CPA Discord that I am in for anything CPA/Accounting Related in the description. Myself, along with some CPA's and others who have already passed all 4 exams are active in the chat and welcome any questions.
Hi Brandon, I am just curious...if you only have .. let's say 3 hours of study time on weekdays... since you are working...how were you able to do both reading & questions for the materials you are suppose to study for that day ?
@@Isalwaysgolden2 It probably takes 1 -1 1/2 hours to complete the reading/notes. Then another hour to finish the mcs for the specific module depending on how many questions.
@@Isalwaysgolden2 I honestly wouldn’t study them until my review period which was two weeks before my exam. And if I did look over them before my review period I would just skim them too because I felt like the stuff I was studying like in Chp 1 I wouldn’t remember when I’m in Chp 10. So in my review period I would go thru everything again (mcs, notes, outline, mock exams) and it would come together then.
Congratulations on passing. Thank you for your honesty and humility. This definitely provides much more motivation than the other CPA exam videos where people claim to pass their CPA exam in 2 months.
Thank you for your honesty. I'm not one of those overachievers who had a 4.0 GPA each semester. This video gave me the motivation to study. Giving up is not an option !!
“It’s not a failure unless you quit, if you never quit it’s only a hurdle. Keep going.” Congratulations man I’m studying accounting in college and I’m halfway through my freshman year. I can’t wait to get into this industry!
@@kylesmith6708 wow , so surprised to hear about this man here, I have heard so much about he's good work but have not been opportuned to reach out to him, is he on what$ap
Hey man, this video was great. Thank you for being genuine and honest. I'd much rather see people like yourself who are more alike to myself than "I pass CPA in 3 months" videos. Thank you again.
Thank you so much for being honest. I feel like we have similar study habits and I had so much anxiety just to the thought of starting to study. This helped me with my confidence!!
Hey man I just want say that I was able to pass the last section of the exam and it was all thanks to watching your video on what to focus on for each exam! Keep up the great content man!
Congratulations on passing! This was definitely the motivation I needed to get back to BEC. Going to try your method for the last few chapters as I await my AUD score!
This video really helped me and gave me confidence!! I really felt like im not doing enough per day because by listening to the lectures, doing the skill practices and the simulations; I felt like im wasting too much time! Plus the schedule Becker gives me, I find it to be unrealistic. It tells me to do 2 chapters per week
Obviously CPA exam has been a pain in my ass, but that won’t bother me any longer I have gotten my license already thanks to you Mrs Brenda God bless you more cuz you made it possible for me .
You will pass everyone has their own session, just keep going pray and believe you will receive yours MRS BRENDA like everyone has been saying she can be of help .
I’m really sorry about that but I got used to it until I succeeded, I failed 5 times before I finally passed, it would have been 6 but Mrs Brenda saved me from failing again .
Thank you so much for sharing! I’m going to try your methods. I spent too much time watching the videos and doing the skills practice and lost focus. Then I found myself taking too much notes and not really reading the books. I will try To focus on the MCs and work on the simulations when I can or when the mocks come... thank you so much!
I subbed, I’m only at my associates degree right now but I’m looking into getting my mba and cpa and you soothed my stressed soul haha. I can’t wait to get my cpa in a few years! I def will 😤
My problem is retention. I feel like I’ll forget everything from the beginning. But I’ll give myself a lot of them to review before I sit for the exam. Congrats on passing
You have to keep taking mcq daily on prior chapters before moving on. For example, every monring before I work, I dont least 20 or 30 questions on prior chapters so that I am testing myself on the concepts consistently
Some people feel the need to take months to study for one section. If you have a problem with retention, I’d suggest giving yourself less time to study for each section (i.e. 1-2 months) but be willing to dedicate 6-8 hours a day for studying. This is my personal advice based on studying & passing, it’s all about understanding how your brain works and how it absorbs info.
Hi Brandon, such a great video about how to pass cpa exams. I'm also just an average student, 3.2 gpa, so I cannot really apply methods that many smart students did. I really appreciate your honesty and helpful tips! I just took FAR after studying for 4 months, sims killed me. Would you have any recommendations for how to practice sims more effectively? I was so overwhelmed with so many exhibits, don't have enough time for finished all. Also, govt and NFP are all over in MCQ. It is really hard to understand govt and NFP accounting.
Yea Far is a beast. For sims I recommend practicing topics that are good sim questions. (Statement of cash flows, bank rec) I would use Facebook Becker group to see what people are saying they were tested on. For sims I never spent to much time on as I felt as long as I understand the topic I’ll be able to figure out the simulation. I would use the aicpa practice exam sims as well which were very helpful. And yes, govt and nfp are for some reason always tested heavily on Far. Lots of definitions but I feel like if you really drill the mcs in those sections it will stick.
Hello have you hard of Mr James he's an expert who help with some question and answers which you will study and will be ask on your exam day i will advice you to reach him now for more information
Thanks for this. Now I know I can do this. My main challenge is consistency. I graduated college 6years ago and I don't know what I've been doing with my time these last 6years that I haven't done the exam but starting this year, I'm going for it!
Hi Brandon - thank you for all the tips! Super helpful and congratulations on becoming a CPA. I've been hesitant to oay for thr courses and taking the exam.. now that you're a cpa, do you think it's worth it?
Brandon, thank you so much for your sharing! I’m basically doing the same method for FAR. It seems working for me when it comes to MCQs but I’m struggling with Simulations. Can you share your tips to do Simulations? Thank you!
For simulations I would check on the Becker Facebook page maybe two weeks before my exams because people would sometimes say what topics to focus on. I would then pick simulations for those topics and just go thru them and watch the skill master videos. I realistically would only dedicate one full day to review sims as you can’t predict which ones you’ll get. Mcs helped me the most.
@@BrandonGap you’re smart! Honestly, going over all sims on Becker is really painful and I dont think I can remember them when the exam date comes. Your tip is the best! Thank you very much!
oh my god, I got 70 and 65 for my FAR. To be honestly, I dont know what should I do after I got my scores. Currently I am preparing BEC now. Thanks for sharing. I wont give up!!
