[MintsRGood]

Help! I’m looking for suggestions on new study techniques for my FAR rematch in January. Every time I have to retake a section, I do everything from the prior attempt AND a few new tricks to up my game.

When I sat for FAR the first time, I went through the entire Wiley text, pounded the test bank, used daily Ninja Notes+Audio+flashcards, recopied my notes, and watched Yeager vids on only my weakest topics. I also sat through a live review course offered by my grad school for FAR and I have great notes and handouts of which I covered as well. I also take notes on incorrect MCQ responses and keep a fact nugget journal.

Then I got 72 and instantly thought “A-ha! I failed because I didn’t watch ALL the vids! If I do everything from before and watch all the vids, I will pass!” and away I went watching all my Yeager vids with detailed notes AND everything above mentioned all over again.

That got me a 74 and I’m out of new ideas. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result, so I need to add something new to my study schedule…but what?

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

[Anonymous]

I haven't received my FAR score to say if this is worth it or not, but I added NINJA Audio for my last attempt at FAR…I like it because I was able to process the information SOLEY through hearing it…which gives my brain more to think about intead of relying so much on what I'm seeing (textbook, lecturer, flashcards, etc.)

like I said though, I haven't received my FAR score yet, so I can't say whether it worked or not 🙂

[Anonymous]

I haven't received my FAR score to say if this is worth it or not, but I added NINJA Audio for my last attempt at FAR…I like it because I was able to process the information SOLEY through hearing it…which gives my brain more to think about intead of relying so much on what I'm seeing (textbook, lecturer, flashcards, etc.)

like I said though, I haven't received my FAR score yet, so I can't say whether it worked or not 🙂

[Anonymous]

I used Becker but what I did was go through all lectures and MCQ once. Then on my “final review” (3 weeks) I did all the MCQs again by section. I made notes of all the formulas and important subjects and filled up about 15 pages front and back of things I would re-write every day. When I say re-write every day, I am not joking. By exam day I had memorized my 30 pages of notes because I re wrote them and literally memorized every formula. Worked for me! Good luck

[Anonymous]

I used Becker but what I did was go through all lectures and MCQ once. Then on my “final review” (3 weeks) I did all the MCQs again by section. I made notes of all the formulas and important subjects and filled up about 15 pages front and back of things I would re-write every day. When I say re-write every day, I am not joking. By exam day I had memorized my 30 pages of notes because I re wrote them and literally memorized every formula. Worked for me! Good luck

[Kenada]

Hello Mints,

I haven't done FAR yet but for REG this is my plan for a third attempt.

Listen to Jeff Audio everyday and everywhere .. until I am so sick and tired of hearing him LOL ( sorry Jeff mean it in a nice way ).

Do bursts of 20 questions in each topic. This will help me see which topics i totally suck in and which ones I am stronger in.. Then I first focus on my weak topics.. I will make my own notes – listen to the CPA review just to refresh myself and then hammer out as many questions. I will keep at it until it finally clicks in my head. I will still be doing small bursts of 20 question random on all the strong topics each day just to keep myself fresh and also its a break from the topic I am working on getting straight

I think Key here is understand the concept. Re do the questions at least twice or even 3 times before sit the exam.

Write out the JE format over and over again until it sticks but make sure you understand it too.

Make a song if you have to. something making a very random silly song will help you remember why you Debit bad debt expense and credit Bad debt provision (you get the idea).

Just keep working hard and you will pass, you are almost there!

FAR 05/27/14; 786/110 - Done !

[Kenada]

Hello Mints,

I haven't done FAR yet but for REG this is my plan for a third attempt.

Listen to Jeff Audio everyday and everywhere .. until I am so sick and tired of hearing him LOL ( sorry Jeff mean it in a nice way ).

Do bursts of 20 questions in each topic. This will help me see which topics i totally suck in and which ones I am stronger in.. Then I first focus on my weak topics.. I will make my own notes – listen to the CPA review just to refresh myself and then hammer out as many questions. I will keep at it until it finally clicks in my head. I will still be doing small bursts of 20 question random on all the strong topics each day just to keep myself fresh and also its a break from the topic I am working on getting straight

I think Key here is understand the concept. Re do the questions at least twice or even 3 times before sit the exam.

Write out the JE format over and over again until it sticks but make sure you understand it too.

Make a song if you have to. something making a very random silly song will help you remember why you Debit bad debt expense and credit Bad debt provision (you get the idea).

Just keep working hard and you will pass, you are almost there!

FAR 05/27/14; 786/110 - Done !

[Anonymous]

Hmmm. You're not that far off, so you're doing something right. I started with Yaeger and switched to Roger because I found his teaching style easier to digest.

