[Carolina]

This sounds terrible, but I am only one module into Becker’s FAR review and I already feel like giving up. I have really struggled with the accruals/adjusting journal entries module from F1 because most of the MCQ are not addressed in the lecture. There is just so much I feel like I don’t know, I spent most of tonight just zoned out and trying not to think about how much I suck. How do you all deal with this inevitable feeling of discouragement and overwhelming sense of failure? I don’t really WANT to give up… but my motivation to keep trying drops further and further with every wrong answer. Any advice at all is highly appreciated.

Nothing to report here.

[a_baker7]

OMG. I got 20%s on most of my FAR MCQs when I first started. I was doing worse trying then just randomly picking. AUD and BEC I was averaging 60%s from the 1st MCQ. REG I started in the 30%s. Ugh, I was so mad and discouraged. But, you didn’t tie your shoe perfectly the first time I tell myself. It takes practice. It takes time. Then I’d get another 20%. I literally wished for scores in the 30%s. It gets better. It takes time.

B: 80 (May 2018)

A: 77 (Sep 2018)

R: 70 (Dec 2018), 81 (Jun 2019)

F: 67 (Sep 2019), 83 (Nov 2019)

[Ralphie Dos Nachos]

I specifically remember that module. Don't get too caught up on it. Adjusting entries is definitely more common in AUD. I do remember some adjusting entry sims from Becker for FAR. Definitely do those at least.

FAR - 76

AUD - 89

BEC - 84

REG - 86

[TheeAccountant]

Has it been a while since you had Principles or Intermediate accounting? Maybe watch some youtube videos to refresh all those debits and credits.

AUD - 85
BEC - 92
FAR - 84
REG - 88

I've found an anomaly in the Space-Time Continuum. NASBA and the AICPA are in the 19th century. They use slide rules to score the exam, and then they send the scores by Pony Express to the State Boards. That's why it takes so long for them to do a score release.

[bigstakk]

It sounds like you need more accounting classes. What was your major?

AUD - 81
BEC - 87
FAR - 80
REG - 82

______________

Ethics Exam - 90%
Licensed CPA in CA

[Carolina]

I know how to do debits/credits, but half the time I don't know about the little nuances that are addressed in different modules. I have a Master of Accounting from USC and aced most of my classes. I was a non-accounting major undergrad, as was a third of my cohort.

Nothing to report here.

[TheeAccountant]

You said you're having problems with accruals and AJEs, what specifically are you struggling with about these two things? Do you have any work experience? I did an internship and I think that helped a lot get me through FAR because a lot of my internship was putting TBs into AdvanceFlow and learning to have that flow into the F/S.

AUD - 85
BEC - 92
FAR - 84
REG - 88

I've found an anomaly in the Space-Time Continuum. NASBA and the AICPA are in the 19th century. They use slide rules to score the exam, and then they send the scores by Pony Express to the State Boards. That's why it takes so long for them to do a score release.

[Carolina]

Yes, I have work experience. it's not the AJE that I have a problem with. it is figuring out what the y are asking me for. For instance, one question states: UVW Broadcast Co. entered into a contract to exchange unsold advertising time for travel and lodging services with Hotel Co. As of June 30, advertising commercials of $10,000 were used. However, travel and lodging services were not provided. How should UVW account for advertising in its June 30 financial statements?
a. Not reported
b. Both the revenue and expense of $10,000 are recognized
c. Revenue and expense is recognized when the agreement is complete
d. An asset and revenue for $10,000 is recognized.

I couldn't figure out if the company *actually* incurred these travel and lodging expenses (even if they were not provided by the Hotel Co), so was wavering b/t answers b and d. I guessed correctly on d. But nowhere in the lecture (and this is module F1, mind you) does it discuss any exchanges such as these.

Nothing to report here.

[Carolina]

Here is the example I referred to before:
On December 31, special insurance costs, incurred but unpaid, were not recorded. If these insurance cost were related to work-in-process, what is the effect of the omission on accrued liabilities and retained earnings in the Dec 31 balance sheet?

Accrued Liabilities Retained Earnings

a. No effect No effect
b. Understated No effect
c. Understated Understated
d. No effect Overstated

I put c, which was wrong. Apparently b is the correct answer b/c “the unrecorded liability affects work-in-process inventory (rather than cost of sales/retained earnings).” It also says inventory is understated as a result. Never discussed in the lecture. Maybe it's addressed in a future lecture re: inventory. But the answer provided is incomplete. I've never even heard of special insurance costs affecting work-in-process inventory… but I assume that since they are affecting how an asset is getting ready to be used/sold, those costs are capitalized rather than expensed?

Nothing to report here.

[TheeAccountant]

I think I see your problem. These are all “rules” within GAAP. If you don't work in a manufacturing facility and haven't become a complete nerd by reading the FASB Codification you wouldn't know that certain costs that are incurred in the production of inventory are capitalized. Same thing with the exchange. For the SIMs you will have access to the Authoritative Literature, but not for the MCQs. Maybe someone has a better recommendation but I would suggest looking into the FASB stuff on Revenue Recognition and Expense/COGS Recognition. Revenue Recognition is a BIG part of FAR. There are articles in, for example, the Journal of Accountancy on these issues, just make sure you've got a recent article because the rules have changed in the last few years. Personally, I read a bunch of the Codification on Revenue. Yeah, I'm a complete nerd LOL.