I have graduated with a bachelors in accounting like 8 years ago. Is it worth it to take it now u think. I worked as an account manager for 6 years but am starting to hate and I might just switch back to accounting
I bought the full Becker package which was about 2200. I’m not sure exactly what they are selling now. For the most part, I only used the annotated book, multiple choice questions, and mock exams which means you need full review course. I used the final review sometimes so I don’t think it’s necessary. It took me 18 months to pass so I know they have a package that is unlimited time so if you think you might need more time than they give on the cheaper package I would get the unlimited time package. I never used any Becker notecards. Hope this helps.
Best thing I can say is to do the aicpa practice exams for sims. They’re usually similar to what’s on the test. I also did sims on Becker that I felt would be good “sim topics”. You never know what kind of sim you’re gonna get which is why I believe knowing all the topics through doing mcs is your best bet.
Thank you! It’s all about knowing why you are taking the exams. What’s on the other side. That’s what helped me keep going even when I failed my tests. Also, it’s a lot of prioritization and holding yourself accountable to make sure to stay on your study schedule.
Thanks for making the video! I failed REG and preparing for a retake. I'm pushing myself up..it's surely worth the effort.. I've a question: Did you complete all the sims entirely or did you attempt partially and moved on based on time allocation..
I barely did any sims. I would only review sims once in the last two weeks before my test during the review period. I would only do Sims on topics that I felt like would be good Sim questions. For Reg definitely know Basis….
Read each chapter. Take notes what is underlined. Do all MCQ and get 100%. Take notes. Skip everything else. Do 1 chapter a week. And 2 weeks for review. Knock out as many mcq as possible. Do practice test 38 questions per set. Do as many sets as you can. Take the test and pass.
Hello have you hard of Mr James he's an expert who help with some question and answers which you will study and will be ask on your exam day i will advice you to reach him now for more information
You may have touched on this, but after each chapter, did you just redo the multiple choice questions for each module? I know you said you utilized doing practice test during the 2 week review.
I wouldn’t redo mcs from past chapters until my review period. So I would do the mcs as I went through each module, but wouldn’t redo them till my review period.
I take so many notes that I'm wondering if I'm overdoing it but my friend passed FAR and AUD on the first try and that's what she did. She only took notes on the multiple choice questions and skipped the simulations entirely.
Hi Brandon, first off, congrats on persevering and passing your CPA exams! I have a couple of questions for you. I know that on the video you mention going over the multiple choice until you got 100%. You didn't get to a point where you started memorizing the answers? What I am thinking to do is going over them a couple of times and focus on learning the material. Let me know how you did it without getting into a point of memorization and I can take a look at your strategy. Next question is the order of exams. I am debating whether to start with REG or BEC. Do you think it's fine either way? I have FAR going third because I've been working on a 2 month project compiling all of Becker's materials into excel for both REG and BEC along with learning materials/audios as well. It's been quite a challenge, but within a week or two I should be all done. I know that in your video you went with REG last. I've heard there is going to be a change in October because of the CARES Act so I wonder if whatever I learn now will be updated by then. Let me know your thoughts and Thank you for your helpful and inspirational video. Appreciate it!
Hi Raul, thank you! There were times where I had questions that I had memorized ,but before picking an answer I would make sure that I know how to solve the problem whether I wrote it down or did it in my head. The reason I would just focus on multiple choice is because I felt like the tests questions were so similar to Becker that if I could answer and solve all of Beckers problems I would be fine on the real test. Doing the sets of practice tests of 30-something mcs will prepare you for the real test because you'll be used to completing mcs in a quick amount of time. If It were me to I would do REG first because it's the harder of the two tests and you don't want to have to learn more after the update. Reg changes the most of all the exams and I'm not sure what the tax changes are for CARES act. Becker will update probably end of September with the changes.. I think the order of Reg, Bec, Far, and Aud is fine because (Bec, Far, Aud) all are related. Reg is the least related. Hope this helped you. Let me know if you have any questions.
Hi Brandon, I have a couple of questions for you. How were you able to pull off studying without doing any Sims? I haven't started studying, but will soon and yes doing all the recommended steps that Becker has it is a lot of work and time consuming. How were you able to apply everything on the Sims part in the test? Next question is about the Book. So I am also planning not to watch the lectures. Here is my issue. I don't like staring in front of the computer and reading the annotated book. There are important notes in there though. What advise can you give me in that I want to read the physical.book, but also see the notes online? Let me know please and I decided to start with REG first after all. Hope you are doing well.
Raul Belloso So I would practice sims only on topics that I felt were good sim questions. (Cash flow statements) I felt that as long as I had an understanding of all the topics I would be able to solve the simulations without practicing them. I felt it was a waste of time to spend hours on sims that most likely won’t be on the test. Remember you can also use authoritative literature on simulations. And regarding reading the annotated book you can read the physical book and just write down the highlighted sentences. You’re reading the same material regardless so either way you should be fine.
I believe there is a drop down somewhere on the cover page of each section that will say annotated book. The review might not look the same now so apologies if I’m wrong.
Congrats, any advice on Federal taxation on entities ? I struggle a lot with it and keep forgetting differences among them. Any summarized chart for that please ? Anyone sells it? Please
Hello i will advice you to contact Mr James for a help he will help you pass your CPA exams he will also give you some question and answers which you will have to study and it will be the same thing you will see on your exam day
I just took notes in a regular notebook basically writing down anything I thought was important or anything that the book highlighted or underlined. During the review period I would really just do the practice test mult choice questions. Like 100-150 a day and that helped me remember what I learned in the previous chapters. You’re going to forget stuff and that’s just part of the process, but if you take your time doing the mcs you will start to catch on to everything.
Hi Brandon, Thanks for the informative video. I don't have an accounting degree but I have my MBA degree. Can I take the CPA exam without an accounting degree? If so, can you please give me an overall guide line( how to move forward)? thank you.