Here are my suggestions (depending on your budget):

1. Get the Roger FAR course & use the Ninja method – Maybe seeing it from a different instructor will help you digest material you didn't understand as well before? Roger will give you a discount if you provide Proof of purchase from Yaeger.

2. Stick with Yaeger, get the Roger CRAM & use the Ninja method – again add a little bit of a different perspective.

3. I never recopied the notes using the Ninja method. Instead this was my pattern:

a. Watch videos and take lots of notes. Did not do much MCP practice during this time. Get through the videos fast. I learned more from MCPs than anywhere else.

b. Then I would do MCP's per topic. Before I did each topic I would create a “formula sheet” or “cheat sheet” for that topic. It would include important points, formulas, mnemonics and JE's for the topic gleaned from my notes & ninja notes. Then I would practice MCP's on that topic until I was satisfied with my scores. Then move on to next topic and repeat. By forcing myself to summarize important points for the topic, I was digesting my notes again, not just copying them. The idea is that when I do MCP's I should be able to answer it by glancing at the “cheat sheet.” If I couldn't, then it would be added to the sheet. They were normally typed out so I could quickly add and rearrange them.

c.After I created cheat sheets and practiced MCPs on each topic I would work on all of the topics again. At this point my cheat sheets were pretty solid so I printed them out. As I did MCP's I referred to the cheat sheets only. If I came across something not addressed, I would make a note of it on the page. If any page got too messy with a lot of additions, then I would pull up my document and type in the additions and reprint the page.

d. Generally, I did 20 MCP's at a time on a topic. Every few days I reassessed my weaknesses and gave them special attention. As exam day got closer, I relied less on the cheat sheets. I also decreased MCP sets to 15, 10 & 5. That way in the days before the exam I was touching on almost every topic.

Stuff you might already be doing:

When you answer an MCP look at all of the answers. Make a note of any wrong answers that were tricky. Look at the answer explanation and make note of anything not on your cheat sheet that might be useful.

Even if the question doesn't require it, do the JE for it.

I often screwed up by not reading the question correctly. When you have marked the question, reread the question with the answer you picked. It can save you.

Learn how to use AL effectively. People on the forum are not kidding when they say that they looked up a SIM in the AL and found the EXACT answer in the AL. This might help you get the extra point.

[Anonymous]

Hmmm. You're not that far off, so you're doing something right. I started with Yaeger and switched to Roger because I found his teaching style easier to digest.

Here are my suggestions (depending on your budget):

1. Get the Roger FAR course & use the Ninja method – Maybe seeing it from a different instructor will help you digest material you didn't understand as well before? Roger will give you a discount if you provide Proof of purchase from Yaeger.

2. Stick with Yaeger, get the Roger CRAM & use the Ninja method – again add a little bit of a different perspective.

3. I never recopied the notes using the Ninja method. Instead this was my pattern:

a. Watch videos and take lots of notes. Did not do much MCP practice during this time. Get through the videos fast. I learned more from MCPs than anywhere else.

b. Then I would do MCP's per topic. Before I did each topic I would create a “formula sheet” or “cheat sheet” for that topic. It would include important points, formulas, mnemonics and JE's for the topic gleaned from my notes & ninja notes. Then I would practice MCP's on that topic until I was satisfied with my scores. Then move on to next topic and repeat. By forcing myself to summarize important points for the topic, I was digesting my notes again, not just copying them. The idea is that when I do MCP's I should be able to answer it by glancing at the “cheat sheet.” If I couldn't, then it would be added to the sheet. They were normally typed out so I could quickly add and rearrange them.

c.After I created cheat sheets and practiced MCPs on each topic I would work on all of the topics again. At this point my cheat sheets were pretty solid so I printed them out. As I did MCP's I referred to the cheat sheets only. If I came across something not addressed, I would make a note of it on the page. If any page got too messy with a lot of additions, then I would pull up my document and type in the additions and reprint the page.

d. Generally, I did 20 MCP's at a time on a topic. Every few days I reassessed my weaknesses and gave them special attention. As exam day got closer, I relied less on the cheat sheets. I also decreased MCP sets to 15, 10 & 5. That way in the days before the exam I was touching on almost every topic.

Stuff you might already be doing:

When you answer an MCP look at all of the answers. Make a note of any wrong answers that were tricky. Look at the answer explanation and make note of anything not on your cheat sheet that might be useful.

Even if the question doesn't require it, do the JE for it.

I often screwed up by not reading the question correctly. When you have marked the question, reread the question with the answer you picked. It can save you.

Learn how to use AL effectively. People on the forum are not kidding when they say that they looked up a SIM in the AL and found the EXACT answer in the AL. This might help you get the extra point.

