Faye is a new NINJA CPA Blogger.
Hi NINJAs! Another71 is has been my go to website since I started my CPA journey this year. I’ve been lurking for awhile but decided to start blogging to share some of my experiences as well.
I always feel inspired and motivated after reading the personal experiences and success stories of the other candidates.
Like many of you, becoming a CPA is my personal goal. I graduated from college almost 7 years ago but it wasn’t until this year that I decided to take on the challenge of taking my first test. I chose to take FAR first because I know it will be the most challenging for me because of the scope of material involved.
It took me three months of serious studying before I took the test. I wish it took me shorter than 3 months to study but as many of you know it is a real challenge to work a full time job, do other responsibilities, and study for a big test.
I bought the NINJA Ten Point Combo (a great purchase!) and used my review course just to watch the videos. I followed the NINJA framework which worked effectively for me. I watched all of the videos and took notes. I also learned not to stop the video just to take notes because doing so took me twice as long. Instead, I jot down short phrases and terms that are important for that topic.
I also listened to the NINJA audio whenever I can, even when I’m washing the dishes or cleaning the house. The flashcards were a great help as well because I can study anytime I have a free minute. As Jeff suggested, I worked on a lot of MCQs everyday and did sims on the weekends.
The material started to click when I did the MCQs. I took notes on the MCQs I consistently got wrong which helped me tremendously on exam day.
Studying for FAR was discouraging at times because I keep getting the wrong answers on weak areas even after reworking the MCQ’s twice! What’s wrong with me?
I felt so unprepared that I told my husband to bear with me on exam day because I just feel like I would fail this test. On my last three weeks, I concentrated on my weak areas especially government accounting, leases, and business combinations. I did the MCQs again and took time to really understand the concept. I didn’t have time to rewrite my notes but I re-read all of my notes the day before the test.
Exam day came. FAR didn’t fail me because the exam was hard. I just felt like I failed so I started studying for FAR again after the exam. I just didn’t feel confident with my answers since I kept getting a lot of wrong answers on my assessments using the WTB.
Four days later, I got my score and found out I passed! What a relief! Thank God! Thank you Jeff for sharing with us the NINJA study materials. I really think this helped me pass my test.
I started studying for BEC right away and hoping to schedule it in February. ‘Till then NINJAs …