Hello i will advice you to contact Mr James for a help he will help you pass your CPA exams he will also give you some question and answers which you will have to study and it will be the same thing you will see on your exam day
Wax John th-cam.com/video/stxb6lM620E/w-d-xo.html this video explains it very well. Written coms are mostly testing grammar and not so much the context. If you can write an email you should be able to do the written coms.
Yes I focused more on doing reading, taking notes, and pretty much just doing a bunch of mult choice. I feel like if you are able to understand the topics you’ll be able to figure out the sims without having to spend hours on practicing sims. I just recommend doing a few sims on the topics that you think are good sim topics. Also practice the AICPA practice exams as those sims are similar to what’s on the era test. Hope this helps!
Great advice! Wish I'd found your video 3 months ago. I'm taking my first exam (FAR) today and I don't feel confident at all. There's so much info and I don't feel like I've retained enough. Oh, well, we shall see! If I don't pass, I am going to take your advice and try again. Thanks!
Hi Brandon Congrats on your achievement. I am keen to know which school did you earn your remaining credits *150 credits eligibility* while preparing for the CPA? Looking forward to your reply. Thanks.
I took my units at a local community college. As long as you fulfill the business and accounting course units in your undergraduate degree you just need units which don’t have to be accounting classes. There are some online colleges that are very cheap and I would check Reddit r/cpa for other suggestions.
I would take notes on everything that was underlined on the ebook and then any formulas or any definitions that I thought were important. I didn’t really take notes on the mcs that I got wrong. Just redid them if I got them wrong.
Best thing I can say is to do the aicpa practice exams for sims. They’re usually similar to what’s on the test. I also did sims on Becker that I felt would be good “sim topics”. You never know what kind of sim you’re gonna get which is why I believe knowing all the topics through doing mcs is your best bet. I wouldn’t do them along with mult choice. I would do mcs first and then put a day aside for simulations. I made a video about what I do the last two weeks which includes what I did for sims.
Hi Brandon, thank you for sharing your CPA journey with us! Did you work full-time the entire time or only after September? I'm trying to maintain my sanity while working full-time and studying for FAR
Brandon Gap I’m in a private firm right now. It’s not as busy as public but we have quarterly and yearly deadlines. I wonder how it’s like to only focus on studying. But studying full time wont pay the bills haha
Hello I will advice you to contact mr James for a help he will give you some questions and answers which will come out on your exam day with his help I passed mine work with him if you really need help
Hi Brandon, I have failed CPA countless times using Becker. I watched the lecture, do skillsets, all MCQs and some Sim., and I think I did alright on the actual exam. However, mostly I've got 60s score, and I am not sure where to go from here.
Hi Tim, i think first step for you would to be to evaluate what works for you and what doesn’t. I tried watching lectures but I would find myself zoning out a lot which is why I decided to read the book instead. Doing a bunch of mcs is what helped me really understand the material. I think you’re very close to getting that 75 you just need to tweak how you study a little bit. You can do it man.
@@BrandonGap Got last exam score yesterday in Audit. When I took the exam, I felt it was not bad (moderate difficulty), but man I only got 66. I never read the book, just scan thru the underlined sentences. I'll read the textbook from now on. You have not mentioned about Sim., how did you practice Sim.? I found Sim. inside Becker is very time-consuming and does not prepare me much for the real Sim. in the test. What is your thoughts?
@@timsok3358 I barely did sims. I didn’t do any going thru Becker. So I would give myself two weeks to review and I prob would spend max 1 day to practice sims on important topics like sampling. I wouldn’t spend a lot of time on sims because they take forever and you never know what your going to get. Just doing mcs helped me do well on the sims because I learned the concepts.
@@BrandonGap Thank you Brandon. If it works, I'll treat you lunch after Covid :) Plan to re-take REG in March, will keep you posted. Thanks for making the video. Feel like I'm so dumb to fail the test multiple times. Hopefully I can make it next one.
Thank you for sharing and congratulation!!! . Everything made sense to me a lot. More than an expert advice. I work full time, have three kids, and currently studying for FAR and my exam is in two months. What would you advise considering my situation. Good thing is I have Becker review course as well.
Thank you! It would definitely depend on how far you are into the material but definitely try to be finished with it two weeks before your exam. I would spend those last two weeks just doing as much mult choice as possible and going over any topics you didn’t understand when going thru the review the first time. But def mult choice is key those last two weeks.
Only tips would be to look online on how to format your resume. Federal jobs usually require a specific format. Other than that it shouldn’t be much different than finding a job in another industry. Definitely research about the job your applying for and try to cater your resume towards those certain skills or qualifications.
When you copied down pre annotated notes did you copy down the examples that Becker would give too? or just try to understand them. I'm studying for FAR and your method has helped me so far! so thank you for that btw.
I would only copy down what was underlined in red on the annotated notes or maybe definitions. I wouldn’t spend to much time writing everything down as in my experience reviewing my notes wasn’t a huge part of my review process. It was more doing a lot of mcs that helped me the most.
Hey @brandongap Great video. A quick question, on avg what percentage were you getting when doing sets of 38 questions from Becker practice test for FAR? I feel like I am stuck between 55 and 65% on mcq’s. Should I continue to use this method and learn from understanding the answer or should I approach a different method? Thank you so much
Hello ! How do we check which book version is applicable from when? like if i am planning for regulation early next year .. i have 3.5 with me .. online its 3.6 but got to know that 3.7 will be applicable for 2021. how can i decide the right version of book? please advise.
Anu Jain it should say on Becker’s program what version if for what date. I never had any issues regarding not having the right version so I’m not really sure. Becker will notify you of any updates and when the tests are updating.
Go with whatever is updated online. Right now I have updates for the CARES act which are only tested from Oct - Dec so there will not be new books printed. Honestly I just study off of the online book. I find it much easier.
