[OttoReadmore]

Hi – I’m new here. I graduated a few years ago with 150 credits and put off the CPA exam for a while (wasn’t sure if I wanted to get it or not). Long story short, I decided I would make the extra credits I got in undergrad worth it by passing the exam (and possibly helping my B school application as well. That said, I’m looking for some advice considering the test will change in 2017.My questions are:

1) What study materials should I buy? My firm will reimburse me up to $2200. I had Becker previously and haave a former student discount that makes the complete package $1650, but I was thinking my money would be better spent buying materials that don’t expire.

2) what’s my best course of action and path of least resistance to passing all 4 parts as quickly as possible? I figure I should at least try to get through FAR and REG this year as they seem to be the hardest by general consensus. Then I can take down Audit and BEC next year.

Does anyone have any thoughts or general advice? I’d really appreciate it.

[perezc3910]

Hi Otto,

I personally purchased Becker because I have a lot of friends that used it and they say that it prepared them very well. Unfortunately, my company does not pay for any educational expenses so I have purchased it on my own. I only cracked it open yesterday but I can already tell that the lectures are very well put together. I have been reading conversations on this blog for a while now for tips myself and a lot of people have chosen Becker. However, I would definitely purchase supplemental study materials as well if I were you. I have purchased the NINJA Notes and intend on getting the audio and MCQ later on. Having to buy everything on my own sucks but I think that it has pushed me to do my research on what works and what doesn't. FAR and REG have the most information so I think that taking them first is a smart decision. I chose to take BEC first just because it's said to be the easiest and I can use a boost in confidence.

Hope my input helped!

BEC-July 2016
REG-August 2016
FAR-October 2016
AUD-Nov/Dec 2016

[jessica8926]

My comments/opinions/advice:

1) I am pretty sure most if not all study programs expire at some point so to your point about finding a program that does not expire, I think that will be difficult. I know most programs will give you an extension if you do not pass and your software is expiring. What to buy though really depends on your study style. I am a die hard Becker fan and really liked the structured way it was set up. Easy to use and maneuver and generally they explained the questions really really well with a very systematic logical approach. I had some experience with Wiley and found that their questions and answers were too out there and too vague. A lot of their questions I had never even seen in Becker and did NOT see on the test. That is my personal opinion though and you should really make the choice based on your study style.

2) I agree with taking FAR and REG this year before those change. FAR was the most difficult for me as it had the most complex material. BEC has also been kicking my butt. I found REG to be the easiest for me because I enjoyed tax and it made sense where as BEC did not. Again, it depends on you and where you think your weaknesses lie. If you know you struggle with tax and despise it I would definitely take that one before the 2017 changes. All in all try to knock out as many as you can before the 2017 changes happen.

Hope this helps and good luck!

AUD - 77
BEC - 82
FAR - 75
REG - 81

Illinois Certified Public Accountant 2016

AUD - 69, 77
REG - 74, 81
FAR - 75!
BEC - 71, 82

IL candidate!

Finally done (5/24/16)!! Yahooooooo!

[Jdn9201]

My advice would be to first think about how you studied best in college, and watch some sample videos of each program on youtube (I'm not sure if all have samples – I know Roger does). I'm a Roger fan – I used his program exclusively and passed all on my first attempt. I'm sure the other programs can get you to pass, but what I liked about Roger is he is very engaging and very efficient with his time. I purchased the middle (I think elite?) package for less than $2K with a discount. His normal access is 12 months, but the middle package comes with a 6 month extension. I think you are right to want to knock out FAR and REG before the 2017 changes kick in. I would do the same if I were in your shoes. Good luck!

BEC - 88 8/29/15
REG - 82 11/14/15
AUD - 83 1/8/16
FAR - 80 2/29/16

[wombataholic]

1. The best review course for you should depend on your learning style, not so much on whether or not there's an expiration date. In fact, if you're willing to put in the study time, the expiration date shouldn't even be a factor.

2. I think you should knock out FAR/AUD this year. FAR is the most difficult and there's a lot of overlapping material with AUD.

