[Anonymous]

Hey everyone, I wanted to get your thoughts on studying for the CPA. I submitted this post elsewhere and someone suggested I come here to get some really useful answers. I never expected there to be so many variables to consider when preparing to study.

I’ll be using Becker, but haven’t decided if I want to do the Fast Pass or the Online classes. I will be eligible to sit for the exam at the end of this semester.

Initially i was thinking of doing the Fast Pass. I would go ahead and get all my materials and basically do a self study, with the intention of the actual course being more of a review. I know the professor will be great, he’s someone who teaches in my Masters program. However, everyone says to start with FAR, but this section is the last of the four during that course. If I did take this route, passing all 4 sections the first time would have it finished by the end of June.

More and more I am considering the online course instead. I could get the materials and start with FAR with the intention of taking that during Spring Break. This gets a bit tricky as the break starts basically the last day of Feb and March is a blackout month). I’m taking a law class that is meant to help you with the REG portion of the exam, which I could take right after graduation. That’d leave me AUD as the tricky one and BEC, which I should be able to get done by the end of June as well.

Hopefully that explains the situation, basically here is what I’m wondering:

Do I have enough time to study for FAR with the intention of taking it Feb 28? Would it be better to wait until the beginning of April? And then would that be enough time (if taken in April) for REG after graduation (mid-May)?

Usually how much time does it take to be eligible to sign up for the classes? And do the timeslots fill up pretty quickly? If I understand it correctly, you send in the paperwork, get approval, and then you can sign up for what you want, when you want, etc. and its a pretty fast process.

How strongly should I consider the Fast Pass course? The order goes AUD, BEC, REG, FAR all in a 5-6 week period. The professor will be good, but I don’t know how necessary having a good teacher is for this. Having FAR last is a bit scary.

EDIT: Forgot June is a blackout month as well. Seems odd since 3 of the Fast Pass portions are during June.

[Anonymous]

From someone who did Becker self study and supplemented with Ninja MCQ for BEC and now FAR (FAR being my last test), TAKE FAR FIRST when you're fresh and fully motivated. Just do it.

[Anonymous]

Agreed, take FAR first. I would be absolutely drained if I still had FAR to take. Glad I got it out of the way early.

[MommyBear]

3rd one for — take FAR first. I did BEC, AUD, FAR, and REG. HUGE Mistake. The confidence builder wasn't worth saving these monsters for last when my motivation is sorely lacking.

[Anonymous]

Do you think the best order is FAR, REG, AUD, BEC?

The only gamble is schoolwork when I take FAR but I'm sure my professors will work with me and around that schedule a little bit. I've heard you need like 200 hours for FAR. If I begin studying around mid-December, do you think that's enough time to take it in the beginning of April?

[Anonymous]

Yes, Andrude

[MommyBear]

I would probably do FAR-AUD-REG-BEC if I had it to do over again. There is quite a bit of overlap between FAR and AUD so it may reduce some of your study time for AUD than if you threw REG in between them. 200 hours is a good estimate for FAR

[Author]

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