How to Study for AUD??

  • Creator
    Topic
  • #2078333
    animalwithin
    Participant

    I’m 3 chapters in AUD and I’m struggling big time.
    I don’t see how this is easier than FAR: each chapter is nearly 60 pages of just text and it’s taking days to get through each one writing notes. I feel like it’s all just statements and facts, how do you get through this section without mass memorizing everything?
    How do people study for and pass this section in one month?

Viewing 14 replies - 1 through 14 (of 14 total)
  • Author
    Replies
  • #2078426
    Recked
    Participant

    The most important thing is to see the big picture of the audit, then the rest sort of falls into place along the way.
    If you get too wrapped up in the details on your first pass, you'll get very bogged down.
    Trying to get through the first pass quickly, so once you get to the end you'll be able to see the big picture, and then work from there.
    Big pictures and MCQs are your friend.

    Memento Mori - Kingston NY CPA & EA (SUNY Albany 2002)

    FAR-93 11/9/17 (10wks, 250 hrs, Roger 1800+ MCQs, Gleim TB 600+MCQs, SIMs)
    AUD-88 12/7/17 (3 wks, 85 hrs, Roger 1000 MCQs no SIMs hail mary)
    REG-96 1/18/18 (6 wks, 110 hrs, 1400 MCQs, no SIMs)
    BEC-91 2/16/18 (4wks, 90 hrs, 1240 MCQs)

    #2080355
    animalwithin
    Participant

    Thanks Recked, always great to hear your input.
    I'm trying to get through the chapters as fast as I can to get the big picture and understand the overall audit process, they're just so dense. I suppose I'm going into too much detail with my notes.

    #2080643
    jeff
    Keymaster

    AUD is a different beast than FAR, as AUD is subjective. Often on the exam, you will see two answers that you could make a case for being correct.

    Some people really struggle with AUD because of the fact that it's not as straight-forward and objective as REG/FAR/BEC.

    AUD - 79
    BEC - 80
    FAR - 76
    REG - 92
    Jeff Elliott, CPA (KS)
    NINJA CPA | NINJA CMA | NINJA CPE | Another71
    #2080745
    jombe
    Participant

    what Jeff said +

    I did same routine for all 4 sections –

    1) Listen to all the lectures and do few practice problems between lectures.
    2) Read the book (really read) once.
    3) Do 2,000+ MCQs per section. I used BISK problem bank & NINJA problem bank. I did all the simulations that were available to me, which averaged about 100.
    4) Now this is the time to scan the areas in the book that your lecturer told you to highlight. Also, now that you've done so many practice problems, you know what area you are weak in. Scan those areas. Take notes.
    5) About a week before the exam, I am just doing MCQs, few sims per day, scanning the notes whenever I can. Once a day. None. 10. Just depended on how much time I had available.
    6) Only thing I did in addition for AUD was memorizing audit, review, and compilation template. Word for word. This was more of a challenge I set for myself. I knew I could use the Authoritative Literature tab, but I always thought I had below average memorizing capability and when my lecturer said “I never tell a student to memorize it. But if you can, you can save few mins referring to Authoritative Literature.” I thought it was a joke, but I ended up memorizing the whole thing, lol.

    I realize all this is such an overkill, especially when all you need is 75 to pass.
    However, I always panicked right up until I sat at the chair to take the exam and never once thought I passed after I took the exam. Only way I could panic less was to study more.

    Anyways, I can only share what I've done. Good luck.

    AUD - 99
    BEC - 91
    FAR - 94
    REG - 96
    --------------------------------------------
    Done with exam. On with life.

    FAR - 94 (10/4/15), Local Prep Online Lectures, BISK & NINJA MCQ
    AUD - 99 (1/19/16), Local Prep Online Lectures, BISK & NINJA MCQ
    REG - 96 (4/19/16), Local Prep Online Lectures, BISK & NINJA MCQ
    BEC - 91 (7/19/16), Local Prep Online Lectures, BISK & NINJA MCQ

    581 days of listening to lectures, reading texts & 10,000+ MCQs...

    #2080796
    KG
    Participant

    “Only way I could panic less was to study more.”

    I love this so much. I need to make this my signature tag!

    KG
    #2080904
    animalwithin
    Participant

    You all echo what I was feeling. Many questions have answers that could be correct, it's a matter of choosing which is “most” correct I suppose. Never thought I'd be missing FAR…

    #2082113
    SuperAccountingGod
    Participant

    @Jombe how on earth….were you able to do ALL that for each section. Were you working full time during the exam?

