using, supplement it with something else. Definitely the most challenging part for me.

[Anonymous]

Nice scores, you are my idol. What the heck did you do?

[Anonymous]

lol ok, I'll try to detail out what I did (using Becker):

Step 1) Review the first sub-lecture (e.g. the first lecture in the R1 series). My method during the lectures was to pay attention to Tim/Pete and highlight/underline pretty much whatever they told me to. If I came across something that seemed more complex, sometimes I would rewind the lecture and watch it again while making additional explanatory notes in the margins.

Step 2) Do the questions for the sub-lecture (carefully review explanations for each answer selection whether I got it right or wrong). NOTE: I think this is a very important step; sometimes we aren't 100% confident in what answers we select, but once we get it right, we neglect to review why; it's important to note why a different selection would have been incorrect. In my opinion, of course.

Step 3) Complete the supplementary questions at the end of the lecture series (e.g. the supp questions at the end of the R1 series)

Step 4) Repeat for all series' (R1-R7)

Step 5) Take final exam # 1

Step 6) I would note which areas were the most difficult for me and go back through the book and re-read (sometimes re-listen to) the lectures, trying to comprehend the material better. Also, I would re-do those MCQ problem sets to gauge my new level of understanding.

Step 7) [If time] Only for REG did I do this, but I re-wrote my notes (essentially rewriting sections of the book); came out to about 50 pages of notes. I felt like writing it down on paper enhanced my understanding of some topics.

Step 8) [If time] I did as many simulations as I could (I really don't think this adds a lot of value; the becker sims [at least for reg] seriously underestimated the actual sims.

Step 9) [If time] Review flashcards (Again, I don't think this step adds an enormous amount of value, but if you have time, it can't hurt).

Step 10) Take final exam #2

Step 11) Pray to whatever God you believe in; pray very hard.

This is my method, but I don't mean to presume that it would fit everyone's learning styles. Also, I was in the Master's program when I took the sections, not a full time job, so take that into consideration. I would have to say I prepared about 5 weeks for FAR, 4 weeks for REG, 2 weeks for AUD and BEC. Best of luck to you.

[makinthemagic]

I thought Becker was decent for Reg. Becker's MC were tougher than the real test and the sims were good preparation.

Bec 4/11/11 91
Aud 7/11/11 75
Reg 8/31/11 80
Far 5/24/11 86
Ethics - 98
California Licensed CPA
Illinois Registered CPA

[IamBlessed]

@BaseballCPA — i guess you are less than the 10% becker talks about on their website congradulations …

[HumanPiranha]

I got a 90 on REG, and it was the first part of the exam I took.

I'd suggest getting a job at a CPA firm doing all sorts of taxes and working for 2 years, and then taking the test. That may not be a short term solution, but seemed to be the key for me.

[Zizoty]

I used Yaeger and only do the recommended MCQ in the Wiley book + ALL the questions in the Wiley dvd test bank + ALL cpareviewforfree.com(TWICE). GL

AUD - 83 Feb11
REG - 75 May11
BEC - 73 July11 84 Oct11
FAR - 63 Aug11 76 Feb12 I'M DONE!!!!!

[JamaicaBro]

I used Becker for all sections and passed all on the 1st attempt. I found REG to be the most challenging and had to supplement with other materials from the web for sections where I thought Becker was too brief. I would also recommend that you leave sufficient time for the SIMS as I had a 2 that were not covered in Becker at all and had to use the research tool. The research tool is useful but very time consuming to find exactly what is required so you have to leave sufficient time.

FAR 86

AUD 98

REG 92

BEC 92

[mariamb]

Just took REG and it was brutal…it kept getting harder which each testlet. I studied every day (and I mean every day) for 6, 8 and sometimes 10 hours a day for the past 6 weeks. Used Becker and I have to say I was a bit disappointed. All the areas that they guessed were going to heavily tested, were not. I did review every chapter and it's contents and I am glad I did. So many of the questions that they (Becker) said had a remote chance of being on the exam were on my exam. I did 52 simulated tests and every single simulation at least three times. I would have to say that the set up for the simulations were odd, if not confusing.

[Author]

Replies