Can anyone tell me more about the CPA? I live in Canada 🇨🇦 is the exam strictly multiple choice and how many questions? Do they provide 200 or more multiple choice questions to learn? So that way, it help prepare for exams
Obviously CPA exam has been a pain in my ass, but that won’t bother me any longer I have gotten my license already thanks to you Mrs Brenda God bless you more cuz you made it possible for me .
You can make it all with the help of Mr James who helped me pass my exam i will advice you to contact him now for a help he will give you some question and answers which will be ask on your exam day
So I just believe that for the simulations you never know what you’ll get so I put more emphasis in understanding concepts by doing a lot of mcs. I saw some others say they didn’t really do sims to often in review and it works imo. Doing as many mcs as possible was best for me. I would allocate 1 day only to work on sims during my review period two weeks before my exams.
Congratulations on passing! I have a question about the failing system they do for the CPA exam. How does it work? I’ve only heard that you could fail 3 times, but there’s some weird conditions attached.
Not really. I did a few simulations for Far (statement of cash flows) and Reg (basis) for certain topics. Then I would go thru some of the sims on the mock exams. I saw from another TH-camr that the sims are random so you never know what you’re going to get. So didn’t want to spend to much time on them.
Best thing I can say is to do the aicpa practice exams for sims. They’re usually similar to what’s on the test. I also did sims on Becker that I felt would be good “sim topics”. You never know what kind of sim you’re gonna get which is why I believe knowing all the topics through doing mcs is your best bet.
Got discouraged so hard from failing like 5 years ago after studying so hard and remembering all the flash cards. I'll try this approach, hopefully I come out on top.
Great video I like your studying method! how long did it take you to get to 100% mcq per module? How long did it take you write notes? Per module ..can you break down how you study day?
hi Brandon - when you were doing your 2 week review and doing sets of multiple choice questions were you just doing the ones you had done previously during your studying? there's only a certain number of mc questions in becker and at some point it gets repetitive and you end up memorizing q's/answers..
CPA Discord that I am in for anything CPA/Accounting Related in the description. Myself, along with some CPA's and others who have already passed all 4 exams are active in the chat and welcome any questions.
Thank you so much ! That’s such amazing opportunity I’m definitely joining. Looking forward to studying for my CPA after May
Hi Brandon, I am just curious...if you only have .. let's say 3 hours of study time on weekdays... since you are working...how were you able to do both reading & questions for the materials you are suppose to study for that day ?
@@Isalwaysgolden2 It probably takes 1 -1 1/2 hours to complete the reading/notes. Then another hour to finish the mcs for the specific module depending on how many questions.
@@BrandonGap thank you so much for replying...I was wondering...the notes you take daily...how often would you review/study them ? Daily or weekly ?
@@Isalwaysgolden2 I honestly wouldn’t study them until my review period which was two weeks before my exam. And if I did look over them before my review period I would just skim them too because I felt like the stuff I was studying like in Chp 1 I wouldn’t remember when I’m in Chp 10. So in my review period I would go thru everything again (mcs, notes, outline, mock exams) and it would come together then.
Congratulations on passing. Thank you for your honesty and humility. This definitely provides much more motivation than the other CPA exam videos where people claim to pass their CPA exam in 2 months.
Good luck man! What matters is finishing.
I know right, this is so much better ❤
Couldn't have said it better
Thank you for your honesty. I'm not one of those overachievers who had a 4.0 GPA each semester. This video gave me the motivation to study. Giving up is not an option !!
You got this!
My greatest teachers in life are the ones that had failures.
“It’s not a failure unless you quit, if you never quit it’s only a hurdle. Keep going.” Congratulations man I’m studying accounting in college and I’m halfway through my freshman year. I can’t wait to get into this industry!
Good luck! Lots of opportunity for you!
CPA exam is so fustrating can't believe I failed again after studying so hard
Wow that's not fair
Am really sorry about that but I got used to it until I successed,I failed 5 times before i finally passed, it would have been 6 but mr riq saved me
I saw someone say he could be a scammer, I couldn't stop laughing, really people say a lot of shit these days
@@kylesmith6708 wow , so surprised to hear about this man here, I have heard so much about he's good work but have not been opportuned to reach out to him, is he on what$ap
@@adelkanaan5334 sure
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Hey man, this video was great. Thank you for being genuine and honest. I'd much rather see people like yourself who are more alike to myself than "I pass CPA in 3 months" videos. Thank you again.
Thank you so much for being honest. I feel like we have similar study habits and I had so much anxiety just to the thought of starting to study. This helped me with my confidence!!
Good luck on everything! It’s a process but it’s possible!
Hey man I just want say that I was able to pass the last section of the exam and it was all thanks to watching your video on what to focus on for each exam! Keep up the great content man!
Congratulations on passing! This was definitely the motivation I needed to get back to BEC. Going to try your method for the last few chapters as I await my AUD score!
Angel S Goodluck! You got this! The hard work will pay off.
I appreciate your honesty! Thank you and congratulations!!
Efia you’re studying for the exam also? I see you’re also Ghanaian
@@joym1925 GH in da building!
A very honest and motivating video.
Failure should never hold us back
This video really helped me and gave me confidence!! I really felt like im not doing enough per day because by listening to the lectures, doing the skill practices and the simulations; I felt like im wasting too much time! Plus the schedule Becker gives me, I find it to be unrealistic. It tells me to do 2 chapters per week
You got this!
Obviously CPA exam has been a pain in my ass, but that won’t bother me any longer I have gotten my license already thanks to you Mrs Brenda God bless you more cuz you made it possible for me .
CPA exam is really difficult and frustrating, I can’t believe I failed again after studying so hard 🥺.
You will pass everyone has their own session, just keep going pray and believe you will receive yours MRS BRENDA like everyone has been saying she can be of help .
Am sorry for that some people also passed through the difficulties just be patient and keep studying.
I’m really sorry about that but I got used to it until I succeeded, I failed 5 times before I finally passed, it would have been 6 but Mrs Brenda saved me from failing again .
I saw someone say she is not trustworthy I couldn’t stop laughing, really people say a lot of shit these days .
