[palmtop_taiga]

Anyone have any stories/experiences? Busy season anecdotes?

I will be starting as an Audit Associate in their Roseland, NJ office. The only reason they have this office is their acquisition of Rothstein Kaas, but does anyone have experience in the Short Hills office? Or maybe in the tri-state area?

My plan is to try to tackle each part of the CPA exam this summer from July up to November 2015, but I would appreciate any advice on how KPMG is about entry levels failing certain parts, or allowing study time to those who are almost finished. Anyone have any experiences?

Thanks in advance!

AUD 74, 82 (11/29/15)
FAR 68, 79 (11/9/15)
REG 75 (6/21/16)
BEC 75 (1/18/16)

[Anonymous]

Congratulations. My wife is a Manager there in the tri-state area. Her time is generally split between Montvale and NYC.

You should be able to knock out 2-4 sections of the exam by November 2015. They won't mind that yo fail parts. The problems may arise if you aren't making too much progress after a few years.

Don't expect any office time to study. Once you have a job, you're study time is when you aren't working or sleeping. It sucks, but it's not impossible (most people pass the exams while working).

[palmtop_taiga]

Thanks for your post, and for being so active on here.

I do plan to have all four taken by then, whether or not I pass. My worry is that I won't be able to put enough time into studying when busy season comes around. I've heard that entry levels usually work pretty heavy hours and though I'll certainly try, I feel testing could get very messy during that time. When I was invited for an office visit, everyone I talked to emphasized that they support those who make it a goal to pass the CPA soon after starting, and that they will even allow people to take days off to study without a problem. Do you know of anyone who's experienced this?

AUD 74, 82 (11/29/15)
FAR 68, 79 (11/9/15)
REG 75 (6/21/16)
BEC 75 (1/18/16)

[GuitarSalad]

I'm starting with KPMG this fall in Arizona. Not really sure what to expect, but I managed to get all of my licensing out of the way in the couple years I've been working in corporate accounting since finishing my master's degree. Curious if anyone has experience with working out of the Tempe office out here.

BEC 7/12/13 - 84
AUD 8/31/13 - 86
REG 4/11/14 - 84
FAR 5/30/14 - 88

Licensed AZ CPA - 10/2014

[Anonymous]

No problem.

Busy season will most likely run you approx 60 to 65 hrs a week. The horror stories you hear about are exceptions, not the norm. Testing will get messy during busy season. You pretty much have to accept that you'll have a few months to a year of your life that sucks pretty bad (but it's not unbearable- it's a comparative level of suckiness).

I don't know of anyone that had that kind of flexibility. I do know that there is a wide degree of discretion that is used from partner to partner, so I wouldn't go in expecting anything.

If you implement an effective study program you should have no problem passing, even during busy season. If you absolutely must take something during busy season, try to make it AUD or BEC.

You should prioritize passing REG and FAR before you start. Properly preparing for either of those exams should take you longer than BOTH BEC and AUD.

[palmtop_taiga]

I actually have an excel spreadsheet I use to try and plan study time, test days, etc. and I've tried incorporating previous years' score release dates in as well, but all I have to go off of were scores from last year. At any rate, I've been playing around with the spreadsheet for the past week or so.

I'd love to post it on here and get some feedback, but a) I don't think I can do that and b) I don't want to be that girl.

Thanks for the advice, I'm just hoping that I'll pass the first time around for each of these exams and will do everything in my power to make that happen.

AUD 74, 82 (11/29/15)
FAR 68, 79 (11/9/15)
REG 75 (6/21/16)
BEC 75 (1/18/16)

[Anonymous]

In general, I'd plan on:

FAR- 125-200 hrs.

REG- 80-160 hrs.

BEC- 30-80 hrs

AUD- 30-80 hrs.

You'll most likely be towards the lower side (maybe even less) if you really focus or “get it” and towards the higher side on any sections where you putz around or need to retake.

Also, I really dont recommend taking more than eight weeks to study for FAR, six for REG; or four for BEC/AUD. Any more and you run the risk of forgetting things.

[Anonymous]

– study on your own time. minimal work time will be granted to your for studying

– brace for unnecessary hours worked due to people literally sitting at their desk til 8pm or later (after being done w stuff since 6pm) in order to not look like a slacker

– brace for people with an inflated sense of importance, believing the work they are doing is life or death

those are my big 4 tips.

[palmtop_taiga]

I have more hours planned of study time for each section than you recommended, so with motivation and dedication, I might make it through. Fingers crossed. You are so helpful, thank you.

Also, I like to think they would allow me to take days to actually sit for the exam (not study). Is this a bad assumption to make?

AUD 74, 82 (11/29/15)
FAR 68, 79 (11/9/15)
REG 75 (6/21/16)
BEC 75 (1/18/16)

[palmtop_taiga]

@CPAlcoholic Good advice, and I will do my best.

AUD 74, 82 (11/29/15)
FAR 68, 79 (11/9/15)
REG 75 (6/21/16)
BEC 75 (1/18/16)

[Anonymous]

palmtop-

Again, this is probably partner specific, but you shouldn't have any problems taking off to actually take the exam.

[thelawnwranglers]

If you get a Newark NJ client warn me lol

I worked in Advisory from NYC but went to the old Short Hills a lot.

My general advice is when you have a problem and you need to go to your senior have an idea of what you think the solution would be or that you atleast thought of potential solution vs just seeing what they tell you to do.

[Author]

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