Kelli is a weekly Club 75 Blogger as she documents her journey through the CPA Exam. She has been a member of Another71.com's Club 75 since April 2011.

Hello fellow CPA studying friends. I must admit my last 2 posts were quite dismal. I was a wreck waiting for Audit and BEC scores, and I knew in my heart of hearts that I did not do well on Audit due to the simulations completely throwing me off.

With this new format, you can ace the multiple choice, but if you screw up the simulations at the same time, there is no way you can pass. So when I did get my failing audit score of 65, I had a near nervous breakdown. I did not get my BEC score first, which left me thinking that I was in the failing group which is why it did not come out first.

That extra week of waiting for that score sent me into a downward spiral, knowing that I might now have 2 exams to study for in this 3rd quarter window. After almost 48 hours of misery, I regrouped and determined that even if I did not pass BEC it would all be ok, and I would motor on and study for both.

Happily, leaving for vacation last Monday, I just happened to check for my score, not even knowing that they had been released just a half hour earlier, and saw that I got a 75 on BEC! Again I cried, but this time for relief and joy knowing that I could relax on vacation and then pick up with studying for audit when we got back this week.

Yes, I feel pressure again to study, but nothing like I was feeling before I got that score. With my clock ticking down to October 31, I have a renewed hope that I will make it before losing REG.

The good news about the Audit score is that it was 8 points higher than when I took it in February of this year, which in the end, made me really happy. My evaluation sheet actually showed that in each topic I performed stronger than all candidates in every area of the content, except that in the simulations I was weaker, which I knew.

And I feel like this really does not help me very much for studying. I have dumped Becker as my software of choice for this topic because after 4 times I am still not passing. Yaeger is my new self-study course, along with Ninja notes, and I am really hoping that they cover more in the area of application of the content than Becker did.

I passed FAR with Yaeger and I am praying that they come through again for me. I have scheduled my exam for August 22. That gives me 7 weeks, which is more than enough time. Actually, any longer, and I will be forgetting all the early material.

Today I started with Module 1, and tomorrow I will work the multiple choice questions and simulations for that Module. I have tried both methods, of doing MCQ’s as I go along, and/or waiting to do them all in the end.

For me, it does not make a difference which method I use for the MCQs. Either way, I never have a problem with the content and score well whether I wait until the end or do them upfront. My issue is the simulations, and that is going to be my focus this time around since it is always my weak area on the exam.

This is also that area that has gotten the least of my attention each time I study, so my goal is to really work on the simulations until I understand them. I know, it seems so elementary, but believe me, we lose sight of the obvious while studying for this exam.

I am also making sure to include exercise back in my routine since I did not do that while studying for Audit last time, and I did for BEC. Actually every time I have passed I have been exercising, so I am going on the assumption that this works for me and must be part of my schedule. Keeps my head clear.

Motivation is not easy the 5th time around, but I am getting there. Day one of studying up next.

Until next time,
Kelli