[FARSUXCPA]

When I ran out of time on REG, the 2nd sim tabs were mostly without answers. I was sure I failed but ended up passing. If you did well on MCQs and WCs then you should pass. REG is curved big time so don’t worry.

About 50% end up passing so if you performed slightly better than the average test taker in theory you should pass.

DONE!

[Trevor]

Thanks for that, I needed the reminder that I just need to be better than 50% of the people taking the exam. On the matter of WC… I would feel better if I thought I did well on those, but I know that I could have answered them better.

Heres to hoping I did well at guessing on a bunch of MCQ's!! 🙂

BEC: 73,81(7/6/2010); AUD: 75(5/24/2010); FAR: 76(8/31/2010); REG: 77 (10/18/2010) - DONE!!!!

[I can do it cpa]

FARSUXCPA,

Congrats on your accomplishments!

I'm retaking REG right before thanksgiving holiday and my performance report says Individual Taxation was my weakest area of all. Any suggestions on how to improve on it?

IL
FAR-80 |BEC-85 |REG-72,82|AUD-81 |Ethics-Done
Getting it done in 2010! -> GOT IT DONE IN 2010

[2010Please]

Same here…I aced mcq, did so,so on first sim, and pretty much bombed second sim (not really covered, or at least downplayed in Becker) …didn't even know what the written communication wanted from me on 2nd sim and left it blank…passed with an 85 when I just knew I had failed.

AUD 92, REG 85, BEC 90, FAR 85
Ethics 100
Obtained License 7/11/11 🙂

[Jan_in_WI]

FARSUXCPA – You made my day! I have been worrying about REG as I too ran out of time on the second sim. It's comforting to know about the scoring on that exam. Thanks so much for sharing the good news with the rest of us, and congratulations on your successful passing of all the exams!

Jan

FAR - 94 (7/10)
AUD - 99 (8/20)
REG - 99 (10/15)
BEC - 88 (11/20)

[Anonymous]

I don't understand why people say this exam is curved. I thought according to the AICPA, this is not a curved exam????

I also hear people say “I hope they count my 1st simulation word choice, and not the second”. Do you think only 1 simulation counts?????

[Need CPA Already]

I laugh with others when we talk about the CPA exam being curved. Now per the AICPA the answer is no. However if you think about it, it really seems like it is. The AICPA is saying that in any given testing window you can have 100% passing or 100% failing. However the questions are weighted upon how everyone does. A little bit complicated, don't know if they really consider weighing you against others in the testing window vs others in prior windows, I would have to be prior windows of course.

I am really eager to get my REG score. I put the most amount of time into REG. I walked out of there dazed and confused. I got through the MCQs w/ 1.5 hours to go and being like I think I did fine in the MCQs and it is now time to nail this with the simulations and WC. My simulations were so so hard. I was shocked. I spent over an hour on my first simulation and then was rushed on my second one as I had less then 30 minutes.

If I get a higher score in REG than I did in BEC, I will honestly say the sections are curved against each other. I walked out of Audit saying “I could of done better but I think I passed”. I walked out of BEC going “I didn't ace it but there is no way I failed, that was for the most part a pretty easy exam”. I walked out of REG being like what the hell happened and felt that there is a good chance I failed.

Anyways what I heard about the last two testlets is this. One WC is graded and the other one is a pretest. However both simulations are graded but some of the tab(s) within each simulation can be pretest as well.

8/20 AUD: 90
8/31 BEC: 82
10/6 REG: 83
10/25 FAR: 93

[Jan_in_WI]

Need CPA Already – Hey, I just had a carbon copy experience with REG this past Friday. I could have written your post. Oh wait, I already did! See my post on my REG “experience”. Ha!

I felt confident in the mc questions also. And I had 1.5 hours left going into the sims. I spent an hour on the first sim, which was hard, and the second sim was really hard, but I had so much less time left for that one. Whoa!!!!!!!

I sure hope the thing is curved somehow. Like you, I'll compare it to my other taken sections. If I score better than I did for FAR, I'll know for sure it's somehow adjusted, whether or not the AICPA technically calls it “curved” or not.

