[sacpa]

Yesterday, I took BEC for the 3rd time. For the first attempt, I took it without much preparation because my NTS was about to expire. So I don’t take that into consideration. I got a 65 in the 2nd attempt. I have taken FAR & AUD 2 times & failed. Same as BEC, I took my first FAR since NTS was about to expire. So in all that’s 5 failures without counting the 2 failures in FAR & BEC 1st attempts without enough preparation.

I am not feeling confident about yesterday’s exam. At this point, I am seriously considering whether I am cut out for this. I have not taken up full time jobs so I can have more time to study. So I am hurting both from not passing the exam & not being able to work full time. Hurting more from not able to pass the exam, being in the this journey on & off for the past 4 years with life coming in the way & procastination also being another reason.

I thought I had prepared well but was blown away with the exam yesterday. Mcqs were mostly were short, vague, twisted & mostly from COSO & IT. I flagged about 10 questions in 1st testlet. Took about 1 hour to complete 1st testlet. The 2nd testlet was easier with almost no questions with calculations. Sims were not hard, except it took lot of time to put the information spread out in the resources, question base & the actual question itself. I felt the challenge was more from focusing just what you need to answer the question. WC topics were all from BEC. By that time, I was feeling hopeless & drawing a blank. I did well in one WC compared to the other two. I was disappointed to the core & felt dreadful yesterday.

I am over it but now considering what should be my next step. I would die if I give up now but don’t know how to proceed either. I have Gleim & will not blame the material. The mcqs & sims are really good. I completed all of the 80 sims & completed about 2000 mcqs. I also did some mcqs in CPAreviewforfree site & questions posted in FB. Yet, I felt I was not able to tackle the exam questions. Maybe test anxiety took over. I don’t have problem understanding the material either. I have A’s in all my Accounting classes in college. I understand that college courses are different from the CPA exam. So now do I continue in this journey? If I continue, which exam do I prepare for? My Gleim will expire on December 1st. I have the extension guaranteed for BEC & FAR. However access to AUD & REG will expire if I do not complete 90% of the material & take the exam by December 1st. To make it worse, FAR has some major changes in revenue recognition starting from 2nd quarter in 2018. So probably I’ll prepare for AUD. Since I am in Tax, I reserved REG for the last. I am posting my long story here in hopes of getting some tips & suggestions to improve my performance in exam & pass them.I

FAR - < than 75, 10/2013, 2/2015
BEC - < than 75, 10/2013
AUD - < than 75, 8/2015, 1/2016

~ Winners fail until they succeed. Losers quit when they fail. - Robert Kiyosaki
~ I survived because the fire inside burned brighter than the fire around me.
~ Something will grow from all you are going through. And it will be YOU.
~ Right now you may not be where you intend to be, but it's where you need to be in order to get where you want to go.

[Finally_a_CPA]

I can understand your disappointment. I failed two exams and the thought of just giving up crossed my mind in both occasions.

It's hard to give any suggestions as I don't know your study strategy.
I've never used Gleim but I'm a firm believer that not every review course is for everyone. I am glad I went with Roger and I know for a fact I would still be taking those exams if I had gone with Becker (I used my friend's reciew course for two weeks and it wasn't for me).
Also, how much time are you allocating to the CPA exam. How many hours per day/week? Are you taking notes? If so, do you actually review them? If you are like me and never ever go back to your notes, then why waste time taking them in the first place.

[Anonymous]

I did all the exams with Becker and struggled like mad. On my retake of REG (and my final exam), I bought Roger's Cram Course, and supplemented it with Ninja notes/audio. My score went from being the 60's to an 85. After using Roger and Ninja I regretted having not used it for the other sections. For somebody who is struggling with the complexity of other study courses, I highly recommend Roger and Ninja.

[sacpa]

@ Finally_a_CPA: Same here, I don't take notes since I don't review them. Preparing notes take lot of time & so I felt I would probably spend the time doing questions. I work only during tax seasons & study full time. On an average, I studied about 10-12 days for a month. The last 10 days before the exam, I was on a roll. When I was doing Accounting courses online, I would straight away do the questions in the back of the chapter & then refer to material as needed. I learn by doing. But for the exams, I spent a lot of time reading the book than doing questions. The mock exam I took 2 days before exam showed me as weak in 3 out of 20 units.