Thank you! The only video I found that lays it out.
I will never get through the material reading, watching videos then MCQs
LOVE YOUR HONESTY! HUGE CONGRATS ON PASSING!
Thank you for your honesty. I also graduated with similar GPA as you.
Thank you so much for sharing! I’m going to try your methods. I spent too much time watching the videos and doing the skills practice and lost focus. Then I found myself taking too much notes and not really reading the books. I will try To focus on the MCs and work on the simulations when I can or when the mocks come... thank you so much!
Good luck!! You got this!!
I subbed, I’m only at my associates degree right now but I’m looking into getting my mba and cpa and you soothed my stressed soul haha. I can’t wait to get my cpa in a few years! I def will 😤
If your planning on making accounting as your career I’d definitely recommend it. Good luck!
I am in Africa, in Ghana to be exact, can I get to take the CPA exam?
My problem is retention. I feel like I’ll forget everything from the beginning. But I’ll give myself a lot of them to review before I sit for the exam. Congrats on passing
That’s my problem
You have to keep taking mcq daily on prior chapters before moving on. For example, every monring before I work, I dont least 20 or 30 questions on prior chapters so that I am testing myself on the concepts consistently
@@lorisimone2225 This right here. Review as you go. Then you don't have to spend weeks at the end
Same, keep losing motivation, have had study materials for 3 years
Some people feel the need to take months to study for one section. If you have a problem with retention, I’d suggest giving yourself less time to study for each section (i.e. 1-2 months) but be willing to dedicate 6-8 hours a day for studying. This is my personal advice based on studying & passing, it’s all about understanding how your brain works and how it absorbs info.
Hi Brandon, such a great video about how to pass cpa exams. I'm also just an average student, 3.2 gpa, so I cannot really apply methods that many smart students did. I really appreciate your honesty and helpful tips! I just took FAR after studying for 4 months, sims killed me. Would you have any recommendations for how to practice sims more effectively? I was so overwhelmed with so many exhibits, don't have enough time for finished all. Also, govt and NFP are all over in MCQ. It is really hard to understand govt and NFP accounting.
Yea Far is a beast. For sims I recommend practicing topics that are good sim questions. (Statement of cash flows, bank rec) I would use Facebook Becker group to see what people are saying they were tested on. For sims I never spent to much time on as I felt as long as I understand the topic I’ll be able to figure out the simulation. I would use the aicpa practice exam sims as well which were very helpful. And yes, govt and nfp are for some reason always tested heavily on Far. Lots of definitions but I feel like if you really drill the mcs in those sections it will stick.
@@BrandonGap Facebook Becker sounds good. Ill look for it now. Thank you so much and wishing you best luck in your career :)
Omg 3.2 gpa is not average haha
@@Chadrawss haha at my school yeah.
listening to your video everyday motivates me.
Congratulations
You did it
I will try again
Your video motivate me to continue trying.
Impressive accomplishment
Miguel Perez Keep going man. It’ll be worth it.
Yes, It’s worth for another try. Don’t give up! :)
Congratulation!! I really want to become CPA. could you pls share to me the material you have been studding?
Hello have you hard of Mr James he's an expert who help with some question and answers which you will study and will be ask on your exam day i will advice you to reach him now for more information
19168840584
Thanks for this. Now I know I can do this. My main challenge is consistency. I graduated college 6years ago and I don't know what I've been doing with my time these last 6years that I haven't done the exam but starting this year, I'm going for it!
Hi Brandon - thank you for all the tips! Super helpful and congratulations on becoming a CPA. I've been hesitant to oay for thr courses and taking the exam.. now that you're a cpa, do you think it's worth it?
For the weekend was it 4-6 hours per day or 4-6 hours total?
4-6 hours per day. (Sat and Sunday)
Brandon, thank you so much for your sharing! I’m basically doing the same method for FAR. It seems working for me when it comes to MCQs but I’m struggling with Simulations. Can you share your tips to do Simulations? Thank you!
For simulations I would check on the Becker Facebook page maybe two weeks before my exams because people would sometimes say what topics to focus on. I would then pick simulations for those topics and just go thru them and watch the skill master videos. I realistically would only dedicate one full day to review sims as you can’t predict which ones you’ll get. Mcs helped me the most.
@@BrandonGap you’re smart! Honestly, going over all sims on Becker is really painful and I dont think I can remember them when the exam date comes. Your tip is the best! Thank you very much!
Thank you for sharing your experience. You gave me the motivation to study!
Thanks for watching. You got this!
oh my god, I got 70 and 65 for my FAR. To be honestly, I dont know what should I do after I got my scores. Currently I am preparing BEC now. Thanks for sharing. I wont give up!!
You got this! Almost the exact same scores as me on my first attempts.
I have graduated with a bachelors in accounting like 8 years ago. Is it worth it to take it now u think. I worked as an account manager for 6 years but am starting to hate and I might just switch back to accounting
If you think you’re gonna spend a big portion of your career in accounting, say maybe at least 15 years it’s def worth to make the investment.
I am taking AUD in two weeks!! Only REG after that and then I am done! Thanks for the videos and insights!
Good luck!!! Put in the time the next two weeks and it’ll pay off!
Congrats!!!!
I like your method, so if I want to buy CPA study materials based on your way, what’s your recommendations? 🙏
I bought the full Becker package which was about 2200. I’m not sure exactly what they are selling now. For the most part, I only used the annotated book, multiple choice questions, and mock exams which means you need full review course. I used the final review sometimes so I don’t think it’s necessary. It took me 18 months to pass so I know they have a package that is unlimited time so if you think you might need more time than they give on the cheaper package I would get the unlimited time package. I never used any Becker notecards. Hope this helps.
@@BrandonGap Thank you very much!
Yay congrats!!! I was wondering how did you prepared/tackled the simulation questions for the exam?
Best thing I can say is to do the aicpa practice exams for sims. They’re usually similar to what’s on the test. I also did sims on Becker that I felt would be good “sim topics”. You never know what kind of sim you’re gonna get which is why I believe knowing all the topics through doing mcs is your best bet.
