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FAR - Exam Experience

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Started 1 year ago by Jeff - another71.com
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Keely

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I took FAR earlier today. I am so hoping it was my last exam, and that I'll go 4 for 4. Even if I pass FAR on the first try, it'll have been an entire year of studying/test taking for me, and I am just really over this whole process.

Anyway, I couldn't fall asleep last night and I couldn't stay asleep either. So I got a grand total of 1.5 hours of sleep. Around the 3rd testlet, I started getting very, very tired. I studied with Becker, and I studied a lot, but I stopped studying days ago (see previous paragraph about being 'over it') and, because of a ton of issues, it has been stop-start studying for 4 months or more, which isn't good. Nevertheless, I thought the exam was extremely simplistic. I am not saying I'm confident about passing, I'm almost saying the opposite. The first question on my whole exam was a very simple calculation, but I couldn't remember a small piece of the puzzle and I was second-guessing myself. This happened quite a few times during the MCQs. I felt the second testlet was the same difficulty as the first. I have never felt my testlets increased in difficulty, but for some reason it was throwing me off today mentally. I kept thinking I bombed the first one but I didn't see how it was possible. It's not very likely that I thought I had a good handle on stuff but just had absolutely no clue what was going on. I feel like I did decently, but a few of the questions in the second testlet were laughably easy. Third testlet was medium difficulty as well. Equal parts conceptual/calculation.

SIMs were not of any extraordinary difficulty either, which is why I'm not too concerned with the MCQ difficulty. SIMs are not adaptive, therefore maybe the whole exam was just a fairly simple exam, I don't know. I was preparing myself for a bloodbath (that's how I felt w/ REG SIMs..there were tears) but they were all straight-forward and manageable, though I always have trouble with the research question (there's always a couple answers I think could fit) and the very last SIM was something where if you messed up one thing, you messed up everything, and it was the one I was least confident on. That was the crappiest part of the exam.

It took me just shy of 3 hours (and I am a very fast test taker. Leave major time for SIMs). Becker covered everything, no surprise questions, but I will say, there are a few people on here who have also studied with Becker and say, "Don't bother studying Chapter ___" and I am here to tell you that is a MAJOR NO-NO. I almost, ALMOST said to hell with one of the sections in Becker, but I forced myself to watch the lecture and read it through once, and I am SO glad I did. If I hadn't, that would've been a good 5-8 questions that I would've had no idea on. Everyone's test is different, and you just never know.

I am going to be honest. I know I screwed up some things in the SIMs and I know I didn't answer all the MCQs with confidence, but I would be surprised if I failed. It would signal to me that I have just been on another planet with FAR this entire time. I felt great about BEC, ambivalent about AUD (due to first battle w/ SIMs), and I passed both with high scores. I thought I got destroyed by REG, but I passed with a lesser score. I would hope that the decent feeling with FAR will show in my score, but I also know in the coming days I'll start to question this and that. I never want to sound like I have it in the bag, because I very well may eat my words in a couple weeks, but, regardless, the test was not unfair or unmanageable. I'll stand by that opinion no matter the outcome. Long 3 1/2 week wait, though...

Sorry so long, hope it helps the next exam takers!

BEC: (4/2012) 88
AUD: (5/2012) 91
REG: (8/2012) 82
FAR: (1/2013) 78 :)

Studied almost every day for an entire year w/ Becker and supplemented w/ NINJA materials.

CPA class of 2013!

Posted 4 months ago #
Keely

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PS I know this is a pretty unpopular opinion, but I liked the noteboards. They were much easier to see your writing than pencil on pink or yellow paper (gotten both those colors before). I did notice on the edges, if you wrote close to them, the marker would dry up immediately, like one of the previous posters said. Mine were not erasable, but my Prometric girl said if I used up the space, she'd give me another. I used up about 3 of the 4 sides. I also started doodling while thinking about an answer...hahaha.

BEC: (4/2012) 88
AUD: (5/2012) 91
REG: (8/2012) 82
FAR: (1/2013) 78 :)

Studied almost every day for an entire year w/ Becker and supplemented w/ NINJA materials.

CPA class of 2013!

Posted 4 months ago #
DEPBrain

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Keely, I posted a very short version of my experence a couple of posts back but everything you just described mimicked my experience to the 'T'. Everything from your first question to the way your testlests progressed (or didn't). The reason I feel like a didn't pass is because of the way people here always describe their testlets getting more difficult. That, and the way the whole exam just seemed kinda...blah, for the lack of a better word. I spent about 3 solid months studying for this thing and the only thing I think I could have done differently is more MCQ's if that's even possible.