FAR - < than 75, 10/2013, 2/2015
BEC - < than 75, 10/2013
AUD - < than 75, 8/2015, 1/2016

~ Winners fail until they succeed. Losers quit when they fail. - Robert Kiyosaki
~ I survived because the fire inside burned brighter than the fire around me.
~ Something will grow from all you are going through. And it will be YOU.
~ Right now you may not be where you intend to be, but it's where you need to be in order to get where you want to go.

[sacpa]

My challenge is in answering the actual exam questions. I love Accounting. I just get the concepts. I do not have a problem understanding the material. I was the tutor for a Financial Accounting course while being a student of that class at the same time. Which is why it hurts even more that I have not figured out a way to tackle the exam questions & pass them.

FAR - < than 75, 10/2013, 2/2015
BEC - < than 75, 10/2013
AUD - < than 75, 8/2015, 1/2016

~ Winners fail until they succeed. Losers quit when they fail. - Robert Kiyosaki
~ I survived because the fire inside burned brighter than the fire around me.
~ Something will grow from all you are going through. And it will be YOU.
~ Right now you may not be where you intend to be, but it's where you need to be in order to get where you want to go.

[jenpen]

Maybe your study methods just aren't working for you. I've been on this journey for 2.5 years now and have taken 10 total exams to date, with 2 more coming up in the next 6-7 weeks. I have finally passed AUD and FAR on the 5th and 3rd attempts, which means that I finally feel like I've found a study method that works for me, which is basically to hammer MCQs for weeks upon weeks. It's an expensive endeavor, but once you're done it will pay off and you'll never have to worry about it again.

AUD - 56 - 68 - 61 - 9/8/16
REG - 75
FAR - 7/15/16
BEC - TBD

Wiley CPAexcel and NINJA 10 Point Combo

[sacpa]

@Finally_a_CPA: From your name, I assume that you passed all 4 sections with some struggle. Is that right?

FAR - < than 75, 10/2013, 2/2015
BEC - < than 75, 10/2013
AUD - < than 75, 8/2015, 1/2016

~ Winners fail until they succeed. Losers quit when they fail. - Robert Kiyosaki
~ I survived because the fire inside burned brighter than the fire around me.
~ Something will grow from all you are going through. And it will be YOU.
~ Right now you may not be where you intend to be, but it's where you need to be in order to get where you want to go.

[Missy]

How badly do you WANT to be a CPA? I've got peers who passed all four the first time, I've got peers who sat over 25 times total before they passed. They're all cpa's. If you CHOOSE not to do this you'll have your valid reasons. That it took too many tries isn't one.

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

[sacpa]

@Missy: Exactly! As it is I feel miserable failing so many times. It will only be worse if I give up once for all. I do want to be a CPA really bad.

Like I said, I felt doomed yesterday. But today morning, I was like the worse thing that will happen is I'll fail BEC another time. It's just an exam & not the end of the world. Or maybe by a miracle, I pass. Basically I am a very positive person, but this exam is beating me down to my knees. Like I do always during stressful situations, I am trying to see what lesson this CPA exam experience is teaching me. Also, I am being honest in listing what mistakes I did & correct them. I am also trying to be positive & start studying right away so I don't lose momentum. I want to take another section by December 10th. So that's just 45 days. I am not new to the material so the 1st round & review will go faster, hopefully.

FAR - < than 75, 10/2013, 2/2015
BEC - < than 75, 10/2013
AUD - < than 75, 8/2015, 1/2016

~ Winners fail until they succeed. Losers quit when they fail. - Robert Kiyosaki
~ I survived because the fire inside burned brighter than the fire around me.
~ Something will grow from all you are going through. And it will be YOU.
~ Right now you may not be where you intend to be, but it's where you need to be in order to get where you want to go.

