need review course advice

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  • #824008
    Kairos
    Participant

    I failed the FAR exam and I need advice on how to proceed.

    i’ve been through becker, roger and ninja materials and i’m at a point of maximum frustration.

    my score results tend to show that i do mostly comparable on the mcqs but weaker on the simulations.

    i’m pretty sure that if my skills in tackling simulations were stronger, i would be able to pass but im not sure how to go about doing so.

    could anyone recommend a review course that specializes in simulations that includes document review? to be honest, on the exam i had no idea how to tackle the document review and left them all 0s which i think played greatly in my failing score.

    also, a course that has a solid and accurate research simulation software would be preferred as well.

    i know becker is pretty decent with the research problems but im not really in a position to shell out $3k+ to work on a problem that’s worth 1 point.

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  • #824053
    monikernc
    Participant

    money was tight for me and i did finish exams without seeing a DRS but i can suggest that you attempt the AICPA practice exam and the tutorial. the practice exam will have at least one DRS per section. it is free but it requires a windows pc and internet explorer.
    and you can register for free browse access to the codification at https://www.fasb.org – free access does not include search but you can browse through the entire codification and learn its structure well enough to help you on exam day. you can browse while practicing sims.
    others will have to recommend materials that can be purchased.

    you also have to build up your scores on mcqs to stronger to pass. ninja mcqs worked for me. the more points you score on mcqs the less you depend on sims points. sims will always be a factor but doing stronger on mcqs will help your overall score a lot.

    AUD - 93
    BEC - 82
    FAR - 76
    REG - 88
    How have you been?
    Ninja book and MCQs and the forum, all first try! 2016
    Licensed State of Montana April Fool’s Day 2020
    State of Colorado June 2020 - AICPA Ethics 93
    Experience was the worst part of the journey for me. You?
    If you want things to change you have to do something different.

    FAR 7/25/15 76!
    AUD 10/30/15 93
    BEC 2/27/16 82
    REG 5/23/16 88!
    Ninja Book and MCQ and the forum - all the way!!!
    and a little thing i like to call, time and effort!
    if you want things to change, you have to do something different

    #824074
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Unfortunately, with DRS being new, I don't think any review courses have much preparation materials for them yet. AICPA practice exam is probably about your best source for really knowing what a DRS will look like, but each one will still vary.

    Given that you've tried 3 different review programs already, I'm going to hazard a guess that the review program isn't the problem in your case, and one or more of the ones that you have can be right for you to pass this exam. In your case, it seems like there's something with your approach to how you're learning and understanding the materials for this exam that's the problem, rather than the review course.

    I know, “duh, that's why I'm posting here, thanks Captain Obvious”. My point is, I don't think you need to go spend more money on new materials (unless yours have all expired); I think that we need to look elsewhere for the issue.

    My theory has always been that the key to SIMs is having a very solid understanding of the material, big-picture as well as details, whereas the MCQs require more recitation of minute details. So, if SIMs are your weak area (which they are for many people), my suggestion to you would be to try to focus more on the big picture. More practically, have you tried reading the books from any of your review materials? In my experience, it seems like the books are usually better at giving an A-to-Z, 360° view, big-picture perspective. So, if you've focused more on lectures and MCQs, then I'd strongly encourage you to try reading one of the books. Do it start-to-finish, without stopping in the middle for MCQs, since the goal is to be getting the big picture which is easier to do with continuity and not with breaks. Then after you finish reading the book, you can go to MCQs, practice SIMs, re-watch lectures over areas that you feel like you could use a refresher, etc. Personally I'm not a fan of what I've heard of Becker's books (though I've never held one so it's all here-say), so I'd recommend picking the book from Roger or NINJA instead of Becker, since I presume you have access to all 3; however, if you only have 1, go ahead with whichever one you have. Becker's still will probably work, just isn't as “nice” from what I've gathered – their focus is more on lectures so their book is a byproduct only.

    If you've already read through the books start-to-finish before, then I'd still say focus on the big picture. The book is one way to do that, and it's a way that worked for me and I've seen work for others, but it's not the only way. SIMs require you to essentially take a story problem and figure out for yourself the 10 MCQs that relate to it and how to solve them, so it requires a bit more understanding of how things connect. Especially with exams like FAR and BEC, it can seem like they're a lot of disjointed information; if you can figure out how they connect and flow together, I think it will help you a LOT.

    For the DRS more specifically, note that I finished before they were launched (by a couple years lol), so I'm shooting in the dark somewhat here. However, do you have any accounting work experience? Could you try to picture the problem in front of you as a task given to you at a new job by a boss who refuses to answer questions and see it as a real-world situation and figure it out that way? I think that's supposed to be the goal of the new DRS, but having never seen one myself, I don't know if that's really how they are or not. Just wondered if a real-life approach might help with them.

    Good luck! Hopefully some of this general-SIM advice can help, even though DRSs specifically are a new thing that evreyone's still a little lost on.

    #826339
    Kairos
    Participant

    Thanks for the advice guys. It's kind've a long story but I'm not in accounting so I guess that's just another thing I've got going against me. I found another review course that includes document review for a much cheaper price. I'm thinking about giving that one a go in addition to going top to bottom on the Wiley textbook. Hopefully things work out on the next exam.

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