Based on your previous scores, I'm feeling more confident!

FAR - 64 - crap

Posted 4 months ago #
k917

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@Keely - I liked the note boards too actually. Except for the same disappearing ink on the edges like you described.

I'M DONE!!!!!!

B - 82 (4/19/13) PASSED!
A - 76 (1/26/13) PASSED!
R - 81 (8/31/12) PASSED!
F - 74 (11/16/12), 77 (1/4/13) PASSED!
Ethics Exam - 90 (12/21/12) PASSED!

Posted 4 months ago #
BringMeTheHorizon

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I've been lurking on this thread. I took FAR last week.

1) I actually liked the noteboards. When they were first handed to me I thought the gridlines were an awful idea, but I learned to like them, they helped keep my numbers/thoughts organized. It also helped that they gave me two functioning fine tip markers.

2) Test progression for me felt easy, medium-ish, then hard. This was my second try on this exam, and either I studied better or the nature of the test changed because it felt a bit easier than my first bout with it in August (scored a 73 then). I knew significantly more in regards to the SIMs than I did last time (even though I got weaker on all multiple choice sections, and stronger on SIMS).

So now I wait. A passing score here means I'm done done, so I'm hopeful its over.

Posted 4 months ago #
JMU2004

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I took it yesterday. My experience was very similar to REG. I finished in about 2 1/2 hours, and thought the exam was challenging. Tons of questions where I could eliminate 2 answers and then had to decide b/t the 2 remaining. The Sims were a beast and I only got one research question and 6 LONG problems. First testlet was easy, and the 2nd and 3rd were more difficult.

We'll see. I prepared myself for this exam, but probably could have used another week.

Onto BEC next in Feb with AUD in May.

REG 8/31/12 Passed: 80
FAR 1/10/13 Passed: 82
BEC 4/4/13 Passed: 77

Posted 4 months ago #
k1zuna

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I'm taking FAR in 4 days. Took Becker's two final exams and got around 75, and 65... they weren't even adaptive!
Very discouraged at the moment... I will try to memorize my notebook in these last few days.

FAR - 83
AUD - 99
BEC -
REG -

Posted 4 months ago #
apple32

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I've always done bad on the Becker Final exams. I would get like 60% and then pass exam with 85%. I've stopped doing them because they took too much time and make me feel like I don't know anything.

Posted 4 months ago #
proach33

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Alright guys i took the exam yesterday and my experience was a little disheartening. I was getting 85's on 90 question progress test and got a 75 on both the practice exam. When taking the test i felt like the multiple choice were very fair. For ones I did not know i could atleast narrow them down between 2. The sims came out of left field. They were harder then when i took the test last Fall. Hopefully I did well enough to get a 75. Now just waiting for score release. Good luck to everyone.

Audit - June 2012: 80
Reg - August 2012- 82
Far- October 6 2012 - 71. Retake Jan 2013 - 76
Bec- December 7 2012: 78

Finally Done

Posted 4 months ago #
Keely

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@DEP: I read your post about your exam, and yes it does sound like we had similar tests! I remember when I was taking my first exam (BEC), I thought it was, no offense to anyone, really easy. So I thought maybe they were trying to trick me and I wasn't doing it right, or that I was doing poorly so it wasn't getting any harder. I freaked myself out so bad that by the time score release came, I convinced myself I failed. I think if you feel good about it, there's a reason for it. You probably prepared really well, and maybe got lucky on the test with being given stuff you know. One of my SIMs was something I knew how to do like the back of my hand. I think I deserve it though, like I said, my REG test was almost impossible. ALL my SIMs were calculations (except research, obviously) and they were just extraordinarily long.

Anything can happen, and I'm certainly not in the mindset that I've already passed and everything's done, but I do think when you feel like you knew what you were doing for the most part, factor in the curve, and have a couple tests behind you like I do, you can feel somewhat confident that you have as good a chance as anyone to see a passing score in a few weeks. At least, I am reeeeaaaaally hoping that's what happens! ;)

BEC: (4/2012) 88
AUD: (5/2012) 91
REG: (8/2012) 82
FAR: (1/2013) 78 :)

Studied almost every day for an entire year w/ Becker and supplemented w/ NINJA materials.

CPA class of 2013!

