the slacker way to pass all the exams.

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  • #188014

    I’m done with this Exam, but I didn’t study as hard as some people. I just want to let prospective applicants know that you CAN have a life and party on the weekends and still pass this Exam.

    Let me use my Becker Completion Stats as a Proxy measure for how much studying that I did for each exam.

    FAR Score: 78

    Becker Homework Completion– 50%… Skipped F4, F9 and F10

    Reg Score: 87 Becker Homework Completion– 96% completed all chapters.

    BEC Score: 78 Becker Homework Completion — 50% Skipped chapter B6

    AUD Score: 78 Becker Homework Completion — 50% skipped chapter A6

    I studied about 10-15 hours a week for only 4 weeks for each exam. I spent most of my time completing progress tests in short 30 question bursts and I also made use of Flashcards.

    BEC, and AUD I received a Stronger rating in MCQs and a weaker rating in SIMs, which makes sense because I never practiced sims for those tests. I failed the writing portion of BEC without a Doubt. The simulation in AUD was full of subjects that I didn’t study!

    REG was the only Exam that I properly studied for because I was seriously scared by it.

    anyways good luck to everyone on the Exam. I am done with this crap.

    FAR 78
    REG 87
    BEC 78
    AUD 78
    Passed all exams on first try! Good luck to everyone!

Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 26 total)
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  • #588761
    CPA soon
    Member

    Thanks for making me feel stupid lol

    FAR - 71, 68, 74, (8/31/14) 78 ✔
    REG - 67, 71, 71, (10/18/14) 78 ✔
    BEC - (11/29/14) 86 ✔
    AUD - 73, (4/4/15) 86 ✔

    I can't believe this is over! 2 years and 3 months..

    #588763
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    This idiotic post from the OP is a perfect example of what not to write in a forum full of folks trying to pass this exam.

    #588764
    acamp
    Participant

    I did the opposite, got really good at sims by leveraging the guidance (above avg. on all exams) and did so-so on the MCQs

    Self proclaimed: Highest ratio of Replies to Others v. Posts Created on A71

    California CPA - Big4 Aud Manager Alum - Private Accounting at Startups

    FAR, REG and BEC with Ninja Notes + WTB Only

    Ninja + Wiley Test Bank: [FAR - 81] [REG - 76] [BEC - 88] [AUD - 73](doh!)

    Becker Videos: [AUD - 82]

    California CPA

    #588765
    maxwillguy
    Member

    I agree with wannabeCPA123. I have spent enough time to get through all the CPAexcel material and review a bit. For FAR that was 160 hours. For AUD, it was about 72. BEC looks like its going to be about 40.

    Stay at work and study 2-3 hours every night during the week, study 4-6 on the weekends. Do that for 1 – 2 months and you should be good to go!

    You can't just momorize the answers to the MCQ's though. You have to read, do the practice exam, etc… The MCQ's on the test aren't going to be the ones you got during study time.

    Put the time in that you need and you should be good. But I have had plenty of weekends where I didn't study at all. It happens, you just have to get back on the program after.

    FAR - Passed (2/14)
    REG - Passed (5/14)
    Audit - Passed (8/14)
    BEC - 8/31

    #588766
    hvansaders
    Member

    Well I wouldn't suggest this method for everyone, especially those just starting to study, but I think the point the OP is trying to make is that you can still have a balance in life and pass the exam. However that is different for everyone and everyone needs to find a method that works for them. Personally I study 3 hours 3 nights a week and about 6 hours on both Saturday and Sunday – averaging about 20 hours a week. I usually take off Wednesday and Friday nights and give myself time on the weekends to have some sort of fun. I'm not the type of person that can dedicate every waking hour to the exam or I get really cranky! Plus having a full time job, husband and new house keeps me busy. Again, its just about balance and finding a method that works for you!

    #588767
    M.O.D.
    Member

    For every slacker trying to hit a 78 with minimum study, there are 30-40 hitting 72 with minimum study.

    The many threads on here make that painfully clear.

    And who would listen to a slacker giving advice?

