Taking Q1 off?

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  • #190966
    OlintoJr
    Participant

    I recently passed my first section (far) and will be taking aud next. I have a very busy work schedule and won’t be able to get back to studying until early January.. Which is when busy season begins. Has anyone ever taking a testing window off after passing there first exam? I am nervous about losing precious time yet at the same time i don’t know if I’ll be prepared to take an exam this window.

    I feel like 18 months is a long time and I feel confident I can pass all sections relatively easily if I study enough. I would appreciate others sharing their insights as to how they feel about the 18 months/ if anyone has taken a window off and regretted it.

    Thanks

    FAR - 11/30/14 -79
    AUD - 2/19/15 -86
    BEC - 4/09/15 -86
    REG - 11/30/15 -87

    I'M DONE! ITS OVER! WOOOOOOO!!!!!!!

Viewing 14 replies - 1 through 14 (of 14 total)
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  • #635908
    juuustin
    Member

    I am in a similar situation as you because I also just passed FAR in Q4. I am taking REG at the end of January and I will hopefully bang out BEC before Q1 ends. My rationale is pretty simple; losing time is more important that the $200 sitting fee to me. If that is the case for you as well, I'd say go ahead and schedule it the last day of Q1 and give it a shot. Best case scenario is you knock it out of the ballpark, and the worst case is you are out $200, but you get a look at the exam.

    Also, based on the fact that you won't have very much study time, why take AUD? If you truly can't study until January, go for BEC and give yourself a better shot in the condensed time frame.

    MD Candidate: 10/1/14

    FAR - 87 (11/23/14)
    REG - 87 (1/30/15)
    BEC - 89 (4/19/15)
    AUD - 98 (5/30/15)

    Ethics - 100

    Experience - In Progress!

    #635909
    OlintoJr
    Participant

    Very solid point.. The $200 was one of my main concerns… But I would definitely rather be out the money than have to retake FAR.

    As for aud vs. BEC..I heard audit was one of the easier exams as well which is why I was thinking of taking that.. However I guess I should rethink that decision as well.

    FAR - 11/30/14 -79
    AUD - 2/19/15 -86
    BEC - 4/09/15 -86
    REG - 11/30/15 -87

    I'M DONE! ITS OVER! WOOOOOOO!!!!!!!

    #635910
    mla1169
    Participant

    18 months sounds like a long time until you realize you can only take each section once per testing window. If you have to retake a section you're talking a 3 month wait. I've seen people here take a quarter off and were just fine and I've seen people go straight through and exceed the 18 month window.

    Here's my advice-if you find yourself taking the time off but spend part of every day questioning your decision make the time to study. If you can truly let it go then do that but remember if you think you “can't” study during Q1, you really only have 3 windows (Q2, Q3 and Q4) before it's Q1 again. So basically you're shaving 6 months off your 18 month window by skipping Q1's.

    FAR- 77
    AUD -49, 71, 84
    REG -56,75!
    BEC -75

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    #635911
    Tncincy
    Participant

    I agree with Mia and I have not passed a section yet. I paid for Far and Reg. I had taken them before and failed, but planned to take them on again and let other things become a priority besides studying. Time went by so fast. I had plenty of time to reschedule after reschedule until an entire year has passed and I did not take one test in 2014 :-(. I set myself back waiting and rescheduling, but not again. So I agree if you spend time questioning your decision then you should go on and study. You might not be able to do 8 hours a day, but something is better than nothing. Plus I am sure you got good materials to study with. Do what you have to do, but I've learned the hard way that time goes by fast so no regrets.

    It begins with a 75
    Been here too long as a cheerleader.....time to pass

    It begins with a 75
    Been here too long as a cheerleader....ready to pass

    #635912

    There is some overlap between FAR and AUD, then there is some overlap between AUD and REG. You could absolutely pull out AUD in Q1, just give it your best effort. If you have a long commute like I do, the Ninja Audio is great for turning that into study time.

