Forum Replies Created

Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 192 total)
  • Author
    Replies
  • jombe
    Participant

    FAR was my first section and I sure didn't know what the hell I was doing at the time and I ended up taking 7 months of studying for it.
    I still didn't feel ready, but at that point, I wanted to take the exam even if I failed just so that I knew what the hell I was getting into.

    Fortunately I ended up passing on my first attempt and realized 7 months was way too long of preparation.
    I ended up spending ~3months per section after FAR. I generally studied 3-4 hours per day every day except for weekends. 2-3 weeks prior to the exam, I upped my studying hrs to 6-8 hrs a day, still took most weekends off thinking I could use some time way from studying to keep my sanity. Ended up working out perfectly for me.

    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...

    in reply to: To study or to play video games? #2975771
    jombe
    Participant

    I don't know. Even when I was studying, I didn't give up on gaming, movies, TV, etc. I obviously adjusted the hours I spent in those areas, but you need to do something to keep you sanity. As long as I put in 3-4 hrs of studying at any given day, I did whatever I wanted w/ my spare time. And, yes, I was working full time as well.

    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...

    in reply to: Prometric announced that they are closing.. #2963921
    jombe
    Participant

    .

    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...

    in reply to: I need motivation. #2955689
    jombe
    Participant

    Just study. People fail, because they start putting other things before studying. Not saying you can't put your family/friends/fun before studying. Just make sure you make up the time you didn't study because you had to do other things.

    Before all this though, you should really stop and think about what value you are expecting to get out of a CPA license and whether that means much to you. Only you know whether this journey would be worth it. If you TRULY decide that getting a CPA license is important to you, you will be able to push through any obstacles and succeed. If not, no worries. There are more successful non-CPAs out there than successful CPAs. It's certainly not the end of the world, if you decide to give up on getting your CPA license.

    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...

    jombe
    Participant

    Anything on Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints is fair game. I had the same experience as Pork Flavored Bacon.

    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...

    in reply to: Coronavirus Prometric Closings #2954303
    jombe
    Participant

    I have family living out in South Korea, so I've been keeping up w/ what's going down over there. From what I've heard and read so far, I wouldn't be surprised if businesses in general started shutting down temporarily due to Coronavirus, so don't be surprised if prometric testing centers start doing the same thing. It'll just really depend on whether they find someone who's been diagnosed w/ coronavirus and whether the have been to the specific testing center you'll be going to and there's no way to know at this point. They could also start closing down as preventative measure, but that's probably going to be unlikely.

    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...

    jombe
    Participant

    Journey to getting your CPA will be a miserable one if you can't find the motivation within you. Speaking from experience, I tried studying for CPA w/ no motivation whatsoever straight out of college and gave up after a month or so. Tried other gigs for ~5 years and then learned that unless I had a skill set that was readily identifiable, like through a certificate, I wouldn't get far (not saying it's impossible, but it's harder). Few weeks after that epiphany moment, I decided to make use of the accounting degree I had and picked up some prep materials and signed up for online lectures. Did I hate every minute of studying? Sure! Every time I wanted to quit, however, I found that self-motivation that kept me going.

    Encouragements from others can only take you so far. Really think about why you want a CPA license and what value it could potentially bring to your life. If you can't convince yourself it's going to be worthwhile, then don't pursue it. There are plenty of successful non-CPAs in the world.

    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...

    in reply to: Help with audit #2951639
    jombe
    Participant

    AUD is where knowing exactly why you got a question wrong becomes extremely important. As you are doing MCQs, unless you know exactly why the correct answer you chose was correct, please make sure you read through the explanation to gain complete understanding of why the answer was correct and why the other choices weren't.

    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...

    in reply to: How do your soft skills stack up? #2951510
    jombe
    Participant

    I like working w/ smarter folks in general. If I had to choose between a smart, but not personable professional and a personable, but not smart professional, I would choose the former every time.

    W/ that said, I expect professionals to behave like professionals. If you start throwing tantrums for whatever reason, that has nothing to do w/ your soft skills. You are just not a professional. We can all accomplish what we need to accomplish w/o the screaming/crying/throwing things and again, I don't believe that “good” soft skills is what stops people from doing such things. That's just the minimum I look for in a professional.

    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...

    in reply to: Getting My CPA Has Not Paid Off So Far #2943579
    jombe
    Participant

    Let me share my salary history, so people don't get discouraged. I didn't mean to sound like CPA doesn't do much, but setting realistic expectation is important, so you don't get discouraged.

    2010 : graduated from college w/ accounting degree
    2011-12 : non-accounting / operational role in SOCAL – 34k – 40k
    2013 : changed jobs, but still operational role in SOCAL – 42k
    2014-15 : changed jobs, Bookkeeping duties in SOCAL – 50k
    2016-18 : moved to CO, public/audit – 55k-64k, left after promotion to Sr & got my license soon after
    2019 : Sr. Accountant / private – 75k w/ CPA license, still in CO
    2020 : Same company, same role – 87k

    This may seem great for some, but not so great for those who wants to get to six figures asap, but for me, I can say w/ confidence that getting my license has been worth it.

    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...

    in reply to: Getting My CPA Has Not Paid Off So Far #2943546
    jombe
    Participant

    Not sure what you were expecting. I haven't heard of any companies, including public firms, offering any significant raise after you get your CPA. The traditional route of bumping your pay goes something like this –
    1) Start working at a public firm w/o your CPA
    2) Get 2-3 years, at minimum, of experience under your belt and get your CPA.
    3) After getting licensed, you either stay in public until you make manager (generally this is where you get the bump), or explore opportunities in private, which will get you ~20% bump.

    Now if you were working in private to begin with at staff level, I would seek out opportunities outside of your current employer, since it sounds like you didn't work out any deal upfront regarding your licensure.

    What CPA generally does for people is provide job security, open doors to opportunities & promotions that require such license and thereby provide bit more income than non-licensed accounting professionals (not counting those that open/run successful practices after getting their license). You definitely shouldn't be expecting any major fireworks at staff/senior level, but that's just my opinion, very much based on my personal experience.

    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...

    jombe
    Participant

    Potential employers are generally understanding and willing to work around the hours of a prospective that's currently employed. W/ that said, it doesn't mean you should expect them to hold the interview at 6am or 7pm just for you, but maybe 7:30am, so you can still make it back to current work at a reasonable time, or maybe at 5pm after you get off from your current work, etc.

    Phone interviews are best held early in the morning or later in the afternoon. Lunch time will be fine as well.

    As always, communicate. Let the potential employer know what hrs work for you and be willing to work w/ their convenience as well.

    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...

    in reply to: Busy season in big 4 #2940540
    jombe
    Participant

    Can you just ask the in-charge?

    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...

    in reply to: I have no idea what I am doing. #2938821
    jombe
    Participant

    I tried studying for the exam all by myself right after college and I ended up giving up due to no structure. Second time I tried it, which was roughly six years after my first try, I spent bit more $-wise and got more structured prep materials, including online lectures, which helped me immensely.

    Obviously some people can pass the exams just fine by buying a test bank and texts, but that doesn't necessarily mean everyone can do it that way. Just judging by what I am reading from your post, you may be like me who needs more structured prep materials, which means more $$$. Up to you.

    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...

    in reply to: Am I too old? #2937372
    jombe
    Participant

    Only concern I have based on my personal experience for older folks that apply for staff level positions is Excel. If you are good w/ Excel, I wouldn't let age be a factor at all. Make sure you at least have intermediate level of knowledge of Excel and you will be alright! 🙂

    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...

Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 192 total)