[gazar86]

Hey guys, so I just took Far for the second time on July 3. I felt much more comfortable this time, but I realized that on testlet number two I got harder questions, but on testlet number three I got easier questions. I am assuming I did great on the first testlet, but not so well on the second. Does anyone know the threshold of correct questions answered for getting a difficult or medium testlet? I won’t know my score until August 1, so I’m kind of sitting on pins and needles wondering.

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FAR 65,81 (7/3/14)
REG 85 (8/19/14)
BEC
AUD

[JamesBJames]

I don't think anyone really knows — the actual math is pretty secretive. The AICPA has elaborated on the process, of course: the questions are assigned point values based on how often they are answered correctly, and the harder a question is, the more points its worth. People who do well on any individual testlet will get a subsequent testlet with a harder average difficulty. People who do poorly will receive a testlet with a lower average difficulty.

I would guess it's much more complicated than “You need XX on a medium testlet and YY on a difficult testlet to get another difficult testlet.” Each question in a testlet will likely have very slightly different point values. Imagine two people who have the same first testlet and answer the same percentage of the questions correctly — it's possible for one person to get a difficult second testlet and for one to get a moderate testlet.

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

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[Anonymous]

Don't worry about this too much. Exams I thought I did awesome on I either barely passed or got my 74. Exams I wasn't confident about are the ones I passed. You can never tell what is “medium” and what is “hard”. It's not worth stressing out about it all the way until score release. Obviously not stressing is easier said than done, but since you can't do anything about how your exam went now, try not to spend too much time worrying about whether it was medium or hard questions.

[Author]

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