Congrats! I fail BEC with a 53! I study with Wiley now. Hopefully I can pass next time
Congrats on passing!! How did you keep yourself motivated? Sounds like you had a full plate at the time.
Thank you! It’s all about knowing why you are taking the exams. What’s on the other side. That’s what helped me keep going even when I failed my tests. Also, it’s a lot of prioritization and holding yourself accountable to make sure to stay on your study schedule.
Thanks for making the video! I failed REG and preparing for a retake. I'm pushing myself up..it's surely worth the effort..
I've a question:
Did you complete all the sims entirely or did you attempt partially and moved on based on time allocation..
I barely did any sims. I would only review sims once in the last two weeks before my test during the review period. I would only do Sims on topics that I felt like would be good Sim questions. For Reg definitely know Basis….
Thank you so much for the tips! Congratulations on passing the CPA exams.
Good luck!
Thank you for this. Your honesty is helping
Read each chapter. Take notes what is underlined. Do all MCQ and get 100%. Take notes. Skip everything else. Do 1 chapter a week. And 2 weeks for review. Knock out as many mcq as possible. Do practice test 38 questions per set. Do as many sets as you can. Take the test and pass.
Hello have you hard of Mr James he's an expert who help with some question and answers which you will study and will be ask on your exam day i will advice you to reach him now for more information
write him on Whats App
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@@linusfx2366 thanks he’s the same man that helped me in passing all my exams he’s a great man
You may have touched on this, but after each chapter, did you just redo the multiple choice questions for each module? I know you said you utilized doing practice test during the 2 week review.
I wouldn’t redo mcs from past chapters until my review period. So I would do the mcs as I went through each module, but wouldn’t redo them till my review period.
@@BrandonGap thank you!!! I just started studying for BEC. This video was helpful
@@mgillia2 Good luck! Make sure to check out my vid on the Bec Written Communications.
Amazing video. Thank you so much for sharing your experience and valuable information!!!
You’re welcome!! Hope it helps you!
Great tips! Thank for sharing your knowledge!
So nice congratulations
I take so many notes that I'm wondering if I'm overdoing it but my friend passed FAR and AUD on the first try and that's what she did. She only took notes on the multiple choice questions and skipped the simulations entirely.
Yea I would only take notes on stuff underlined in red in the book and maybe for definitions. I only would spend 1 day working on simulations.
Hi Brandon, first off, congrats on persevering and passing your CPA exams! I have a couple of questions for you. I know that on the video you mention going over the multiple choice until you got 100%. You didn't get to a point where you started memorizing the answers? What I am thinking to do is going over them a couple of times and focus on learning the material. Let me know how you did it without getting into a point of memorization and I can take a look at your strategy. Next question is the order of exams. I am debating whether to start with REG or BEC. Do you think it's fine either way? I have FAR going third because I've been working on a 2 month project compiling all of Becker's materials into excel for both REG and BEC along with learning materials/audios as well. It's been quite a challenge, but within a week or two I should be all done. I know that in your video you went with REG last. I've heard there is going to be a change in October because of the CARES Act so I wonder if whatever I learn now will be updated by then. Let me know your thoughts and Thank you for your helpful and inspirational video. Appreciate it!
Hi Raul, thank you! There were times where I had questions that I had memorized ,but before picking an answer I would make sure that I know how to solve the problem whether I wrote it down or did it in my head. The reason I would just focus on multiple choice is because I felt like the tests questions were so similar to Becker that if I could answer and solve all of Beckers problems I would be fine on the real test. Doing the sets of practice tests of 30-something mcs will prepare you for the real test because you'll be used to completing mcs in a quick amount of time. If It were me to I would do REG first because it's the harder of the two tests and you don't want to have to learn more after the update. Reg changes the most of all the exams and I'm not sure what the tax changes are for CARES act. Becker will update probably end of September with the changes.. I think the order of Reg, Bec, Far, and Aud is fine because (Bec, Far, Aud) all are related. Reg is the least related. Hope this helped you. Let me know if you have any questions.
Hi Brandon, I have a couple of questions for you. How were you able to pull off studying without doing any Sims? I haven't started studying, but will soon and yes doing all the recommended steps that Becker has it is a lot of work and time consuming. How were you able to apply everything on the Sims part in the test? Next question is about the Book. So I am also planning not to watch the lectures. Here is my issue. I don't like staring in front of the computer and reading the annotated book. There are important notes in there though. What advise can you give me in that I want to read the physical.book, but also see the notes online? Let me know please and I decided to start with REG first after all. Hope you are doing well.
Raul Belloso So I would practice sims only on topics that I felt were good sim questions. (Cash flow statements) I felt that as long as I had an understanding of all the topics I would be able to solve the simulations without practicing them. I felt it was a waste of time to spend hours on sims that most likely won’t be on the test. Remember you can also use authoritative literature on simulations. And regarding reading the annotated book you can read the physical book and just write down the highlighted sentences. You’re reading the same material regardless so either way you should be fine.
Very helpful, thank you. Where do I find the highlighted textbook in Becker?
I believe there is a drop down somewhere on the cover page of each section that will say annotated book. The review might not look the same now so apologies if I’m wrong.
Thanks for the confidence boost ✨
Good luck!!
Hey man where do you recommend me to sign up for the CPA I live in California
CBA.gov you’ll have to fill out an application and send in your transcript.
Congrats, any advice on Federal taxation on entities ? I struggle a lot with it and keep forgetting differences among them. Any summarized chart for that please ? Anyone sells it? Please
Hello i will advice you to contact Mr James for a help he will help you pass your CPA exams he will also give you some question and answers which you will have to study and it will be the same thing you will see on your exam day
Hey Brandon! How did you manage your notes? Did you have flash cards? During the review period - how did you reflect back on the previous chapters?