[Bourne]

DO NOT GIVE UP SACPA. PUT ON SOME THOMAS RHETT AND GET YOUR HEAD IN THE GAME

[sacpa]

@ Bourne: I will not give up. I cannot forgive myself if I do. Everything that I did, the time, effort & money spent would be wasted if I give up. Will try Thomas's songs.

FAR - < than 75, 10/2013, 2/2015
BEC - < than 75, 10/2013
AUD - < than 75, 8/2015, 1/2016

~ Winners fail until they succeed. Losers quit when they fail. - Robert Kiyosaki
~ I survived because the fire inside burned brighter than the fire around me.
~ Something will grow from all you are going through. And it will be YOU.
~ Right now you may not be where you intend to be, but it's where you need to be in order to get where you want to go.

[Anonymous]

Don’t give up. 90% of the candidates feel just like you. I thought I could pass all 4 exams on the first try – yeah right. These exams in a different league compared to college and everyone who is passing is very smart and working their butt off – just like all of us.

Goodluck and know you are not alone.

[sacpa]

Thanks Finally_a_CPA, apple32, Jennifer, Missy, Bourne, Blue Collar Nerd!

Can anyone share your methods? What helped you to pass?

FAR - < than 75, 10/2013, 2/2015
BEC - < than 75, 10/2013
AUD - < than 75, 8/2015, 1/2016

~ Winners fail until they succeed. Losers quit when they fail. - Robert Kiyosaki
~ I survived because the fire inside burned brighter than the fire around me.
~ Something will grow from all you are going through. And it will be YOU.
~ Right now you may not be where you intend to be, but it's where you need to be in order to get where you want to go.

[Meg267]

Pick one section and hammer it out until you pass. I started with BEC and failed the first two times. It sucks. These exams are passable, and you can do it. You're only studying 10-12 days a month? You need to be studying EVERY DAY. Or at least 6 out of 7 days a week. Even if it's just for a little bit. I worked full time and still got in at least 2-3 hours every day and 4-6 each weekend day.

I recently received my license number, and oh, the feeling is amazing. Keep pushing!

[Anonymous]

What helped me pass was creating a super clean and organized set of notes. I refined every topic down to clear and concise notes that were easier for me to memorize. I was always overwhelmed by the amount of material in my Becker books and hated their mnemonics. After having clear notes and creating my own mnemonics, I made my own flash cards to burn the topics into my memory.

Another thing to do, is when you're solving multiple choice question – take a minute to write down what rules/topics the question was testing you on. This way, it's not just the specific question you're memorizing, it's the topic it was trying to test you on.

The last thing to add, is make a list of your weakest/most confusing topics and then commit yourself to trying to organize and simply these subjects. The test will most likely pick up on topics you're getting the answer wrong to and then start asking you more questions in that same category.

Overall, the only way to pass the exam is by giving it your all. You can't let your brain be fuzzy or skip over areas. Create your own notes that make it as simple for you as possible. Even if you're missing a few points, the fact that you actually understand 80% of the topic will help you more.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Just throwing my two cents in. I am 3 for 3, going for the last one (FAR)-fingers crossed! What works I think is you have to (maybe we some modifications) follow along the study plan that a review course lays out. It has to be methodical, otherwise it doesn't work. I aim to do one chapter in Becker a week. I listen to lectures, then go through the book and make notes (or make notes and read the book as I am going through MCQ) but reading is fundamental for me for understanding or retaining information. I then do all the SIMS. Once I have gone through all of Becker, chapter by chapter, I jump into Ninja MCQ and do that whole testbank once, then go for questions missed, then do trouble questions. All the while doing Becker progress tests and redoing SIMS. That's studying 2-3 hours (at least) every day. I feel like I am always studying. Even at work, if I have 10 minutes, I will do some MCQ. There is no cutting corners, or hoping you will remember something. You have to know it, live it, breathe it, have to be all in. I have used Ninja MCQ as a supplement to Becker with all 3 and don't think I could have felt confident without it. Don't know about Gleim-it might be enough on its own.

[Author]

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