[Anonymous]

I started studying for the CPA exam in march bought the becker review course. Very respectable course and heard nothing but great things. Anyway, I studied for FAR for about 2 1/2 months and I took it in June, I received a score of 37. MIND BLOWED! very discouraged…i understood why I failed. I moved on, I studied for auditing since i never failed a college exam in that class how bad could it be? well I breezed through the MCQ with 70’s and 80’s and had a bit of trouble on the sims. But the weeks leading up to the exam on August 26th I felt prepared. On that date, I went in with high hopes and confidence and I left felt like I literally knocked the exam out of the ball park. I received my score today of a 40….WTF!!!! can someone explain to me if i’m straight up dumb or something? Because I had no problem in my undergrad with accounting and now AICPA is just bending me over…HELP!!!

[Anonymous]

You said you understood why you failed FAR, have you thought that you might have done the same thing when you took AUD? The questions are tricky so it's very important that you read the question and the answers completely. In my experience when I took FAR, I usually end up in 2 possible answers, then I choose the best answer, not just the correct one. Good luck and I hope you will soon figure out how to win the battle!

[Anonymous]

The reason I didn't pass FAR was because I had no strategy or guidance. When it came to AUD I understood the material and the concepts, I changed my strategy of answering questions on the exam for AUD. I really really thought I answered most of the questions right because I could eliminate two right away and left with two good answers. What does it mean by the best answer and not the correct? I haven't grasp the concept of that yet.

[ScarletKnightCPA]

How many multiple choice questions did you do?

It should e at least 3,000. You can get by with less if you have a solid foundation with the material.

Far: 76 (Wiley Test Bank)
Aud: 77 (Wiley Test Bank)
Reg: 61, 76 (Wiley book, Wiley Test Bank)
Bec: 86 (Wiley Test Bank)

MBA in progress

[Dan T]

Hmm 2.5 months for FAR and a score of 37? You may have spread it out too much and weren't using your studying time wisely. What is your studying method like? Most people on this forum will suggest doing 1000's of MCQ's and that's honestly not a bad route.

Oh and this exam is nothing like college exams, I thought they were easy for the most part as well, I sometimes winged it and got a decent score. With this I can't even pass studying at least 10x as much.

AUD - 75 ☺
FAR - 65, 71, 70, 77 ☺
BEC - 80 ☺
REG - 73, 66, 79 ☺ 2/28/15

Done!

[Anonymous]

The way I approach FAR was did the lecture one day, read and took notes the following and did the MCQ and Sims the third same thing with AUD. because I felt actually reading the material and taking notes on what you just got lectured on helps your retention levels. I also did all the FAR and AUD MCQ's twice and sims twice and also practice exams before. The auditing MCQ's and Sims i did fairly well on scoring at least an average of 70-75.

[Anonymous]

Maybe i'm just stupid 🙁

[Anonymous]

I think you already have a bad mindset for MC questions. The ” I can eliminate 2″ is poor strategy if done too much. It is much better to read the question and think of potential correct answers before looking at the given answer options.

Did you take the whole time for the exam?

[Anonymous]

It took me the whole 4 hours on both. But I had extra time on each testlet on AUD to go back and review. With AUD, I went with the correct answer most of the time and sometimes could see the “dummy” answer

[Anonymous]

I meant, if you read the question (realize it sounds familiar) then read the first choice (you think that's correct), you still MUST read through all the 3 other choices. Choice number 1 could be correct, but choice no. 2, 3 or 4 could be a better answer.

[xdesix]

There has to be something wrong with your studying habits. I don't mean to be rude, but getting a 37 and a 40 is close to just guessing on the exam without knowing any material on it. You don't have to kill yourself everyday, but you need a consistent studying pattern/habit. Make a plan and stick to it. Something like 3 hours on weekdays and 4-5 hours on weekends.

AUD: Passed
BEC: Passed
REG: Studying

[Anonymous]

Something doesn't make sense. If you were doing mcq and scoring 70s and 80s, I dont understand the scores. My advice:Buy ninja mcq for 50 bucks and do the whole test bank twice. Then give an exam another shot

[yolo]

You did all the MCQs twice in the becker software? On the ones that you missed did you read why you missed it?

[ScarletKnightCPA]

how many questions does becker have?

I actually recommend at least 3-4 times particularly areas you are weak on.

Far: 76 (Wiley Test Bank)
Aud: 77 (Wiley Test Bank)
Reg: 61, 76 (Wiley book, Wiley Test Bank)
Bec: 86 (Wiley Test Bank)

MBA in progress

[Anonymous]

I swear I'm not a dumb guy. Yes, Of course i read the explanation when i got the answer wrong. I also swear to not guessing on the exam! If becker is telling me on my MCQ's that I score around 70-80's it just doesn't really justify why I'm scoring such a low score on the actual exam what so ever, is it the way i answer on the exam? There can't be wrong with my study habits i only lock in 4 hours a day and sometimes 2-3 because i work part time. But i have flash cards, notes and even read the book twice!

[JamesBJames]

It seems very odd to receive such low scores considering you did quite well on Becker's multiple choice problems. Whenever I got around an 80 on a set of homework, I considered that to mean that I understood the material. The questions on the review software are tough! You can't get 70-80s without comprehending things.

So what happened?

How did you tackle your review after your first run through of all the questions? Did you go back to every chapter and re-read over weak areas? Did you do the questions a second time?

Or maybe it's an issue with how you test at Prometric. Do you allocate your time properly? Do you have excess time left over at the end of the test? Are you reading things CAREFULLY (super important with AUD!)? Do you utilize the authoritative literature when you're going through the SIMs?

FAR: May 1st, 2014 - 91
AUD: May 29th, 2014 - 97!
BEC: July 16th, 2014 - 91
REG: August 29th, 2014 - 88

Licensed December 2015

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[Author]

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