I just took notes in a regular notebook basically writing down anything I thought was important or anything that the book highlighted or underlined. During the review period I would really just do the practice test mult choice questions. Like 100-150 a day and that helped me remember what I learned in the previous chapters. You’re going to forget stuff and that’s just part of the process, but if you take your time doing the mcs you will start to catch on to everything.
@@BrandonGap that makes sense! Thank you! I also joined the discord you suggested. I Appreciate your input
Hi Brandon, Thanks for the informative video. I don't have an accounting degree but I have my MBA degree. Can I take the CPA exam without an accounting degree? If so, can you please give me an overall guide line( how to move forward)? thank you.
Hello i will advice you to contact Mr James for a help he will help you pass your CPA exams he will also give you some question and answers which you will have to study and it will be the same thing you will see on your exam day
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text him on whatsap
Please provide us lot more insights over written communication.
Wax John th-cam.com/video/stxb6lM620E/w-d-xo.html this video explains it very well. Written coms are mostly testing grammar and not so much the context. If you can write an email you should be able to do the written coms.
5:51 love this
Hi thanks for the video! I just started studying for the exam. How did you prepare for TBS? You didn't have to prepare much?
Yes I focused more on doing reading, taking notes, and pretty much just doing a bunch of mult choice. I feel like if you are able to understand the topics you’ll be able to figure out the sims without having to spend hours on practicing sims. I just recommend doing a few sims on the topics that you think are good sim topics. Also practice the AICPA practice exams as those sims are similar to what’s on the era test. Hope this helps!
@@BrandonGap amazing. Thanks so much for detailed reply! It helps me a lot
thank you , could youbplz share your daily routine of studying ?
Thank you for this!!
You’re welcome!
Great advice! Wish I'd found your video 3 months ago. I'm taking my first exam (FAR) today and I don't feel confident at all. There's so much info and I don't feel like I've retained enough. Oh, well, we shall see! If I don't pass, I am going to take your advice and try again. Thanks!
Good luck!!
You will do great. Just believe in yourself. Good luck! :)
Hi Rachel, I hope you passed the exam. How did it go?
UPDATE: I did not pass... now that busy season is over, I am starting to study again... planning on following Blueprints more closely this time.
Thank you for sharing your CPA exam journey. Congrats on passing the CPA exam. 🎊🎉👏
Anyone using Surgent?
Hi Brandon Congrats on your achievement.
I am keen to know which school did you earn your remaining credits *150 credits eligibility* while preparing for the CPA? Looking forward to your reply. Thanks.
I took my units at a local community college. As long as you fulfill the business and accounting course units in your undergraduate degree you just need units which don’t have to be accounting classes. There are some online colleges that are very cheap and I would check Reddit r/cpa for other suggestions.
Congratulations, only MCQ questions are enough for passing the BEC exam.
How did you overcome not memorizing the questions and answers?
Take you share more details about the notes after reading the book? Did you take notes just the main points or MCQ that you got wrong to help you out?
I would take notes on everything that was underlined on the ebook and then any formulas or any definitions that I thought were important. I didn’t really take notes on the mcs that I got wrong. Just redid them if I got them wrong.
What did you do to study for the simulations though? Did you do sets of those along with the multiple choice?
Best thing I can say is to do the aicpa practice exams for sims. They’re usually similar to what’s on the test. I also did sims on Becker that I felt would be good “sim topics”. You never know what kind of sim you’re gonna get which is why I believe knowing all the topics through doing mcs is your best bet. I wouldn’t do them along with mult choice. I would do mcs first and then put a day aside for simulations. I made a video about what I do the last two weeks which includes what I did for sims.
Hi Brandon, thank you for sharing your CPA journey with us! Did you work full-time the entire time or only after September? I'm trying to maintain my sanity while working full-time and studying for FAR
I did work full time my entire time I was studying. I don’t work in public accounting so I’m not sure if my hours are different than yours.
Brandon Gap I’m in a private firm right now. It’s not as busy as public but we have quarterly and yearly deadlines. I wonder how it’s like to only focus on studying. But studying full time wont pay the bills haha
Congratulation !! I need to know where could I get the textbooks for the CPA EXAM?
Hello I will advice you to contact mr James for a help he will give you some questions and answers which will come out on your exam day with his help I passed mine work with him if you really need help
Text him on Whats App
Thank you so much for your response. Can you give me his number?
@@ethiopicyeh2196 here’s the number below
@@ethiopicyeh2196 Hello how did it go ?
Hi Brandon, I have failed CPA countless times using Becker. I watched the lecture, do skillsets, all MCQs and some Sim., and I think I did alright on the actual exam. However, mostly I've got 60s score, and I am not sure where to go from here.
Hi Tim, i think first step for you would to be to evaluate what works for you and what doesn’t. I tried watching lectures but I would find myself zoning out a lot which is why I decided to read the book instead. Doing a bunch of mcs is what helped me really understand the material. I think you’re very close to getting that 75 you just need to tweak how you study a little bit. You can do it man.
@@BrandonGap Got last exam score yesterday in Audit. When I took the exam, I felt it was not bad (moderate difficulty), but man I only got 66. I never read the book, just scan thru the underlined sentences. I'll read the textbook from now on. You have not mentioned about Sim., how did you practice Sim.? I found Sim. inside Becker is very time-consuming and does not prepare me much for the real Sim. in the test. What is your thoughts?
@@timsok3358 I barely did sims. I didn’t do any going thru Becker. So I would give myself two weeks to review and I prob would spend max 1 day to practice sims on important topics like sampling. I wouldn’t spend a lot of time on sims because they take forever and you never know what your going to get. Just doing mcs helped me do well on the sims because I learned the concepts.
@@BrandonGap Thank you Brandon. If it works, I'll treat you lunch after Covid :)
Plan to re-take REG in March, will keep you posted. Thanks for making the video. Feel like I'm so dumb to fail the test multiple times. Hopefully I can make it next one.
@@timsok3358 Goodluck! Make sure you know basis for all entities.
Thank you and congratulations. Thank you for your transparency.
