I think I can relate to all of you. I've been going through this process for about two years now. I've passed all four parts but lost credit for a couple in the mean time. Meanwhile, I have to pass BEC in the next 10 months or so and I'm good to go.
I enjoy reading these forums but I also find myself annoyed some of the time. Reading many posts, I feel like I am back in college, listening to the 4.0 students complain to the professor about how the test was unfair, and how it needs to be curved. My attitude now is the same as it was then. The guidelines for the exam are set. The content is known. It all comes down to you putting in the time and effort to learn it and pass the exams.
I will tell you that I could have passed all four parts within the 18 month period if I had tried harder. But I wasn't willing to give up my social life to do it. I started taking the exam when I was 26, which 3-4 years of public experience, while working full time, so I know how difficult it can be to make time. So who's fault is it that I didn't pass? AICPA's? NASBA? No. No one's fault but my own. I could have stayed in on Friday nights and studied. I could have spent more time studying instead of on Facebook. No matter what way you spin it, the only person you have to blame for failing the CPA exam is yourself. I feel like people spend too much time feeling sorry for themselves. My only advice is to suck it up, because you will get back out of it what you put in (just as in sports, or any other sector of life).
As far as others comparing their exams and schooling to the CPA; I'm with you all. Most don't understand. But just because I want to be a CPA doesn't make me better than someone who is teaching, or still in college studying for a degree. I will soon have a CPA, Masters, and Bachelors. Those credentials might help me land a job, but they don't define who I am as a person and an intellectual. People have different goals, and who are we to judge them for the standards they set for themselves? The guy studying in college and working part time is probably working as hard as me to reach his goals. He still puts in 20 hours a week at class with another 20 hours of homework and studying. Then he works another 25 hours to pay some bills. Seems comparable to my 45 hour work week and 15 hours of studying. I'm sure if that guy wanted to study for the CPA instead of Biology or whatever major, he could be just as successful. Hell, I could have been a doctor, or PhD if I wanted but it isn't the path I chose.
In conclusion, I think that people venting on here can be helpful in alleviating stress. But I also believe that a better perspective will keep you from getting so frustrated in the first place. Enjoy a piece of humble-pie once in awhile and life might become more enjoyable.
AUD - 84
BEC - 80
REG - 75
FAR - 80
