Jeff - another71.com
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This is for people taking their exams in the April/May 2010 testing window.
Recommended prep time for BEC is 4 weeks @ 20 hours a week.
Study Notes: http://www.another71.com/cpa-review-store/
Study Videos: http://www.another71.com/cpa-exam/cpa-exam-review-video/
Anyone else taking BEC in the Apr/May window? I'm set to sit on one of the last days in May. I was surprised that my Becker self study has me slated to start my review in mid-April, but they still have me completing 2 lectures a week! I found two a week to be exhausting for REG, anyone know if 2 a week is more manageable for BEC? Should I try to start earlier and do one a week? Also, is there a relatively inexpensive cram for BEC that anyone would recommend?
Thanks in advance for any advice, sorry for any re-posts and good luck to anyone else prepping like me!
MPoni123
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hey. unfortnuately i will be sitting for BEC again this window because i failed it when i took it march 6. booo. this section sucks. i am definitely waiting until tax season is OVER to pick up the material again. i have to order new material for BEC because my becker expires april 1. so i am gonna order materials for FAR, too. 2 down, 2 to go!
lucylaw - 2 in a week would probably be better. you have plenty of time to study if you aren't sitting until the end of may. you could also do 1 a week as well and then make sure you have a week for review. that would probably work, too. relatively inexpensive BEC cram would probably be Yaeger - i got the 2009 CRAM and it was about $100? not too bad. i ordered the Wiley book from amazon and the DVD from the yaeger website. you should go with the 2010 stuff now though.
hope to see you around the forum!! good luck with studying
Thanks for the advice, MPoni123. good luck with your upcoming studies. I doubt if I'll buy the Wiley text. Probably just rely on Becker and see how I feel after the first week. good to know about the Yeager cram. I remember looking at the final cram offered by Becker and almost being suckered into dropping the $250.
South0085, good luck to you. You'll have to keep us posted. I heard someone mention on another thread that he/she made a sheet with all of the formulas on it, laminated it and carried with everywhere to study at any given time. i thought that sounded like an awesome idea.
jamesta12
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I took BEC in early March as well! Ididnot pass I would start and stop for two week and pick back up again this was all dure because of busy season...workin mad late hours..
I am now planning to retake it in April...
Good luck to every one!!
Remember we are in this together and in the end it will pay off -- can't wait for that day!!!
Don't give up!!!
We can do it!!!
FL_CPA2010
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I am taking BEC on April 19th, the day before my Becker audit class begins. I agree with you, south0085, chapter 3 kicked my butt. I have to watch that lecture again, and I skipped the class for chapter 5. I have a lot of studying to do in the next 3 1/2 weeks. Good luck to everyone.
sleeplessinWI
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I see where Jeff posted that for BEC study time is 4 weeks @ 20 hrs per week. I am putting in way more than that and still don't think it's enough. Is anyone else using Kaplan?
hopeful_cpa
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i am going over chapter 3 questions with becker and i feel like a complete idiot because i have no clue how to start these questions or how to figure out what they are really talking about? has anybody gone through the becker chapter three and have had it make sense?
i got this exam april 19 and i am stressing out major now.
coboon
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I agree that Becker Chapters 3 and 5 are pretty tough. I just kept doing the problems and studying the formulas. If you keep after it they start to seem like they unfold for you better than the first time around. I'm taking the exam in less than a week (4/2) and I think that about 25 hours a week for 4 weeks has prepared me pretty well. However, I am a current student and a lot of this stuff is still relatively familiar for me.
sleeplessinWI
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What is in Ch 3 & 5? I am using Kaplan but would be interested in knowing if other people are struggling with the same subjects I am.
CPA-Valenz
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I am also retaking BEC on 4/19. I didn't pass it in February, I attempted sitting for 2 exams back to back. That was not a very clever idea. I have to travel 2 hours to the nearest Prometric, so thought I'd put 2 together. Didn't pass BEC or AUD.
Anyway, I originally took with Gleim, and now completely re-studying with Yaeger. Hope to knock this sucker out and then start all over again with Yaeger for AUD, and will be taking the last of May.
I would really just like to get 1 under my belt. If I don't pass soon, I will not be able to afford to keep retaking.
leebird
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Hey guys. I passed AUD a few days ago and FAR in November. Now it's on to "lighter" material, if you will. To me, and I put in WAY more than Jeff's suggested study time (or his quoted source, that is) this seems like if you had a good handle on FAR it will be easier.
