[Anonymous]

Hello all,

I just got my credential approval from the review board and will begin scheduling exams soon. I didn’t see a FAQ section here so I was hoping to get some insight.

I am using CPA Excel (Wiley).

I heard good things about Ninja but there are a lot of options for supplemental materials. I don’t want to overdo it and spend unnecessary money, but also want my best chance at passing. Are the MCQ’s from Ninja my best bet? I was planning on getting the Wiley test bank… Would the Ninja supplement that or replace it?

I’ve read a lot of differing opinion on the best order to take the exams in. I’ve spent my entire career in corporate finance… spent a couple years doing ledger work, entries, financial statements, etc.. and the last few years focused more on FP&A stuff. I don’t have much audit or tax experience outside of school. Is there a strategy to how you line up the exams?

I tend to be an average test taker and somewhat slower learner… but once I learn something and it finally clicks I will always remember it. Knowing this, I am planning to set aside a good amount of study time. I work ~ 40 hours a week and was thinking 1 hour study in the morning, 1 hour study on lunch, and 3 hours 3x a week, on weekdays. Then a good 6 hour session on the weekend. This puts me at 25 hours a week. I assume this is pretty sufficient if I plan to take an exam every 7-8 weeks as it would give me a total of 150-200 study hours per exam?

Thanks in advance for any input!

[A]

The Ninja MCQs have been the best bang-for-buck supplement to my 2014 Roger books that sat untouched until January. I also considered buying the 2016 Wiley test bank, but $47/section vs. ~$130/section won me over. I passed BEC in one pass last month and I'm headed into AUD in a few weeks. So far, the Ninja MCQs have been more comprehensive and varied in difficulty than the 2014 Wiley test bank that was bundled with the Roger review course.

As for exam order and study methods, there are plenty of posts here on strategy and timing.

Poke around the forum for a half hour and you'll see that CPA candidates ask the same questions year after year. : )

B - 77 (2.27.16)
A - 81 (4.18.16)
R -
F -

Roger Review + Ninja MCQs

[CPA2BEE]

I am a huge NINJA advocate. I have only bought the MCQs and supplemented with Becker, but I love it. FAR I failed then passed with Becker only, AUD failed with Becker only then passed with Becker/NINJA MCQs, and BEC passed first try with Becker/NINJA MCQs. So in my experience, I've passed the exams I used NINJA for. Definitely going to buy it for REG too. I like to use it as a review mechanism, go through all of Becker first and then just crank NINJA MCQs for review. I have found success in that.

Exam order – I'd go with FAR first for sure. You'll learn that they are all different and all tough but FAR is a beast and if you can knock that one out it'll give you confidence going into the others. FAR covers a ton of material that is sprinkled all over the other exams as well. After that I'd go with AUD/REG as 2nd/3rd in either order, and save BEC for last. The only reason I took BEC 3rd was because I failed AUD and wanted to take two tests in one window (better BEC than REG in that situation), luckily it worked out! But I can tell REG is going to be a beast as well and wish I would've taken it 2nd or 3rd. Oh well, sh*t happens.

I think your plan sounds really good. You seem to have a solid schedule planned, as long as you stay focused and do it then I think you'll pass. This forum is also very helpful, I've learned a lot about the exam and have gotten a ton of help on here. Study hard and good luck to you!

FAR - 80
AUD - 82
BEC - 80
REG - 85

ETHICS - 90
EXPERIENCE - COMPLETE
Application for California license mailed 8/4/2016

[Anonymous]

I have been using CPAexcel, including the MCQ test bank, and have been able to pass three sections on my first attempt, with very little accounting background. I also used Ninja MCQs for BEC, and plan on adding Ninja MCQs as part of my FAR study plan as well. I really think they're both good to use, as they sometimes explain things a bit differently and can help you learn the material better. I'm not sure if I would have done as well as I did on BEC had I not added Ninja MCQs to the mix. Honestly, I think the more MCQs you can get through, the better. I purposely saved FAR for last since I knew it would be the most difficult for me. I have been studying FAR for about three weeks now, and it's beyond overwhelming and a huge struggle for me. While I sometimes wish I would have tackled it first, I also think I might have entirely given up on the CPA exam had I started with it. Based on your background, though, you might be best off starting with FAR. Best of luck to you!

[EuroAddict]

You can see the order I did them in my sig below. Personally I would not want to save FAR for the end. It's a beast of an exam and would rather get it away first. Plus it helps with the others I feel.

-----------------------------
BEC - 77, 03/2015 (first try)
FAR - 79, 05/2015 (second try)
REG - 83, 12/2015 (first try)
AUD - 84, 03/2015 (first try)

I got 99 problems but the CPA ain't one.

[How many letters do you need]

Solid study plan for sure. That was my EXACT plan and it worked great (except for the morning, my brain doesn't work before 8). For the weeknight sessions I just stayed after at work to be sure I was focused. Actually began to enjoy my lunchtime reviews, grab some Wendys and eat and study in the car. The one weekend day is perfect, I used to go between 5 and 8 hours depending on the week, then gave myself the rest of the weekend in an effort to enjoy some time with the girlfriend.

As for materials, I started with the old 10pt (pre test bank), WTB and the big old Wiley books as it helped me to have some printed materials. I used the big books for the questions in the back of each chapter and left the meat of the material for reference. As I moved on into topics that were weaknesses I added Roger CRAM videos because I needed some quick easy to digest video material. Found those to be a great help for REG and somewhat for AUD. I also added Ninja MCQs as they became available. I found the Ninja MCQs to be a great supplement as a second round to be sure you knew the material well. I used the WTB to go through my initial pass on the material and to gain a decent idea as to where my strengths and weaknesses were. Then moved on to the NINJA MCQs for review. You would be amazed, but especially in areas where you want a lot of MCQs, weaknesses you really need to work on, it helps to have two test banks. You really do begin to duplicate questions and answer from memory.

As for the order, I was in the EXACT same position as you. Finance degree, my entire career spent in FP&A and had just transitioned into cost accounting, so at the time had some cost experience but not much. I had to take a few accounting courses at local CC to be able to sit so much of FAR was fresh to me. I went like this:

Feb started studying FAR – took FAR in early Apr.
A couple weeks off, started studying for BEC in late Apr, took BEC in mid May…
went to Costa Rica and took June off
Started studying REG in early Jul, took it late Aug..
Sep off
Started studying AUD in early Oct, took it mid Nov

I know a lot of people who swear time off is terrible, they have to stay in the “zone”. If you are like that then the time off is probably not very good for you. For me, I came back fresh and ready to go. I recommend it if you are the same.

Best of luck!

MBA,CMA,CPA, CFF?, ABV?

[Author]

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