How to fit in study time on a vacation?

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    Topic
  • #178051
    MintsRGood
    Participant

    I’m looking for suggestions on how to incorporate study time into a vacation! I feel bad for my husband because he has been a 2013 CPA widower!!! I work in public accounting and have my obligatory vacation blackout from January-April and May has been spent cramming for BEC. Every time my husband has suggested a vacation this year, I always emphatically said NO…but I’m starting to feel really terrible and guilty about it. He is one of my biggest supporters and has never once told me that I should quit, even after failing auditing 3 times in a row, and checks my scores on release day as crazily and desperately as I do! He’s a great guy and I want to compromise, so I’ve agreed to take a week and some change off around the 4th of July and hit the beach in Florida…but I don’t want to blow 10 days on my study plan! I just applied for FAR this morning and should get my NTS in a few days. I would like to test at the end of July but no later that the first week or so of August…I just want to be DONE and have some summer left to enjoy!!!

    Here are the FAR materials at my disposal: Yaeger FAR Cram videos, Wiley FAR text, Wiley online test bank, Ninja notes, Ninja audio, Ninja Blitz, Ninja Flash cards, and all of my handouts from the live FAR review course I took this past fall. Considering that a large portion of my materials are electronic, I could just as easily read/listen/watch my ninja goodies on the plane or beach just as easily as anything else right? Perhaps wake up early and get in some reading or test bank time every morning?

    I’m 1000% sure that many of you have juggled a vacation and prep at the same time and I need your advice!

    Suggestions appreciated!!! 🙂

    REG: 75 DONE 🙂
    AUD: 61, 71, 68, 92 DONE 🙂
    BEC: 76 DONE 🙂
    FAR: 72, 74, 79 DONE 🙂
    Licensed Michigan CPA 🙂
    -Some people dream of success...others wake up and work hard for it!!!
    -The cowards never start and the weak die along the way!
    -You better work, b***h!
    -Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.-JFK

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  • #429404
    MCLKT
    Participant

    Hey Mints! My Aud retake studies included 10 days in Hawaii with the whole family (10 ranging in ages 5-65) in one house!

    I just scheduled it so by the time I was in HI I was ready to rewrite notes. I got up and wrote notes for a couple of hours in the morning before everyone else woke up. I think I had my Fact Nugget book to read too, but nothing else.

    A:[73]97 F:[74]85 R:86 B:[74]82
    *NINJA 10 Pt. COMBO & Yaeger*

    #429405
    Spur
    Member

    Throughout my studying for FAR, I've been on 4 vacation type trips, including a 10 day Euro trip. I didn't study or do much on that one. With the time change it was just too much. I tried doing a little here and little there, but usually at the end of the day I was just exhausted and nothing was sinking in anyway.

    The other trips were all domestic so I did as much as I could at night after my kids were sleeping. It allowed me to feel like I wasn't completely blowing it off and it kept things somewhat fresh.

    I noticed though that studying and taking vacations sucks. Every time I say that I don't want to go, but I have so much support from my family that I feel bad not going. Actually I don't think I have a choice anyway, so I just go with it.

    FAR - Bad Fail '11, Fail '12, Fail '13, PASS It's a miracle!
    AUD - Fail, PASS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    BEC - PASS!!!!!!!!
    REG - PASS!!!!!!!! And I'm done!

    #429406
    Tncincy
    Participant

    Well when you're on vacation it is hard to study. The thing that helped me the most was relax on vacation and study relaxing like listen to the audio or write notes in the bathroom before dinner, or stay up at night and write notes. Instead of surfing the net, read focus notes. There are so many little things to do that might not seem to be studying but enough to keep your mind fresh. I have not had a vacation, but sometimes I have to travel, so I practice some of these tips. It's hard for me to regain momentum so when I have to travel I pack up my stuff and do the little stuff where others won't realize you are studying. Flash cards and mini quizzes are good too.

    It begins with a 75
    Been here too long as a cheerleader.....time to pass

    It begins with a 75
    Been here too long as a cheerleader....ready to pass

    #429407
    Ntw6817
    Participant

    You guys have much more self control than I would have. I definitely would not be able to find the motivation to study while on vacation, especially in Florida or Hawaii

    #429408
    smp73
    Member

    Based on my expereince of “kind of studying” while on vacation….that did not end well. I would say set a specific amount of time, be it one or two hours, every day to focus on studying and then enjoy the rest of your vacation!

    NYS CPA License # 113563
    CIA: Done as of 2/15/14

    Training for a half marathon post studying!

    #429409
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    If the vacation isn't already scheduled, I'd schedule the exam for somewhat near the end of the July, and then the vacation immediately after so that you could just relax and enjoy vacation without any exam prep hanging over your head. 🙂 My exams won't be done till October or November, but I'm thinking I might take the first week in September for vacation, since I can't test in September so maybe I could relax then!

    As for studying on vacation…I've never attempted that, so can't help much in that area. Closest I ever got to that was finishing a simple homework assignment on vacation – entirely different from CPA exam prep!

    #429410
    Amay
    Member

    So how did it go?? I'm looking for tips as well as I leave on vacation in a couple of days and NEED to keep info fresh. Was thinking about doing 1 hr rewriting notes in the morning tip. But that's assuming I'm done with all my MCQs before I leave. I still have close to two chapters left. I'm just not a morning person and I know it will be hard to get up earlier on vacation to study. Something I thought about was listening to audio notes while I get ready in the morning and for dinners in the bathroom. Hey a little is better than nothing right?

    BEC: 73, 81
    AUD: 85
    FAR: 71, 77
    REG: 74, 75...finally DONE! 😀

    *This is my 2nd attempt at the CPA exam. For all of you who have failed this exam many times, given up on it, or taken a break like me, remember that it is still possible to finish what you started...failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently 🙂

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