futureCPA86
offlineMember
I just finished lecture 7 with Becker and I am getting drained. There is just so much information and I feel like I won't remember all of the details of every chapter and I STILL HAVE TWO MORE CHAPTERS LEFT (non-profit and government)! The other sections weren't this tough!! Any suggestions anyone???
REG-89 BEC-83 FAR-4/12 AUD-Retake
CantTakeIt
offlineMember
Take it slow and steady. It's really easy for FAR to get to you because there is just so much to get through and remember. I just took the test Friday and what worked well for me was to do the Progress Tests (if you are using Becker) after I finished all the chapters. It really helped me determine what areas I need to go back on as well as gave me confidence that I knew more than I thought on the rest. When it came test time, I noticed some had some right from the progress tests and were things I wouldn't have remembered otherwise.
Take a day off if you need to and then hit it hard again the next day.
eclaire
offlineMember
I felt like sections 8 and 9 were a lot more manageable in Becker than 7. Just be glad that you're almost finished with the lectures! You have over a month before your test, so I would go back and work all of the MCQ and simulations in the Becker Passmaster software. I also used Becker Final Review and found it to be very helpful.
Sometimes, you just have to take a deep breath and forge ahead. You'll get there before you know it. And it's okay to take a day off if you start to feel burned out. That really helped me when I felt like I couldn't get through any more. Best of luck!
The GaJone
offlineMember
I took my FAR exam on 1/20 (a Thursday) and did not get to chapters 8 and 9 until the weekend before and passed -- and I work full-time and was on an audit the week I took the exam and couldn't take any of the days off before it. If you're freaking out over chapter 7 on 3/8 when you're taking the exam on 4/12, my suggestion is to chillax. I know it's stressful, but you still have over a month to do the final 2 chapters and do your final review. You'll be ok.
rahulcpa
offlineMember
According to me, every chapter in Financial is hard except chapter1. I have been studyin' FAR since Feb4 and have completed 6 chapters, 1 time only. I then reviewed chapters 1-3 ( read chapter and redid all MCq's) to make sure I don't forget them before I start chapter 7-9. After studyin' chapter 7-9, I will redo chapter 4-9 and finish before March 31. Starting April 1, I will only review, review, and review. I am taking the test on April 30 because I think its useless taking before the end of the month because regardless whenever I take it in April, I will get the results in May. Last but not least, I will do the final review to make sure I get those 1-3 lucky points. Also, I found the bonds, deferred taxes, and pension plans topics very very overwhelming. Therefore, to overcome my excitement in these topics, I pulled out my old dayz intermediate accounting book and tried to understand these topics by reading the extensive theory in the book. Well, I Just wanted to throw in my 2 cents . The reason why I am putting so much time in FAR because I found this section to be the toughest of all sections or maybe I am just dumb!!! :(
LSU_BR
offlineMember
Then I must be dumb too because this stuff is so overwhelming. I made a 71 in January and am retesting April 5. I can't get my hw scores out of the 70's for the most part :( .And just when I think I got bonds, no, no, I don't have bonds....
I will agree with rahulcpa. FAR in my experience was the toughest of the four. It was not even close not only in studying the material but in taking the exam. I put in about 175+ hours over 10 weeks for this exam. I was rushed through the actual exam like you would not believe, down to the last second to complete. Had only 1 hour to complete both simulations would not recommend it. You really need to have at least 40 minutes for each simulations. 2nd and 3rd testlet were just brutal for me. Bottom line there is just a lot of material to cover. I just did progress test after progress test. If I did not feel like doing new material, I did progress test. I also did the Practice Final Exams and printed and reviewed every question I missed. I really hit my weak areas bonds, leases, consolidations, etc. Just about anything with a calculation. Having said all of that, do not skimp on studying chapters 8 and 9. Based on the percentages, Govt/NFP is approx 22-28% of your exam. That is a big chunk. If you are through chapter 7, that means you have been studying a while. Take a break or change up your study schedule. Doing things a little different can give you that push you need. You have more than a month to finalize your preparedness. You will get there. Good Luck.
This is good stuff. I just had the FAR-2 class from Becker tonight. There is a ton of stuff in each lecture and I am praying that I don't hit a wall.
AARON
offlineMember
FAR = "A mile wide, an inch deep."
While it is important to know details while preparing for FAR, just know that it's even more important to know the basics/foundation of each area rather than the rule to the rule to the rule.
I think everyone who prepares for FAR becomes overwhelmed very easily because of the nature of the material, but just focus and break it down on a topic by topic basis and you'll surprise yourself as to how well you're absorbing material.
I may have to re-take this exam, but at least now I know that FAR may seem scary, but in reality, if you can avoid not letting it get to your head while studying, you'll end up finding out that the exam is much more manageable than you think.
live42
offlineMember
What I did for FAR to manage the vast volume of material was to go back and take notes. Once you go through the lectures and take the suggested notes and highlights, go back through them again when you review. Get a notebook and take notes on everything that is either difficult, or that you don't quite remember. The key here is DO NOT write down anything thats easy or that you know you will remember. This greatly reduces the volume of you notes. Just the act of writing the notes will solidify the important stuff in your brain.
After I went through and did this for the entire becker book, I had about 40 pages of handwritten notes. As I reviewed I re-read these frequently. I also wrote down anything I got wrong on the MCQs. After you review some more, go through your notes again, and this time, highlight anything you still don't know.
The idea is basically to just keep a running tally of the difference between your knowledge and a perfect score. Hopefully as you study this list gets smaller and smaller! Then the night before the test, just go through your latest version of the "stuff you still don't know" list one more time, just to make sure its all in there somewhere.
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