AUD - 85
BEC - 92
FAR - 84
REG - 88

I've found an anomaly in the Space-Time Continuum. NASBA and the AICPA are in the 19th century. They use slide rules to score the exam, and then they send the scores by Pony Express to the State Boards. That's why it takes so long for them to do a score release.

[Carolina]

Do you think I am better off re-taking intermediate accounting or just slogging through with a CPA review course? And if the latter, do you have a particular recommendation for courses for FAR that are more comprehensive? Thank you for all your advice!

I have read the ASC before… we had a class that was all case-based. There would be an accounting issue and we would have to formally write up the proper accounting treatments with specific codes to back up our choices. The ASC is written like legal jargon and purposefully vague. We all used the firms' white papers to decipher what was actually the right and wrong treatments for certain situations.

Nothing to report here.

[ahugemistake]

Ok so the two questions you just posted up there are definitely on the “hard” side of the CPA exam. The actual questions on the exams are not that much in the weeds. Also you mentioned that these concepts weren't discussed in the book? Probably because they are both such specific topics that it has a low chance of actually being on the exam.

I struggled with FAR when I first started studying, there's a lot of information. It does get better though, as you keep going. So don't beat yourself up over these questions because doing the MCQs is part of the learning process. Read the explanation, take notes and move on. You can also google the concepts you are stuck on because you will find plenty of resources that will break it down for you.

Push through F1 take notes, and then review your notes, and then do a set of 30 random multiple choice and see how you do. If you get a score in the 60s, move on to F2. If it's lower than that then narrow down your problem areas and focus there.

Lastly, if you are actually a little burned out from studying, push back your exam and take it easy. If you haven't tried the Ninja notes yet, I would look at those as well. Also the SuperCPA notes. They also break down the concepts pretty well.

FAR: 78*, 75
REG: 76*, 85
BEC: 79*, 76
AUD: 79*, 93

All scores expired, let's try this again.

FAR - 78*
AUD - 66, 79
REG - 73, 76
BEC - 79

[MomOnTheMove]

Like the previous commenter, the question is definitely on the hard side and probably won’t be on the exam. That been said, how do you like Becker? It definitely wasn’t my favorite and found Roger to be so much greater. If you feel you already paid for the course and don’t want to spend any more on additional courses, there are other resources out there that may help. For example the Investopia short videos and the accounting tool website helped me. You may be able to find something that helps. Don’t give up, FAR is a tough section and I had to take lots of notes, watch Roger’s lecture multiple times and did lots of practice MCQs and SIMs. You will do great.

FAR 64, 78

REG 77

AUD 73, 80

BEC 67, 73, 78

[Allison]

@Ahugemistake I noticed your signature, ‘all scores expired', what did it mean? Thanks,

Good luck!

[say]

I felt the exact way you did. I graduated from College in 2006 and I got a C and B in intermediate 1 and 2. I was not that great of a student honestly. Anyway, I do have 10+ years of work experience. That is what helped me with this exam but that wasn't everything. Going through the MCQ I would be floored with some questions and go through the chapters over and over and I wouldn't see the topic covered in the book that relates to that specific caveat in the questions. It was frustrating. Stick with it, don't get discouraged. As you get through the material you'll find that some topics build on each other. I found myself going on the FASB site to research certain topics because I felt that it wasn't in the book. When that didn't work, I would go on youtube. I found professor Farhat on youtube. I mention him so many times on this forum that it may seem like I'm sponsored by him LOL but he really saved me on FAR. His lectures were understandable, precise. He works out MCQ and SIMS for you on a variety of topics covered in FAR. You have to be flexible when studying and accept that maybe the study guide you have may not be enough, but the good news is there are plenty of resources out there at your disposal to help you. For the questions you posed. Those are the “harder” questions. On the first one you posted I had that one in Wiley. Basically the gist of that question is to test your understanding of deferrals/unrecognized rev. For the second one, that one makes your brain go through some gymnastics, but it intertwines inventory accounting and accrual accounting concepts. There is a list of costs that go into inventory. Insurance is one of those costs, b/c it is associated to WIP it is not going to touch the profit loss because it is not in a form that is saleable, and as such won't touch the income statement. However, accrued liabilities are understated. You think with accrued liabilities, there is a corresponding expense associated to it, but in this case, it is inventory or WIP. That is why it is understated, and retained earnings is unaffected.

[Carolina]

@momonthemove and @ahugemistake – Thank you for all your words of advice and encouragement. I will keep pushing through! I trust you all that say it gets better/easier as you go along.

@momonthemove: my firm purchased Surgent's review package for me, but I really disliked the book. Their “adaptive” format seems like it would be helpful once you already have studied for it because it focuses more on your areas of weakness, but for someone like me that is just starting out and is weak all over, it felt really haphazard and disorganized. I switched it to “outline” mode, which is a linear format and that helped a bit, but Peter Olinto cracks me up and keeps me more engaged. I have only tried a 3-week trial of Becker (expires today), but I preferred it to Roger's free trial because it provides a clearer methodology to me. Roger's lectures kind of stressed me out, tbh, because he is SO high energy that I found it distracting. Now I am at the point where I am not sure if I should purchase Becker's full course (the in-between package for $3000), but since it is so pricey and there are no coupons, I am not sure if I should go another way. I am about to start a trial of Wiley CPAexcel, and I have considered Gleim and Yaeger as well. I am totally open to any and all suggestions.

Thanks to all who have replied to this post!! 🙂

Nothing to report here.

[Author]

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