Posted 4 months ago #
Jobless2CPA

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how do they curve the test? Do they curve it among all candidates who took the test within a certain periods?

Posted 4 months ago #
Keely

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A lot of people swear it's curved with everyone who took that section that quarter, but AICPA says it's curved based soley on your performance, with whatever statistical doodads they use to figure your score. A "perfect score" is a 99, but a 99 does not mean you got every question correct. Your score is not a percentage, it is just a number.

BEC: (4/2012) 88
AUD: (5/2012) 91
REG: (8/2012) 82
FAR: (1/2013) 78 :)

Studied almost every day for an entire year w/ Becker and supplemented w/ NINJA materials.

CPA class of 2013!

Posted 4 months ago #
Whatdidyou

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@Keely: I say you passed FAR with either an 87 or an 89. Now let me tell you why:

We've scored very similarly on every exam (each of my section scores being just + or - 1 point when compared to your scores for the same sections). And I got an 88 on FAR.

So, not a scientific study or anything ;), if I were a betting man, I'd guess that you get either an 87 or an 89. To be more specfic, since so far you've scored 1 point higher on one section and two points lower on the other two, my guess is that you get one point higher on FAR and get an 89. When you find out, let me know if I am right! :).

Also, I too felt completely destroyed by REG. The good thing about feeling like you bombed REG and still come out with a decent score, is that you feel more confident with future sections due to AICPA's magical "curve "formula.

REG - Passed!!
BEC - Passed
FAR - Passed
AUD - Passed

Study Materials: Becker basic course

Posted 4 months ago #
Whatdidyou

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@jobless2cpa: "how do they curve the test? Do they curve it among all candidates who took the test within a certain periods?"

I think what they claim is that each question you get is assigned to it a level of difficulty based on past test taker's performance (aka: not candidates within your window).

So lets say you get a question that has a historical pass rate of only 10%, it'll be worth more points that getting a question that has a historical pass rate of 85%. Since the CPA exam is adaptive, I am guessing that everyone gets the same number of "difficult", "easy", and "medium" questions in the first testlate, but that for each subsequent testlett you'll either get more difficult or easy questions, which are worth more or less points, based on how well you did on the prior testletts

FYI: This is why they have "throwaway" questions in each test. They are testing new questions to add onto the exam in future testing windows, but cannot assign the correct points to each question until they have enough testakers who have received that question. SO based upon the adaptive nature of the exam, and the loads of historical data they work with, they sort of know what the pass range will be.

I suspect that they also tweak the adaptive testing algorithm (instead of curving actual scores), so that pass rates don't get too high/low. Meaning, I think that over time, if pass rates are rising too much, the algorithm will change so that every candidate gets a larger percentage of historically "difficult or average" than "easy" questions. This is sort of shady, and would explain how pass rates stay in the same range even though review courses have gotten better and, arguably, the candidate pool has gotten better. But, who knows? I'm just speculating.

REG - Passed!!
BEC - Passed
FAR - Passed
AUD - Passed

Study Materials: Becker basic course

Posted 4 months ago #
Jobless2CPA

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Thanks Whatdidyou. You sure explained the "adaptive curving system" very well. Now I am just hoping I have answered most of the low pass rate questions correctly. I have my fingers crossed.

Posted 4 months ago #
Whatdidyou

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You're welcome! Keep in mind some of that is speculation - they don't release a lot of the details, but that is what I beleive the general jist of how they "curve".

Who knows how many difficulty/point levels or buckets they even have? I don't. Maybe each question's point value is directly derived from the historical past rate, and therefore the only buckets there are are for questions that have the same exact historical pass rate. Or maybe, they have 5 buckets: 2 easy bucks, 1 medium, and two difficult - with the points awarded going up or down as you move from one bucket to the next. If you get all easy questions and get them all correct (impossible, given the adaptive nature of the exam), would you fail? and what historical pass rate percentage ranges do they assign into each bucket?

If you get every single question correct on every single testlett, what would your raw score actually be? My guess is probably above 99 - and that they just adjust it downwards.

I'd definitely be interested in getting all the details of their grading process, they could definitely disclose more.

REG - Passed!!
BEC - Passed
FAR - Passed
AUD - Passed

Study Materials: Becker basic course

Posted 4 months ago #
hello_sol

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I just took FAR and want to give some feedback before I leave this forum forever (unless I fail this!)

