Megan is a new 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 2010.
Hi everyone! I thought this would be a great way to keep myself accountable with my study plan for the next 3 months. I'm crossing my fingers it doesn't last that long.
A little bit of background on me: I graduated in May 2008 with a BBA in Accounting from West Texas A&M University. I had my first son in June 2008, and then went back to grad school in January 2009-December 2009 to get the needed 150 hours to sit for the exam in Texas. I've been working in public accounting for over three yearsmostly working in audit, but also doing taxes during heavy tax season.
I got the process going and started studying for AUD in March 2010. I studied about 250-300 hours, took the exam in April 2010, and passed on the first try. After AUD, I started studying for REG. I studied about 300-350 hours, took it at the end of May 2010, and also passed on the first try. Then I got a little cocky.
BEC was next, I thought, “Oh, this is easy. I did well in finance class, cost accounting class, economics class, and I've passed these other twoI don't need to study as hard on these.” So I didn't. And my grade reflected that. Other things in my life were going on during my six weeks of studying (my son's two year birthday party, one of my best friends getting married, husband out of town for two weeks, etc.), and I really slacked off.
FAR was last on my list to tackle before I started back on BEC. I gave myself seven weeks to study, and things were going better than they did for BEC. About four weeks into studying though, I was laid off from my job, so the exam was put on the back burner. I went ahead and took the test, failed miserably, but was hired at another public firm. I figured getting a job was more important than the exam at the timeespecially being a one income household while my husband goes back to school for his second degree.
Also, a couple days after being laid off, I found out I was pregnant with our second child. We were very excited, but very nervous having just been laid off. The exam was still important, but getting a job was priority, so the exam had to wait. I took BEC again in October 2010, but I struggled with keeping a good studying schedule while dealing with morning (../afternoon/night) sickness, the new job, and being tired all the time. So although I did improve my score by 10 points, I did not pass on the second try.
I decided to schedule FAR for November 30, but I was still struggling with keeping up with my study plan. I once again improved my grade by 10 points, but still had not passed.
Over the Christmas break, I started thinking about how I had to really buckle down and get this done. It's hard studying while pregnant and having a very energetic two year old running around, but it will be even harder having that same two year old running around and having a newborn.
So, my deadline is April 26. I need to have FAR and BEC done by then or I don't think I will ever get it done. I've passed two of these exams before, so I know how much work goes into studying to get a passing grade. I feel like if I stick to my study plan and actually pay attention, I can get it done.
BEC is first, and I have already started my plan. My test is February 17, so I plan to do two chapters a week (of five), study about 30 hours a week, and then have two full weeks of review. FAR is next, with nine weeks to study (test April 8). I'll do two chapters a week (of nine) again, but have four weeks to review.
I'm excited to be documenting my journey through this process, and I hope to be back next time with a good report of keeping on task!
-Megan