    BA Mathematics, UC Berkeley
    Certificates in CPA and EA preparation, College of San Mateo
    CMA I 420, II 470
    FAR 91, AUD Feb 2015 (Gleim self-study)

    #588768
    maxwillguy
    Member

    I guess I don't see myself as a slacker although thats the title of the thread. I just think it is possible to still have a balanced life while you do this (limited to be sure). I also don't consider myself to be doing the bare minimum. I think you have to put the time in and I have (160 hours FAR, 100 REG, 74 AUD, Guessing about 50-60 for BEC). I ‘m just saying I was abloe to put that time in during the week after work and on the weekends and still find time to have a life.

    For what its worth, I work at a very small acounting firm. I think if I was at one of the BIG 4, this would be a different story. And I wonder too if the people that fail are truly putting the time in or just going through the motions and skimming, doing a half-hearted job.

    FAR - Passed (2/14)
    REG - Passed (5/14)
    Audit - Passed (8/14)
    BEC - 8/31

    #588769

    I could never do this and feel good about walking into an exam! I think I'd have it etched in my brain that I would fail even before I walked in! When I took the CFE Exam I reviewed until I could answer 99-100% of the MCQs right! I passed and pretty sure I scored high – but they don't release actual scores if you pass. I want to know I'm in that upper 90 – 100% range so if I really bomb part of the exam or run out of time, it hopefully won't drop my score enough to fail. Anyway, Congrats on passing! That's all that matters!

    #588770
    mla1169
    Participant

    If I live to be 120 years old I'll never understand name calling on a board like this. That aside….

    anything is possible. I'm sure someone out there walked into an exam and passed it without ever cracking open a book for it. I passed FAR the first time ONLY using cpareviewforfree.com. Doesn't mean I recommend it as a strategy but it can be done.

    I'm so very glad that people who haven't passed all 4 yet are so inclined to jump over people who are done with this exam. I did so many things wrong during my prep that I guess I had no business passing all four. At the end of the day, theres no CPA Magna Cum Laude vs just a CPA so it really doesn't matter.

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

    Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

    #588771
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    I disagree with OP's assessment of himself

    40-60 hrs to me is not slacking

    that is what I put in for all of my exams so far and I don;t feel like a slacker

    #588772
    gt5717b
    Participant

    Some people are just natural test takers. When the OP calls himself a “slacker”, I think he really should've called himself “efficient.”

    It sounds like he determined what the most likely topics to be covered were and concentrated his study time on understanding them at the expense of studying some of the more esoteric topics which take a lot of time but have much smaller chances of appearing on exams. Should everyone use this method? No. Some people just have an innate sense of going over material and surmising what will be tested. It's a gamble, for sure, but a calculated one that seems to have paid off for the OP.

    For most candidates, it is a better strategy to “leave no stone unturned” and study everything. It takes more time, but you vastly reduce your risk of being underprepared.

    I will say that study courses like Yaeger (which I took) do make a point of whittling down the material to stuff they think you should know. They omit certain sections of Wiley or just skim over sections they feel aren't worth loads of your time. The OP just took this to a further degree.

    REG - 89
    FAR - 84
    AUD - 73, 86
    BEC - 89

    GA Licensed CPA

    #588773
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Well, this definitely makes me feel stupid LOL. I envy people like you who could pass without putting close to the time I put in. Congrats, hopefully I will soon get my exams finished as well.

    #588774
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    I'm too risk averse for a strategy like that. I like a sure thing. Nicely done, just not for me!

    #588775
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    I agree with you gt5717b. I am one of those “efficient” test takers. For all sections, I barely studied the last chapter. For AUD, I seriously procrastinated. I only had 3 weeks to study and I still only study for a few hours a day and sometimes skip days. For REG, I glanced over Business Law. During my studying, I still watch TV and played video games.

    However, I do agree with others that it depends on your learning style and skill and your situation. Someone who is working and has a family may not be able to do what I did. Do what makes you comfortable. If that means studying everything in the book and doing all of the MCQs and simulations, then do so. Because you are the one who will be stuck with your score not the one criticizing or providing “advice.”

    #588776

    My average study time has been 140 hours for three sections. Some people start these exams with more knowledge. Some people can focus better than others. Some people are right out of college and others have been away from school and accounting for several years or more.

    I agree with M.O.D. that the majority of people who fail the CPA exam are the people trying to get away with studying the bare minimum. BEC will be the first exam that I “slacked” on and I will probably get in 100 study hours. Having this mentality is what has allowed me to pass 3/3 exams with out retakes. I will say these exams are not hard after you study 120 plus hours for them.

    Passed all 4 exams in 2014!

Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 26 total)
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