Testlet 1: medium
Testlet 2: medium
Testlet 3: medium-hard

I don't think the testlets got noticeably more difficult as the test went on. But some of the questions in the 3rd section came out of nowhere which surprised me. I was actually REALLY SURPRISED to find that a ton of questions came from 2 lectures. Some of the lectures weren't covered much. And questions testing the same concepts turned up multiple times and too bad for me, I failed to completely understand the concept and had to guess on some of them. Oh well.

But for people who are studying right now, I don't think you should leave it up to chances because some people reported back that they got MCs from all lectures. So study all of them lectures thoroughly.

SIMs: About half were do-able and the other half required a lot of thinking and initial panicking on my part. Know your journal entries inside and out. I won't say anything more than that.

Overall, I feel discouraged because it was a lot harder than I thought. I'm just hoping it's enough for a 75.

Good luck everyone!

REG: PASSED July
BEC: PASSED July
AUD: PASSED November
FAR: PASSED January
DONE DONE DONE DONE DONE!
Becker Only

Posted 4 months ago #
willlingle

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I just took FAR today as well.

1st testlet was straightforward. 2nd was difficult. 3rd was straightforward. SIMS were half and half I'd say.

I was surprised when the third testlet went back to the straightforward level of difficulty. From my experience in the prior exams the third testlet was as hard as the second. I was glad that the third testlet was a little easier though as time had gotten away from me on the second section. Started the SIMS with about 50 mins. left and used up the entire remaining time. Sooo hoping I passed and this experience will be behind me!

I used Becker online review course.

Posted 4 months ago #
taxdiva

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Hi all. I'm four days away from my exam. I know you can't disclose any specifics, but does anyone have any advice on what chapters in Becker to focus on? Should I focus more on calculations or concepts? It is just so much material! I'm incredibly nervous.

Should I take the Final Exam(s) or just keep doing progress tests?

REG(10/23)- Passed. Thank ya Lord!
FAR-(01/18)- Studying.
AUD- After tax season
BEC- After tax season

Just give me a 75!

Posted 4 months ago #
Keely

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Taxdiva, we can't tell you what specific chapters to focus on, at least I don't think that's allowed. The best advice you could get is to cover everything thoroughly. Becker is a very condensed study guide, so you really should know it all as best you can. But once you take the test you'll surely feel like one chapter was more heavily tested than the other, but even if people could disclose that info, everyone would have different opinions, I'm sure.

FAR was the only section that I didn't fool with the Final Exams. They just seem so disheartening so I didn't even attempt it. I would keep doing your progress tests, but I think even more effective is to reread the chapters and rewrite notes. I find that helps me retain the information more than a MCQ I've seen 10 times before.

BEC: (4/2012) 88
AUD: (5/2012) 91
REG: (8/2012) 82
FAR: (1/2013) 78 :)

Studied almost every day for an entire year w/ Becker and supplemented w/ NINJA materials.

CPA class of 2013!

Posted 4 months ago #
Keely

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@Whatdidyou, I hope you're right!!! I'll let you know in 3 weeks :)

BEC: (4/2012) 88
AUD: (5/2012) 91
REG: (8/2012) 82
FAR: (1/2013) 78 :)

Studied almost every day for an entire year w/ Becker and supplemented w/ NINJA materials.

CPA class of 2013!

Posted 4 months ago #
Marie P

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Hi all,

Just sat for FAR this morning. Not really what I expected.

My testlets seemed medium - hard - hard. Sims were pretty straight forward even if two of them were disconcerting. For one of them, I feel like I might not have made the right assumption at first and all of the sim would then be wrong.

I studied with Becker (on campus and CD lectures), Wiley questions bank, and Ninja notes. It didn't feel like the questions I got on my exam had not been covered in the material but seriously some questions were on tiny details lost in a chapter (good thing I re-read the whole Becker book). Also, as others have mentioned, some key subjects were not even mentioned and others way too expended. I flagged about 10 questions in testlet 2 & 3. Mainly, I was hesitant between two answers. Overall, a lot of theoretical questions.

Anyway, I am done. Let the wait begin! Can't wait to know if I passed or failed. At this point, I am not sure either way.

Good luck to those sitting soon. I've loved reading this forum every day. It pushed me to study more, to write down all my JEs several times (valuable advice) and to keep on studying when motivation was low.

AUD - 2/28/13 - 95
REG - 10/2/12 - 85
FAR - 1/15/13 - 95
BEC - 4/25/13 - score pending. Really hope I'm done!!!
Ethics - 5/6/12 - 92

Becker in class, Becker flashcards & final review, Wiley test bank.