I took 2 years ago with my girlfriend and her dog moving in and bombed with a 53! But times have changed, Gleim got thrown away, and now Mr. Becker is part of my ritual. the material sucks big time, but just keep grinding. I think 2-2.5 months will get me there.
The main reason people fail this is taking it too lightly. Its all MC, but that leaves you open for Zero gimme points on the written communication. I think this will be the most manageable of the 4. Again, if you can work your way back and forth through the math problems you should be fine. What I have noticed is lots of material, but easier to read than some of the FAR and AUD verbage. Don't let the illusion of how much material overwhelm your thought process. It's just another mark on the wall. A notch if you will, to your overall knowledge.
Here's wishing you guys some productive nights with this material.....................................
Bigmones
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hopeful-CPA you are not alone. This is where I am with BEC 3. I'm thinking about skipping it and going to Chapter 4. And then coming back to the material here, and Chapter 5. But you are not alone at all. I don't know if I will ever be able to do these problems :(
south0085
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I don't want to put a hole in someone's balloon, but if you think Chapter 3 is bad, you haven't seen anything yet. Chapter 5 makes chapter 3 look like Kindergarten work. Seriously, I am on Chapter 5 right now and every single question makes me feel like an absolute idiot because I have to look at the answer first and then go back and learn how to do it. On EVERY single question. And there's like 300 questions in Chapter 5. It's really heart-breaking. But I think if we keep plugging away and repeating these MCQ's, the content will begin to stick with us. I'm sure we can pass this one.
hopeful_cpa
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i dont get why this stuff isnt making any sense when in school i did the same exact stuff and Ace'd the class. I got this exam in exactly 3 weeks and i am praying that is enough time to understand this stuff.
sleeplessinWI: chapter 3 is financial management and chapter 5 is cost managerial accounting
hopeful_cpa
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also, does anybody have a good review sheet they have made for themselves for the formulas?
i am working on one myself and should have something done for chapter 3 (becker) tonight if anybody would like to take a look at it.
promethius
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First time I took the test, I studied Becker 2008 and got a 68, the next time I did 3/4 Becker book and 1/4 Becker flash cards and got a 74. I foolishly felt so confident that I studied just the flash cards and got near full mastery of every card/concept and again got a 74. I'm taking a new approach to this. I just got the following materials:
1) Wiley Focus Notes (sold by Yaeger):: Great supplements to the cards I have mastered - often going a little further in detail. I like these because they are large, spiral-bound flipcards with room for notes and they were cheap.
2) the Wiley 2010 book: I'm going to study my two weakest sections from this book - Financial Mgt and IT
3) Yaeger CRAM - Doing this next weekend to identify my weak spots.
4) Becker final review (already had this but didnt get all the way through it before last test)
My study plan is rereview all cards with my fiance in morning (30 min per day = all cards 2-3 times to regain full mastery). Evenings I will study the Wiley book for 1.5 hrs/night targeting my two problem areas and then 30 mins/night reviewing focus notes and the next days cards. Next weekend I'll do the CRAM and repeat the cards/focus notes/wiley book for 1.5 more weeks. Then I'll do Wiley practice tests and finally 1 week before test, do the Becker final review and polish it off with a practice test - going back and seeing where I made my mistakes. Keep in mind, I have taken this test 3 times already so I am pretty comfortable on my now outdated Becker info and the flashcards but need greater depth in IT/Fin. Mgmt. to lock this down. If all this works I'll be a CPA come April 30. If not - I have BEC and AUD to retake - blah!
Hope this helps anyone in the same boat.
south0085
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I get bored (especially on ch 3 and 5), because every questions is such a mountain for me to answer. It wears my brain out. On AUD, the questions were more theory, and I was able to get through a large number of them at one time. On BEC, many of the MCQ's require extensive calculations. I do good to remember how to calculate the first step, much less move on to the next question.
hopeful_cpa
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not only working the first step is ok, there is nowhere in the material where it even helps how to solve the problem. this is getting very frustrating.
makeithappen
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Took BEC today. Becker prepared me perfectly. The MCs were not as challenging as the Becker questions. If you do the Becker MCs 2-3 times and score consistently in the 80s you will do fine. The practice tests are a great indicator of your readiness. Good Luck. The long wait now begins..... On to Reg.
hopeful_cpa
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makeithappen: that is great news!! i feel a little more relieved now... i am doing pretty well on ch 1,2, and 4, but 3 and 5 are being a challenge. any pointers?
also, becker totally prepared me for REG, good luck with that, you will do fine if you use the becker stuff.
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