FAR - 94 (7/10)
AUD - 99 (8/20)
REG - 99 (10/15)
BEC - 88 (11/20)

[peter olinto fan]

i also finish my mcq in 1.5 hours, yesterday, then got to the sims and had no idea what was going on. it was pretty demoralizing. all i can do now is wait. and hopefully the wait isn't 2.5 months like it was for my FAR score.

FAR - 81
BEC - 73, 73, 79
REG - 72, 75
AUD - 72, 68, 82

DONE!!!!

[italianCPA]

Here's my experience:

I'm in no way a guy who knows he did ok and then claims to have failed and then comes up with a 90+ score.

My first exam was FAR, which is also the one that I'm more familiar with. I studied for 3 weeks, pretty much full time and as soon as I got approved by my Board of Accountancy, I sat for it the following Monday. I walked out a little confused because I was surprised that I had doubts in some questions and I thought I completed BSed in one WC (which I'm sure I did, they must have graded the other one, because I got comparable). Nevertheless, I got a 95. I just didn't know what to expect because it was my first exam.

Two weeks later I took AUD: no experience in auditing, not even a single class in college. I barely got through the lectures and MCQs the day before (major cram). I went to take the test knowing that I wasn't prepared. However, I felt pretty good during the test, I had like 3 hours left for the sims and took my sweet time using the research tab.

I walked out knowing I did well, very well. I was confident.

I ended up getting an 88, scoring weaker in the WC (English isn't my first language).

Three weeks after that I took BEC, of which I have a fair knowledge, mainly from business school, but also some professional experience in the finance part.

I took the test. There were a couple of questions poorly written (or maybe poorly read by me – who knows!), but other than that I walked out knowing there was no way I could have failed. And I got another 88.

Now, I took REG on Friday, my last part. I went in fairly prepared.

The first testlet was easy and I breezed through in 15 minutes.

To my surprise, the second testlet was extremely hard, very hard. I had at least 8 questions I wasn't sure about. Same for the third testlet, maybe the unsure questions were 5 or 6, but still.

I started my sims with 1h45m left.

The first sim was difficult but doable (even though some topics have been neglected by becker), the second one was very difficult and time consuming. I finished with 30 seconds left, rushing the WC. Rushing the WC is never a good thing, especially for me since I'm clearly not strong in it.

I walked out feeling much worse than any of the other three exams that I took before, way worse!

Considering that I will probably score weaker in my WC, I am thinking that there's a chance that I failed this one, and I'm not saying it just for the sake of it and then pop up with a high score.

Passing wouldn't be a surprised, but it's definitely not a given (which it was in the other three). I would be absolutely shocked if REG won't be my lowest score (whether a passing one or not).

FAR - 7/26/10 - 95
AUD - 8/10/10 - 88
BEC - 8/31/10 - 88
REG - 10/15/10 - 95

[herbert7890]

Im terrified of REG as I never took a Federal taxation class (Im from Puerto Rico) and I know this will be my hardest section of all

FAR 88 - BEC 86 - AUD 90 - REG 85

[hazeyCPA]

italianCPA…from reading your post(s) i never would have thought that english was not your second language.

Anyway, i had a pretty similar REG experience as you in terms of the MC testlets. I had 1 hour 30 min to do the sims. I started with the WCs and wrote good memos, my first simulation was doable but very time consuming – I definitely didn’t ace it but I picked up some points. I only had 30 min to do the last sim though and it was harder. The topic was something that I was never good at: for GAAP purposes or tax purposes. Ironically, I was able to write about it but not correctly do the spreadsheet/ calculations. I ran out of time and probably could have picked up a couple more points if I had another 5 minutes. Nonetheless, I studied the most I could and did the best I could …hopefully its pays off, it’s my last test too.

I felt the worst coming out of FAR though. The fact that I am not more down on myself about this test means I either didn’t do well or I just have more experience from taking prior cpa exam sections.

Undergrad - May 2010; Masters - August 2010
NY Candidate, Becker, Start w/ Big 4 in January
AUD (4/15)-91; FAR (7/26)-85; BEC (8/28)–87; REG (11/3)– 92

[LADavid]

I'm currently preparing for REG, and am scheduled to take it 11/27. Took BEC last Saturday and work full time. Will decide within the next weeks to sit for REG on 11/27 or reschedule for 2011. REG is the section that has by far the most new material for me. My job is in taxation but I am only three months into the position.