    A 88, B 76, F 84, R 76 Passed 2014

    Licensed in OK

    #635913
    marti1nd
    Member

    I took Q3 off this summer but still thought about the exam the whole time. I would stick to 1 per quarter.

    BEC: 10/2013 71
    AUD: 12/2013 75
    BEC: 02/2014 89
    REG: 05/2014 86
    FAR: 11/2014 81

    #635914
    OlintoJr
    Participant

    Thanks everyone! I am glad i made this post because I was pretty set on skipping Q1, but you have been able to change my mind. I will schedule aud for the end of February.

    FAR - 11/30/14 -79
    AUD - 2/19/15 -86
    BEC - 4/09/15 -86
    REG - 11/30/15 -87

    I'M DONE! ITS OVER! WOOOOOOO!!!!!!!

    #635915
    zoctoman
    Member

    I took a testing window off. I passed audit in Nov. 2013 and then worked a busy tax season after deciding to relax instead of study for a january part before a new job. I then resumed studying after tax season and passed parts in May, July and November

    Audit(11/5/13) - 89
    Reg(5/16/14) - 86
    FAR(7/18/14) - 82
    BEC(11/14) - 85

    #635916
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Take AUD. It's not very much material.

    #635917
    Mamabear
    Member

    The 18 months goes by quickly if you have a busy schedule. Here is what I wound up doing, which included taking off Q1 this year after passing 2 exams. I did the whole thing in 18 months so it is doable. Just be realistic with your time and abilities:

    Aug 2013: Passed BEC and Failed AUD

    November 2013: Passed AUD

    April 2014: Passed FAR

    July 2014: Failed REG

    November 2014: Passed REG.

    The fact that you knocked out one of the big guys first is a good sign for your 18 months because FAR takes longer to study for than AUD or BEC (for most people). If you really can't get in the study time, but will be able to study a lot after busy season than I say hold off, knock out your work work for a few months, then come back to defeat the rest of the exam in the latter part of 2015. Only you know how much study time you'll be able to get in after busy season is over to know whether or not it is worth missing a window of sitting.

    CPA Exam - Finally DONE (November 2014)
    BEC (08/10/13) 80
    AUD (08/24/13) 65 (11/13/13) 85
    FAR (04/12/14) 81
    REG (07/19/14) 69 (11/29/14) 87!!

    #635918
    jstay
    Participant

    // im in the same situation. I have FAR and BEC done. I want to take AUD in early january and REG late February but I feel like no matter how hard i study, this exam isnt happening. I have until February 2016 to pass the next two parts. 5 tries at each of them, hopefully i can do it!

    #635919
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Audit over BEC in my opinion.

    BEC might have the highest passing rate but don't let that confuse you. The material requires a lot more time to study than Audit does. Audit is very conceptual. Once you understand the concept, there are only so many ways they can test you on it and you're good. BEC is a lot more broad and it requires a lot more time to be comfortable with the material.

    I started BEC a couple of weeks ago. At first I was severely depressed because everything pointed to BEC being the “easy” test. I finally got over myself and stopped whining about it (well almost) and am now treating it as a full subject that requires a lot of time and effort. It's not FAR levels of dedication but I've already spent nearly as much time on BEC as I did for all of Audit and I'm only halfway through Becker's material.

    #635920
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    I finally passed REG in Q3 and then followed it by passing BEC in Q4. I have scheduled AUD for Q1, on Feb 10. It is basically insane here NOW with a major software conversion and end of the year planning. But I feel the momentum of the exams and want to get another one knocked out before tax season fully hits. It takes me a good 4-5 weeks to thaw out after April 15, so I won't take (hopefully) my last test until late July. You just have to do it.

    #635921
    MobyDick
    Member

    Olinto Jr., did you ask your dad for his advice?

    FAR--(5/27/14) 90
    REG--(8/11/14) 90
    AUD--(10/1/14) 88
    BEC--(11/24/14) 89 Done!!
    Virginia CPA License (12/24/14)

    100% Becker CPA Self-Study

    CISA (2010) CISSP (2012)

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