[Tncincy]

Mints,

From reading many posts, the only thing you can do is start from the beginning. Re-read notes, re-write notes, re-listen to ninja, and pound out mcq,s. with a 74 it's probably the little things, like math errors or misunderstanding the question. I don't think there is a theory problem. Maybe spend more time completing all the sims or just simply answering one more question correctly to get the 75. Hang in there, who wants to do all this studying again, no one.

You can do it and you'll pass.

I wish all I had was one more test.:-/

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

[Tncincy]

Mints,

From reading many posts, the only thing you can do is start from the beginning. Re-read notes, re-write notes, re-listen to ninja, and pound out mcq,s. with a 74 it's probably the little things, like math errors or misunderstanding the question. I don't think there is a theory problem. Maybe spend more time completing all the sims or just simply answering one more question correctly to get the 75. Hang in there, who wants to do all this studying again, no one.

You can do it and you'll pass.

I wish all I had was one more test.:-/

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

[Whopper Warrior]

Not to come off as rude, {don't take this the wrong way} it seems like there is a lot of note taking and not a lot of test taking. We can watch food network and take notes all day, but we are no closer to being 5 star chefs. Hit the mc hard, and I mean hard; I dreamed of mc questions when I was studying for my exams. Also, every time you do mc, set aside the last minutes to do comprehensive problems, to keep old things fresh, new things current, and future things working.

Also, so what if you memorize the questions? If the answer is 10,000 and you know it is 10,000 because you have seen the question but you can not mathematically do it, choose the wrong answer and read the explanation. Getting things right, when they are wrong leads to false security and you may skip the explanation.

When you get a question wrong, read the explanation, think about what you did, and see the turning point of where you went wrong. Usually I would say a good mc question has 3 areas where could lead you astray: date, amount, unneeded filler. I think this last step of analyzing what you did, and what they do is the most crucial. Fool me once, but never again.

It seems your study habits are impeccable, and you will demolish the rematch.

{Didn't want the awesome message lost: edited for typos, MCLKT}

ALL 4 parts passed summer 13
Ethics October 13
Experience (waiting)

Becker Only

[Whopper Warrior]

Not to come off as rude, {don't take this the wrong way} it seems like there is a lot of note taking and not a lot of test taking. We can watch food network and take notes all day, but we are no closer to being 5 star chefs. Hit the mc hard, and I mean hard; I dreamed of mc questions when I was studying for my exams. Also, every time you do mc, set aside the last minutes to do comprehensive problems, to keep old things fresh, new things current, and future things working.

Also, so what if you memorize the questions? If the answer is 10,000 and you know it is 10,000 because you have seen the question but you can not mathematically do it, choose the wrong answer and read the explanation. Getting things right, when they are wrong leads to false security and you may skip the explanation.

When you get a question wrong, read the explanation, think about what you did, and see the turning point of where you went wrong. Usually I would say a good mc question has 3 areas where could lead you astray: date, amount, unneeded filler. I think this last step of analyzing what you did, and what they do is the most crucial. Fool me once, but never again.

It seems your study habits are impeccable, and you will demolish the rematch.

{Didn't want the awesome message lost: edited for typos, MCLKT}

ALL 4 parts passed summer 13
Ethics October 13
Experience (waiting)

Becker Only

[Anonymous]

Mints: I think it came down to luck of the draw on one or two questions on your last exam. I am confident you know this material so just go back to the first chapter/module and start again. Really look at the info and try to see what you may have overlooked. The good news is that you already have a strong base and you will build on that as you go through your next round of studies. One thing is for sure… you WILL show FAR who is boss! I have NO doubt about that!

[Anonymous]

Mints: I think it came down to luck of the draw on one or two questions on your last exam. I am confident you know this material so just go back to the first chapter/module and start again. Really look at the info and try to see what you may have overlooked. The good news is that you already have a strong base and you will build on that as you go through your next round of studies. One thing is for sure… you WILL show FAR who is boss! I have NO doubt about that!

[MintsRGood]

Thanks for the suggestions everyone, it's very much appreciated!!!!!!

On average, I hash out between 1,500-2,000 MCQs per attempt. One of my biggest problems is pure memorization of the test bank, so @WhopperWarrior that is a great tip to review the WRONG answer choices and analyze WHY that response is wrong when I run across a repeater instead of just picking the correct answer and moving on! I also love the ideas of “cheat sheets” by topic and fine tuning them as I go; great ideas!

I'm always looking for new ways to learn when I don't pass and everyone has their unique approach to the material. When I was struggling with audit so badly, Kricket suggested that I create a concept map of the audit process from start to finish. It's something that I never would have thought of myself and was tremendously helpful in my conceptual understanding.

Thanks again everyone for your help and have a great Thanksgiving!!!!! 🙂

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

[Author]

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