Thank you for sharing and congratulation!!! . Everything made sense to me a lot. More than an expert advice. I work full time, have three kids, and currently studying for FAR and my exam is in two months. What would you advise considering my situation. Good thing is I have Becker review course as well.
Thank you! It would definitely depend on how far you are into the material but definitely try to be finished with it two weeks before your exam. I would spend those last two weeks just doing as much mult choice as possible and going over any topics you didn’t understand when going thru the review the first time. But def mult choice is key those last two weeks.
Can acca help us with cpa??also from where shall we study for cpa??and u are cpa usa right??
I believe it can help. CPA is for US.
any tips on landing a government accounting job right out of school?
Only tips would be to look online on how to format your resume. Federal jobs usually require a specific format. Other than that it shouldn’t be much different than finding a job in another industry. Definitely research about the job your applying for and try to cater your resume towards those certain skills or qualifications.
When you copied down pre annotated notes did you copy down the examples that Becker would give too? or just try to understand them. I'm studying for FAR and your method has helped me so far! so thank you for that btw.
I would only copy down what was underlined in red on the annotated notes or maybe definitions. I wouldn’t spend to much time writing everything down as in my experience reviewing my notes wasn’t a huge part of my review process. It was more doing a lot of mcs that helped me the most.
@@BrandonGap Awesome, thank you my man
I like your video. You are very humble and honest. Your video motivates me a lot
You got this!
So you didn't watch the videos or do the sims?
Congratulations on becoming a CPA. Just one question, did you do the random multiple choice or the personalized multiple choice in Becker?
TY! It was random mult choice. You can choose how many questions you take at a time and which chps the questions came from.
Thanks
Can you help me with questions for BEC so that I cẩn focus I am very nervous
@pauliesioocnnell2524 how to reach her I don’t have any idea
@pauliesioocnnell2524 can you please let me know how to reach her
Hey @brandongap
Great video. A quick question, on avg what percentage were you getting when doing sets of 38 questions from Becker practice test for FAR? I feel like I am stuck between 55 and 65% on mcq’s. Should I continue to use this method and learn from understanding the answer or should I approach a different method?
Thank you so much
Congrats man, I appreciate the tips and study methods
Hello ! How do we check which book version is applicable from when? like if i am planning for regulation early next year .. i have 3.5 with me .. online its 3.6 but got to know that 3.7 will be applicable for 2021.
how can i decide the right version of book?
please advise.
Anu Jain it should say on Becker’s program what version if for what date. I never had any issues regarding not having the right version so I’m not really sure. Becker will notify you of any updates and when the tests are updating.
Go with whatever is updated online. Right now I have updates for the CARES act which are only tested from Oct - Dec so there will not be new books printed. Honestly I just study off of the online book. I find it much easier.
Wow😍. I thought this happen only in movies. My respect to you.
Congratulations 🥳 thank you for this great advice.
If you don’t mind, do you know form where I can get Becker’s books by spending not much??
Can anyone tell me more about the CPA? I live in Canada 🇨🇦 is the exam strictly multiple choice and how many questions? Do they provide 200 or more multiple choice questions to learn? So that way, it help prepare for exams
Thank you for sharing your experience. I find it very helpful.
No problem!
Obviously CPA exam has been a pain in my ass, but that won’t bother me any longer I have gotten my license already thanks to you Mrs Brenda God bless you more cuz you made it possible for me .
Congratulations! Mr. CPA!
start listening at 4:04
I thinking about found CPA you said that the key is doing as much multiple choice questions but apart of the one they send you where I can find more ?
How did you well without studying the simulations? What is the concept behind this?
Congratulations on passing!
You can make it all with the help of Mr James who helped me pass my exam i will advice you to contact him now for a help he will give you some question and answers which will be ask on your exam day
1 9 1 6 8 8 4 0 5 8 4
So I just believe that for the simulations you never know what you’ll get so I put more emphasis in understanding concepts by doing a lot of mcs. I saw some others say they didn’t really do sims to often in review and it works imo. Doing as many mcs as possible was best for me. I would allocate 1 day only to work on sims during my review period two weeks before my exams.
@@coinbureau38 who is js
@@jonathangomez6340 he helped with some question and answers which will be ask on your exam day
Congratulations on passing! I have a question about the failing system they do for the CPA exam. How does it work? I’ve only heard that you could fail 3 times, but there’s some weird conditions attached.
You can take each exam as much as you need to. Just have to pay a fee each time.
@@BrandonGap so does that mean that even if I fail 20 times, as long as I pass each section once, I pass the CPA exam?
@@hehexd999 pretty much, yes. Doesn’t matter how many times you take it.
How did you complete BEC in 24 days? I'm giving my BEC exam in about a month.
Hi! So you basically didn’t do any sort of simulations for your exams?
Not really. I did a few simulations for Far (statement of cash flows) and Reg (basis) for certain topics. Then I would go thru some of the sims on the mock exams. I saw from another TH-camr that the sims are random so you never know what you’re going to get. So didn’t want to spend to much time on them.
Maybe you can help me but I know you say multiples choice but sims are my issue. How would did you tackle sims?
Best thing I can say is to do the aicpa practice exams for sims. They’re usually similar to what’s on the test. I also did sims on Becker that I felt would be good “sim topics”. You never know what kind of sim you’re gonna get which is why I believe knowing all the topics through doing mcs is your best bet.
Got discouraged so hard from failing like 5 years ago after studying so hard and remembering all the flash cards. I'll try this approach, hopefully I come out on top.
Great video I like your studying method! how long did it take you to get to 100% mcq per module? How long did it take you write notes? Per module ..can you break down how you study day?
Can I Get the Material pls
Also, do you still have your notes?
Congratulations on passing all of the exams!!!
Thank you!!!
hi Brandon - when you were doing your 2 week review and doing sets of multiple choice questions were you just doing the ones you had done previously during your studying? there's only a certain number of mc questions in becker and at some point it gets repetitive and you end up memorizing q's/answers..