AUD - 91
BEC - 85
FAR - 91
REG - 92

CPA, CFE
Passed all 4 CPA exam sections with Ninja Notes/MCQ/Audio

Licensed CPA
Passed each section on the first try with Ninja Notes/MCQ/Audio

[leglock]

I too agree FAR and AUD should go together. Personally, I would take FAR and then AUD. In my case, I had an AUD simulation that required FAR knowledge that I had forgotten. It would have been an easy question had I recently studied FAR material, but no such luck for me.

[Sang]

I decided to go with Roger CPA Review because I read that their videos were good, and the Ninja CPA Review because I read that their Multiple Choice Questions, Notes, and Audio were good.

FAR: I read that FAR is the hardest with the most amount of information, so one route is to take the hardest test first.

AUD: I read that some of the information in FAR is also in AUD, so one recommendation is to take AUD after FAR.

REG: I read that REG is the second hardest.

BEC: I read that BEC is hard, but is the easiest of the 4 tests. So one recommendation is to either take it first or take it last.

There are 4 testing windows: Jan. & Feb., Apr. & May, July & Aug., and Oct. & Nov.

I read that people usually take a test at the beginning of the first month of the window, and at the end of the second month of the window.

My first test is scheduled for May 24th.
I plan to take my other tests sometime around July 1st, Aug. 30th, Oct. 1st, and Nov. 30th.

I hope this information helped. Good luck!

FAR: (5/24/16) | (7/16/16)

AUD: (9/07/16)

BEC: TBA

REG: TBA

FAR: (05/24/16) | (07/15/16) | (10/22/16)
AUD: (09/07/16) | (11/29/16) |
BEC: TBD
REG: TBD
Using Roger CPA Review + Ninja (MCQs, Notes, Audio)

[Anonymous]

FAR then AUD is good advice, so if you want to do REG and FAR first, I'd do REG before FAR. Other than doing FAR followed by AUD, order doesn't really matter that much, and depends on preferences (do you want to start with what's easy for you or what's hard for you? And what is easy or hard for you?). I started with what was easy for me (BEC – I had more Business courses than Accounting courses and had a few IT courses, too, so BEC was easy for me – especially since cost and managerial accounting were my favorite accounting courses) so that I could have a better chance of getting a pass to boost confidence, then did the FAR/AUD combo, then finished with REG. But some people prefer to start with the one that would be hardest for them so that if they struggle to pass it, their 18-month pass timer won't start till after the hardest one is passed. That's just a preference thing. If you pass them all within 18 months, then it doesn't matter which one you start with.

As for materials, find samples of many materials and see which ones you learn best from. I used Wiley (not the lectures, just the books and test bank) and loved it, cause it suited my learning style. However, I am someone who learns better from reading than listening, and Wiley has very comprehensive books. So, while it was great for me, I know that's because it suited me, not cause it's the single superior set of materials. In a like manner, some people like Roger because his style of teaching suits their style of learning, or like Yeager or Gleim or Becker or Ninja because their instructors' style of teaching matches the student's style of learning. The key is to find the one that you learn best from. So, find samples, and see which samples you walked away from going “Oh, I understand that concept now”. Personally, I watched sample lectures to supplement sometimes when I was stuck on a topic, and Roger's were the best to me, but again, that's based on my study style. Any of the big-name study materials can be enough for you to pass as long as you put in the work and their style “meshes” with yours. If you don't put in the work or their style really doesn't work, then any of them can lead you to a fail, too.

So, while you can find people who are a fan of any individual course, pick the one that's best for you, cause that's what will get you a pass.

[rminrx8]

Here are my thoughts/opinions,

currently I have passed 3 exams and just took the last section yesterday so I am just waiting for the score release (crossing my fingers)

I've had BECKER so I have used them to watch the lectures and study the SIMS. My study plan has been as follow, watched all the chapter videos in BECKER and took notes first. Then I purchased NINJA MCQ (amazing product) and i worked on as many MCQs as possible. If i would get an answer wrong I would make notes and write down important concepts, also I would review the explanation if i got the question correct. If you purchase NINJA MCQ it also has SIMS included and the product expires within 3 months i believe. Read the NINJA concept framework which is included in the demo that NINJA provides as an example of its products.

The reason why i like NINJA MCQ is because you work on random questions from all the chapters ! which is what the exam basically does & then it gives you a breakdown of your weak areas. As oppose to doing questions after the chapter is over on Becker, by the time you get to chapter 7 or 8 you would have forgotten the questions you did in chapter 1

[Author]

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