California candidate

Posted 4 months ago #
k1zuna

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Just got back from FAR.
testlet 1 - medium
testlet 2 - medium
testlet 3 - medium

That one sentence in Chapter ___ caused me 2 simulations and 7+ MCQS...
I can confirm my entire test was based on 2-3 chapters. I figured once you get some questions in the first testlet wrong, the next two testlets will drill you on those weak areas. And if you're unlucky like me, you get drilled in the simulations as well.
I have such a headache right now.

FAR - 83
AUD - 99
BEC -
REG -

Posted 4 months ago #
DeathByExam

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Hello Everyone

Has anyone reviewed the 2012 AICPA released exam questions? If so how do they compare to the actual exam questions in regards to wording and difficultly?

I was able to go through all the questions and only missed 3, got the simulation correct. Any input is appreciated!!!!

Thank You

BEC 71, 2/28/2013 Becker Live Course
FAR 82 Becker Self Study/Ninja Notes
AUD 4/1/2013 Becker Self Study
REG 5/31/2013 Becker Self Study

“I must be willing to give up what I am in order to become what I will be.”
by Albert Einstein

Posted 4 months ago #
glass2lose

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To anyone who has recently taken FAR- how much time did you leave for the SIMS and was it sufficient? How much time would you recommend leaving?

Posted 4 months ago #
Marie P

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To glass2lose,

I took FAR last week and allowed myself 1h45 to take the SIMS. I was done with 30 min remaining on the clock. Becker's sims' length were quite representative of what the exam looks like. However, keep in mind that everybody has different sims and it might be different for you. Good luck.

AUD - 2/28/13 - 95
REG - 10/2/12 - 85
FAR - 1/15/13 - 95
BEC - 4/25/13 - score pending. Really hope I'm done!!!
Ethics - 5/6/12 - 92

Becker in class, Becker flashcards & final review, Wiley test bank.

California candidate

Posted 4 months ago #
jtb328

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I take FAR today for the third time...I was suppose to take it in November but due to unexpected family things I had to push it back to January and then even more family things happened and now I feel just not ready for it. I took FAR in August and I spent 300+ hours studying for it and I failed pretty miserably..I was so confident going into it and when I came out I felt pretty good..but when I got my score I think I went into a state of shock because it was nowhere near what I was expecting. Ever since then I just cannot find the motivation to want to keep going

I have taken FAR 3 times (after today), BEC 3 times, AUD 1, and REG twice and have YET to pass one exam. Now, an hour an a half before my exam I am feeling overwhelmed!!! LOL

I need to find a group of people in my area that want to study together..maybe that will help me find my inspiration again

BEC - 67, 68, 68
AUD - 44
FAR - 40, 50
REG - 68, 68

Posted 3 months ago #
Keely

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@jtb: you need to pick one exam and stick with it. There is no sense in moving on until you've passed the one you're studying for, because you'll just have to come back to the one you've failed at some point. If you study for one exam, fail it, then immediately study for it again, you can build on your knowledge as opposed to having to learn everything all over again because you've forgotten it all. I definitely suggest concentrating on FAR again if you don't pass this round.

BEC: (4/2012) 88
AUD: (5/2012) 91
REG: (8/2012) 82
FAR: (1/2013) 78 :)

Studied almost every day for an entire year w/ Becker and supplemented w/ NINJA materials.

CPA class of 2013!

Posted 3 months ago #
taxdiva

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Hi all!

I took the FAR section of the CPA exam on Friday.

It wasn't what I expected. I honestly can't tell you how I did on the exam. I did, however, feel much better after this exam than I did about my REG exam. It could have been because REG was my first section and I was a little more nervous, but who knows? I passed REG with a pretty high score even though I left the exam center feeling like I hadn't.

I hope my uneasy feeling about this section, FAR, will have the same result. I really don't think I can put myself through FAR again. I put more time into this section than I did REG. I hope it paid off. Feb. 5 get here already!!!

REG(10/23)- Passed. Thank ya Lord!
FAR-(01/18)- Studying.
AUD- After tax season
BEC- After tax season

Just give me a 75!

Posted 3 months ago #
jamesb

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@taxdiva

what study material you used?

AUD: TBA-
FAR Done
BEC Done

Becker
NINJA for AUD

Posted 3 months ago #