[wilburleft]

Hello everybody,

I got laid off from my finance job in the upstream energy industry last year due to downsizing. Now I’m driving a truck hauling crude oil in Oklahoma. I like the job but need a challenge so I’ve decided to take the CPA exam. To prepare, I was thinking why not skip all the exam prep courses and just get some Intermediate and Advanced Accounting textbooks like we had in school and read & study them? Is that a bad approach?

I graduated with a BS in Accounting in 1990 and haven’t opened an accounting book since. So I really need to relearn. I’ve worked in a variety of low to low-mid level accounting jobs, with my last being focused on cost analysis, budgeting, forecasting for oilfield operations and maintenance.

I’m 54, but still have flashes of ambition. Plan to take FAR first and see where it goes from there. Today is November 26 2015, and I was thinking of scheduling the exam for late February 2016. Can i get through FAR by studying the texbboks and taking practice exams?

Thanks fellow bean counters!

[monikernc]

i am your age and went back to school to acquire the 30 hours of accounting required for the license. first check with your state board to confirm the classes you have taken are acceptable and you have the number of hours you need. most states require 120 semester hrs to sit for exam and 150 hrs for the license.
having just finished school i don't think i could pass these without a review course. the textbooks may cover the material but not the nuance of the exams. the review course will be more efficient. i have referred to textbooks for some basic stuff and a few concepts but that is it. the reviews will condense it exam-style.
with the amount of hours you are driving the audio supplements may really work for you.
good luck.

FAR 7/25/15 76!
AUD 10/30/15 93
BEC 2/27/16 82
REG 5/23/16 88!
Ninja Book and MCQ and the forum - all the way!!!
and a little thing i like to call, time and effort!
if you want things to change, you have to do something different

[ohiostategirlcpa]

FAR also has govt and NFP accounting.

But textbooks, although not a bad idea, is over kill.
Gleim review (as most reviews) is a compressed version of the 2-4 textbooks you need to know.

The CPA exam is not as detailed as a textbook but more broad: it covers 2-4 subjects (in each section)

So the review courses are a more efficient form of studying than textbooks. Do use the textbooks as a reference is the review is not clear though.

F91 A95 R90 B94
CMA since 2015
(Gleim books/PDFs, MCQs, SIMS)

[waffle_house]

You need study material.

[536FrenchmenStreet]

I'm older than ALL y'all. Ha!

Wilbur, have you looked at the CSO/SSOs from AICPA? It's pretty detailed as to what the exams cover. It might give you a better idea of what you're facing. I graduated over the summer and thought I could do it with textbooks until I read the CSO.

BEC: Fall 2016
AUD: Spring 2016
REG: Summer 2016
FAR: RETAKE

[Anonymous]

Yes, I would recommended to first check if you are still qualified to sit for the exam. I graduated 10 years ago and figured out that I needed to take an ethics and a communications class.

Studying from textbooks is definitely a bad idea. If you still want to try it, I would recommend buying Ninja MCQs and see how my scores were in the first few sections vs. time spent to study. The exam itself is a $1,500 investment and a huge time commitment even if you have work experience. Basically, FAR includes something from everything but everything is a mile long and textbooks go way deeper than needed.

Hope it helps.

[Tncincy]

Definitely check with state boards to see what you need to sit, you definitely need study materials. Cheap ? Wiley books, Ninja combo, Unlimited access? Cpaexcel, Witty, crazy, kinda personal? Roger, Have plenty of money to spend (waste) ? Becker,(No it's not unlimited access). I'm sure there are others in between, but if you're gong to go at it, you are going to need the right tools. Besides, some of those books are out dated. Keep your books, look at them, smile at them, enjoy the memories of college, sit them by your wall diploma, but don't rely on them solely to pass this rigorous exam. ( just turned 50 and also contemplating change from sole proprietor to 9-5).

It begins with a 75
Been here too long as a cheerleader....ready to pass

[NicoleL]

If you only have a BS, you're going to probably need some additional classes to meet the 150 hour requirement to sit for the exam. It shouldn't matter what year your degree is from (mine was in 1991 and I just recently took it) but you do need to have the types of classes they want or a masters in accounting.

You should get definitely get review material instead of textbooks. Much more condensed and probably cheaper than if you bought a textbook for every area on the exam.

FAR - 93 (YAY!!!!)
REG - 93 (Double YAY!)
BEC - 87 (Whew!)
AUD - 96 (DONE!!!!!)

[steve777]

Quit your job and spend that time you would have worked studying for the exam

[TheHoundThatRides]

I'm a fresh graduate and I honestly don't think I could ever prep for FAR from university textbooks alone. I have heard of people using books from the library though. I think local libraries have old editions of books like Wiley CPA review that cover what you need to know. CPA reviews are much more efficient at preparing you for the exam than standard university textbooks.

Personally, I would still need the video lectures. But that's just me.

BEC - 78 (August 2015)
FAR - 80 (November 2015)
AUD - 73, 67. (Ok I gotta confess I was even more lazy this time around)
REG - August 27th, 2016

[win2bet]

i did study earnings per share for FAR using my college textbook, I felt the explanations were much more detailed & clear. i ended up getting a very tough EPS question on the test too, definitely brought me over the edge!

REG 68,87
BEC 85
FAR 75
AUD 64,64, 86!

[Anonymous]

Textbooks aren't worthless but I used them to complement my review course (Becker). They came in really handy when going through Non-Monetary Exchanges, Dollar Value LIFO and a number of subjects on Taxes. Basically any time where I wasn't getting the concept from my primary review course I'd turn to old textbooks which go into much greater detail to figure things out. But I wouldn't use old textbooks as a replacement for a proper review course.

[Missy]

You'd probably need 3-5 different accounting textbooks to cover the material in FAR alone. Textbooks cover few topics in great depth where the CPA exam is volumes of topics in moderate depth. It can be done I'm sure but not efficiently.

Licensed Massachusetts Non Reporting CPA since 2012
Finance/Admin/HR Manager

[wilburleft]

Ok, I'm on the review course path thanks to your replies. Did a bit of research. Watched some Roger videos on youtube. That man has some energy, and communicates very effectively. I'll look into some of the others while I wait for my next paycheck to pay for a course.

I know about the 150 hour requirement. Does anyone know the least expensive way to get the 30 additional hours I need? I'm off Saturdays so could attend class then, or take online courses. I'm thinking state university classroom is probably the cheapest. But there may be options I don't know about.

Seems like Roger thinks BEC is the easiest so maybe I'll start with that. If not BEC first, then FAR first as I feel I grasp that better than AUD or REG. Will try to do one test per qtr in 2016. Any thoughts around these topics?

Many thanks to all of you for the feedback!

[monikernc]

Sesrch the forum from top of page for online classes – tons of posts for that topic. Can't stress enough to check with your state board to get a list of approved classes and level of classes required. A masters degree may kill two birds for you. Some even incorporate exam prep and most take 12-15 months tops. I already had a masters and did not want to take GRE again so i opted for second undergrad major since my first was finance. Give it some thought.
You have found the right place here. This forum is full of wonderful, helpful people who share a quest. Good luck.

FAR 7/25/15 76!
AUD 10/30/15 93
BEC 2/27/16 82
REG 5/23/16 88!
Ninja Book and MCQ and the forum - all the way!!!
and a little thing i like to call, time and effort!
if you want things to change, you have to do something different

[qarnism]

let me congratulate you for your great ambition and motive.
keep on, you can do it.

[Author]

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