    AUD - NINJA in training

    BEC - NINJA IN TRAINING

    FAR - 74

    REG - NINJA IN TRAINING

    #2082119
    mmmmAccounting
    Participant

    I'm guessing youre not in public accounting – audit isnt the most intuitive subject, so not having real world experience would make it harder to absorb.

    What helped me in my AUD notes was creating an if then else flow-chart. Helped me visualize the flow right from planning to concluding and reporting.Easiest to chart exceptions. e.g. “what would happen if pre-engagement independence procedures flag an error?” or “What happens when statistical sampling flags a misstatement?”

    BEC - 94

    AUD - 87

    FAR - 90

    REG - LOL

    #2083650
    jombe
    Participant

    @SuperAccountingGod – i worked full time and studied at least 3 hours every weekday for 3 months.

    AUD - 99
    BEC - 91
    FAR - 94
    REG - 96
    --------------------------------------------
    Done with exam. On with life.

    FAR - 94 (10/4/15), Local Prep Online Lectures, BISK & NINJA MCQ
    AUD - 99 (1/19/16), Local Prep Online Lectures, BISK & NINJA MCQ
    REG - 96 (4/19/16), Local Prep Online Lectures, BISK & NINJA MCQ
    BEC - 91 (7/19/16), Local Prep Online Lectures, BISK & NINJA MCQ

    581 days of listening to lectures, reading texts & 10,000+ MCQs...

    #2083656
    Biff Tannen
    Participant

    I'll be sitting for Audit on Monday, so I don't know if my study method is effective (I found out if I pass on the 19th of Dec) but here it is nonetheless:
    1. Watch videos/read lectures
    2. Do MCQ's for each lecture. Write notes on the MCQ's that I answered incorrectly. I make note of why I answered it incorrectly, and what the correct answer is.
    3. Once I complete a chapter, I do simulations for that chapter.
    4. Repeat 1-3 until all the chapters are complete.
    5. Read the Becker final review book.
    6. Take a mock exam to see where my weak areas are (this should be done 1 week before your exam).
    7. Read flashcards and take last minute quick notes on my weak areas, then do MCQ's for my weak areas only.
    8. 2-3 days before my exam, take a last mock exam to evaluate my final weak areas, and devote the last few days of studying on those weak areas only. I like using flash cards because they give you the most important information for each topic, but it does not go into details to the point of overwhelming you. This is perfect for final review stages!

    AUD - 78
    BEC - 84
    FAR - 79
    REG - 85
    “An investment in knowledge pays the best dividends” - Benjamin Franklin
    #2084139
    Dev12
    Participant

    @Rollforwardspecialist – that is similar to what I do too! My exam is on Dec 9th! Hope we ace it! Good luck. Please share how did it go for you 🙂

    AUD - 75
    BEC - 79
    FAR - 81
    REG - 84
    BARF - 4 sections of the CPA Exam!
    #2084340
    animalwithin
    Participant

    Thank you all for the answers, definitely helpful!

    My current issue with AUD isn't so much the questions, although I'm not doing all that great.

    I'm finding that in the questions I miss, the answer is some random sentence in the middle of a giant paragraph in the middle of the chapter. I'm having a hard time getting through chapters knowing what I should focus on without getting into too many details, and these chapters are huge.

    #2084343
    Recked
    Participant

    Yea, that's pretty much the CPA exam in a nutshell.
    Each question tests one line, in the middle of a paragraph, on a random page, in a 20 page chapter.
    Par for the course. Lots of MCQs helps to expose you to lots of concepts and helps to close the gaps in your knowledge.
    100% normal. Carry on. Good Luck!!

    Memento Mori - Kingston NY CPA & EA (SUNY Albany 2002)

    FAR-93 11/9/17 (10wks, 250 hrs, Roger 1800+ MCQs, Gleim TB 600+MCQs, SIMs)
    AUD-88 12/7/17 (3 wks, 85 hrs, Roger 1000 MCQs no SIMs hail mary)
    REG-96 1/18/18 (6 wks, 110 hrs, 1400 MCQs, no SIMs)
    BEC-91 2/16/18 (4wks, 90 hrs, 1240 MCQs)

    #2086572
    animalwithin
    Participant

    Hahaha good point. AUD just seems to embody that more than the other sections :p

    I shall carry on, thank you!

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