[DocJ]

So a little birdie told me today that when you look up the AICPA’s Exam Blueprints, you can figure out what topics to expect on SIMs by looking at whatever items fall under “Analysis.”

Is that true? Are “Analysis” items really the only ones that are tested on SIMs? I find that hard to believe, but if true, that’s a SERIOUS game-changer in terms of studying :O

[Biff Tannen]

I can confirm that this is FALSE. I certainly got a few FAR simulations that were testable under the application section of the blueprint.

[DocJ]

Hopes and dreams crushed :'-(

[AndreA]

It worked for me. I got what I expected, except that some SIMs were more complex.

[AndreA]

I practiced only following topics. Good luck!

Balance sheet/statement of financial position
A) detect, investigate and correct discrepancies while agreeing the balance sheet amounts to supporting documentation
B) calculate fluctuations and ratios and interpret the results while reviewing comparative balance sheets
Income statement/statement of profit or loss
A) detect, investigate and correct discrepancies while agreeing the income statement amounts to supporting documentation
B) calculate fluctuations and ratios and interpret the results while reviewing comparative income statements
Statement of comprehensive income
A) detect, investigate and correct discrepancies while agreeing the statement of comprehensive amounts to supporting documentation
Statement of changes in equity
A) detect, investigate and correct discrepancies while agreeing the statement of changes in equity to supporting documentation
Statement of cash flows
A) detect, investigate and correct discrepancies while agreeing the statement of cash flows to supporting documentation
B) derive the impact of transactions on the statement of cash flows
Notes to the financial statements
A) compare the notes to the financial statements to the financial statements and supporting documentation to identify inconsistencies and investigate those inconsistencies
Consolidated financial statements (including wholly owned subsidiaries and noncontrolling interests)
A) detect, investigate and correct discrepancies while agreeing the consolidated financial statement amounts to supporting documentation
Cash and cash equivalents
A) reconcile the cash balance per the bank statement to the general ledger
B) investigate unreconciled cash balances to determine whether an adjustment to the general ledger is necessary
Trade receivables
A) prepare a rollforward of the trade receives account balance using various sources of information
B) reconcile and investigate differences between the subledger and general ledger for trade receives to determine whether an adjustment is necessary
Inventory
A) reconcile and investigate differences between the subledger and general ledger for inventory to determine whether an adjustment is necessary
B) prepare a rollforward of the inventory account balance using various sources of information
Property, Plant, and Equipment
A) prepare a rollforward of the property, plan, and equipment account balance using various sources of information
B) reconcile and investigate differences between the subledger and general ledger for property, plant, and equipment to determine whether an adjustment is necessary
Payables and accrued liabilities
A) reconcile and investigate differences between the subledger and general ledger for accounts payable and accrued liabilities to determine whether an adjustment is necessary
Revenue Recognition
A) interpret agreements, contracts and/or other supporting documentation to determine the amount and timing of revenue to be recognized in the financial statements
B) reconcile and investigate the differences between the sales subledger and the general subledger to determine whether an adjustment is necessary
Account changes and error corrections
A) derive the impact to the financial statements and related note disclosure of an accounting change or an error correction
Contingencies and commitments
A) review supporting documentation to determine whether a commitment or contingency requires recognition or disclosure in the financial statements
Leases
A) interpret agreements, contracts and/or other supporting documentation to determine the appropriate accounting treatment of a leasing arrangement
and prepare the journal entries that a lessee should record.
Subsequent events
A) derive the impact to the financial statements and required note disclosues due to identified subsequent events
Equity

Pensions
–
Earnings Per Share
–
Income Taxes
–

[bigstakk]

No. The SIMS are not a giveaway on what you will be tested on specific material wise outside of the overall format and the universal test “tricks” they throw at you with extra noise info like useless attachments and fluff paragraphs. With SIMs the directions are the key. Always pay close attention to how to input values (positive vs negative, rounded, etc) and qualifying words (best, worst, least, etc)…good luck!

[AusNat]

I always think about threads like these whenever the debate about whether passing FAR is about luck or not comes up. If you leave gaps in your preparation by trying to find shortcuts, then you're probably leaving things up to chance. Depending on how things shake out on any given day, you could fall a few points on either side of a 75 just depending on what SIMS and MC you draw.

Many SIMs will have some aspect of analysis in them, sure. That's pretty logical – it's a good use of the simulation format (vs MC). But they'll often have a whole lot of application in them too, as well as some remembering/understanding (and even with the questions that require analysis, often you can eliminate most answer options through remembering & application). SIMS lend themselves well to testing a topic at multiple levels of understanding, and you'll see that aspect utilized by the examiners often. And honestly, most of the analysis items require you to have the underlying remembering & application items at least somewhat mastered anyways.

[Author]

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