Took AUD in late July and passed with an 83. Took FAR in late August and passed with a 91. Was at University during 2009-2010 academic year taking mainly accounting, and since relocated to CA. Wrote two decent communications for FAR in the simulations, but left many of the tabs only half filled in for the second simulation. Think I was 1 for 2 on the research tab for AUD and was too time pressed on FAR to even attempt the second research tab (gave up on the first research tab after a few minutes with time running down): so I think 1 for 4 so far on the research tabs. Reading how the CPA exams are graded, felt hard pressed to predict my grades (especially given that a significant number of Q's are pretest and ungraded) but don't really see how > 50% of people can actually do better than 75% correct on these exams.

Am using 2010 ExamMatrix since my advisor at the University has a connection and got it for students for ~$200. Wouldn't recommend it but it has worked so far. Am anxious about the BEC grade. About 25-35% of the Q's had material unseen in the ExamMatrix materials – some of them I knew from elsewhere and some I guessed. A few Q's I am unsure about even after trying to find the answers since then in books and with web searches (would love to post them, but apparently we can't discuss content). Any suggestions on what I should do with REG are appreciated. Can study all days on weekends and 2-4 hours weekdays (due to my real job).

AUD - 7/31 - 83
FAR - 8/27 - 91
BEC - 10/30 - 90
REG - 11/27 - 95

[hazeyCPA]

LAdavid,

about 20% of the exam is pretest, so you should be in good shape with BEC. without getting into specifics, when i took it there were a lot of bizarre that i randomly (and quickly) guessed on because i was 90% sure they were pre-test.

also, its not really getting 75% of questions right, its a raw score out of 99 which you obviously need a 75. questions are weighted on statistics and you get more, less points based on how difficult it is.

do you have a cpa review program for reg yet (i.e. becker, gliem, matrix)? if i were you i would try to take the test before 2011. Why not right? you could be done ! Becker is good but a a little expensive…I heard good things about yaeger too but i dont have any experience with it so i would ask someone that does.

Undergrad - May 2010; Masters - August 2010
NY Candidate, Becker, Start w/ Big 4 in January
AUD (4/15)-91; FAR (7/26)-85; BEC (8/28)–87; REG (11/3)– 92

[LADavid]

Thanks hazeyCPA, Hope you are right about BEC – if Jeff is right, they should release scores at the end of next week and then I'll know.

Regarding review materials: I am using ExamMatrix since my advisor arranges for her students to get it for ~$200 and that's what people used at my U; I know of almost no one else that uses it. With ExamMatrix one mainly uses a computer test bank, reads explanations, etc. (the “personal professor” recommends what one does next and its supposedly gives you Q's and repeats Q's based on your progress). It's unpleasant, but seems effective so has been worth it so far. I wish one could review problems after leaving a session or review problems by area, but once one exits a session it's gone and one gets a random seeming draw again the next time. They have sims also, but concentrate on the MCQs. I'm unsure what I will do if I need to repeat in 2011. I'm pretty cheap (and don't want to watch lectures), so would probably try Wiley.

Any recommendations are appreciated. I tried to share my experiences since others might find them useful and others might have useful comments. After I took AUD as my first exam (wave 1 eligible) last QTR, it really threw me that my score wasn't released until wave 2 with my FAR score – I almost rescheduled FAR since I was so unsure about the process (glad I didn't).

AUD - 7/31 - 83
FAR - 8/27 - 91
BEC - 10/30 - 90
REG - 11/27 - 95

[hazeyCPA]

oh i see…you should just buy a textbook and study from that. I watched the lectures and all but mainly just studied from the text and practiced questions. the becker text is really good, idk if you can just buy a text book though??? may be something to look into – i know you can from some other companies.

Undergrad - May 2010; Masters - August 2010
NY Candidate, Becker, Start w/ Big 4 in January
AUD (4/15)-91; FAR (7/26)-85; BEC (8/28)–87; REG (11/3)– 92

[Author]

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