Congratulations on passing your CPA exam. Quite an accomplishment no matter the age. I'm 53 and looking to take the CPA when I complete the education requirements. It's not going to be easy but it's not impossible either. I think older candidates have more patience and perseverance than younger candidates because we've been knocked down before and gotten up so a challenge isn't something new but it does get tougher to deal with mentally as we age.
Thank you for the message. And yes, there are many advantages for older candidates. We have less distractions from friends and SNS's, and we don't need to sleep as much. Good luck on your journey!
You’re amazing. I’m binge watching your videos. I have been procrastinating for years and I’m finally taking steps to send in the required stuff to be approved to take mine.
I am planning to give my exam on 15th July. The First paper I targeted is FAR. I am using becker material & half of the portion of study material I completed with MCQ. I haven't tries my hands on sim but I am serious now coz I have responsibility now & I need to complete my paper by this deadline. Your video is really helpful. I am writing this coz I want to remember that what I was feeling when I was preparing. Thank you for these tips. The first one is so true that we normally take notes and that is without remembering. So It is actually important that we remember and then take notes. Thank You so much again. I will come back after passing my first paper in july. Have a great day!!
49 isn’t so old😀. But it’s so great to hear about someone passing the exam that’s not straight out of college. It’s definitely much more difficult because you haven’t studied that stuff in years and it’s all different anyway. Congratulations on passing a very difficult exam.
Thank you for this video. Can you also make a video on the new CPA curriculum and how to study for the same? Also on which optional subject to choose? And what is the order of taking these exams?
Thank you for your comments and questions. Unfortunately, I don't know the new curriculum, so I can't really respond to your first 2 questions. In terms of the order, I have a video which talks about that, but it was before the new curriculum era. It may still help though...
Please make more videos. Also, tell us more about yourself. Why you took the cpa exams later in life, what you plan to do for work? Did it help your career? What did employers think? Etc etc. thanks!
Thank you for making these videos. I have a few questions. Did you read the whole book or just the parts you missed on the MCs? Also, how long did you take to study for each exam? I am using Becker by the way.
Thank you for your comments and questions. 1) I only read the parts I missed on MCs, but because I did a lot of questions and missed a lot too, so I probably ended up reading the entire book. But I would be reading to really understand the points I missed, so it's a lot different from just skimming through. 2) FAR - 7 weeks, BEC - 3.5 weeks, AUD - 3.5 weeks, REG - 3 weeks (but more hours than BEC and AUD). Hope this answered your questions, but please let me know if you have further questions.
@@sugarcpaus2091 Thank you so much for clarifying this. In regards to the simulations when would you recommend doing them? If so, would you recommend doing them all or just a few? Also, did you also study on the weekends or were they days of for you? Thank you once more.
You're welcome. As for simulations, I recommend to start after getting comfortable with MCQ's. You need to understand the concepts before trying simulations. In my case, I studied for 22 days for AUD, but didn't start the simulations until day 11, so half way through. As for weekends, I did study basically everyday, but that was really possible because I have easier life than most people, i.e., I don't work full-time. Hope that answered your questions, but please let me know if you have further questions.
Great points there! Can you share on how you took your notes on PowerPoint? I am more interested in knowing your layout per slides. I am using Roger CPA as well and see lots of visuals and side by side comparisons on concepts and it’s so tempting to use those as reference, trying to understand how you done it while putting it into your own words.
Hi, thank you for an insightful video! I had two questions on your note-taking. When you said you organised notes by missed MCQ questions, did you also write the actual questions down? And also when you tried to recall the questions by reading the highlighted sections the next morning, did you just think in your head or try to type the actual questions? Really appreciate it!
Congratulations! I just saw your video and it is amazing. How did u watch all the lectures so quickly, still retain enough information to answer mcqs from each chapter?This method is new to me so I would appreciate if u can explain.
Thank you for your comments and question. I was not able to retain a lot of information, so I did poorly on MCQs initially in each section. But as I continued practicing MCQs, my score improved. Please let me know if you have further questions. And good luck on your journey!
Congratulations on becoming a CPA. Quick question, what is the average study time/hours you recommend for each section? Can 30 hours weekly quality study time be enough to take FAR in 5 weeks? Thank you for all you do. Your videos are of great motivation.
Thank you for your comments and questions. It's been a while since I took the exam, but if I remember correctly, I have spent more than 200 hours for FAR and about 120 hours for other sections. FAR was my first section, and I wasn't very efficient at the beginning, so I had to spend that many hours, but if it isn't your first section, 30 hours for 5 weeks may be sufficient. I recommend that you apply for the exam when you start feeling comfortable and confident though.
This question has nothing to do with the memorization video, but I noticed in your other video that you said you have working experience as an FP&A analyst. Have you ever thought about making videos on that? Career path as an FP&A analyst, what kind of hard skill is required. Or just talk about it in general. I am asking because I used to be an accountant and recently transferred to FP&A. And I found it to be harder than accounting and request a really analytical mind. Also while it is being detail-oriented, you can't lose sight on the bigger picture either. How do you train yourself to be more analytical? Thank you.
Thanks for your suggestion. FP&A is a great career, as it's closer to the business and management. So, always thinking from management perspective is very important in FP&A, imo. I would think about making video about it, but I just started a consulting business, so I need to focus on that for the time being. Thanks again.
For your notes, did you put them in a certain order with each section or did you add new slides as you went through the mcqs? what is your process of adding the notes into the PowerPoint slides step by step?
Thank you for your question. I kept them organized just like how Roger textbook is organized, so that I can find what I want to look for later. When I miss a question, I go to the textbook, read and understand, then open my PowerPoint notes and go to the respective chapter and add a note to wherever it fits. Hope that makes sense, but let me know again if you have further questions :)
@@sugarcpaus2091 Hi Sugar CPA. For these Powerpoints that you are referring to, did you create them from scratch yourself or are they Powerpoints provided by Roger that you can download and edit to digitally and/or physically take notes on?
I used Roger as well, and I watched everything between 1.5x and 2x. You want to go through the videos as quickly as possible and spend more time on doing MCQ's after watching all the videos. I didn't even worry when I didn't understand when watching the videos.
Hi, how many questions did you take on average after each section? I use Roger CPA and you can choose however many questions you would like after each section. Thanks for the videos and congrats on your success
Thank you for your comment and question. I only did the class questions which is 3-5 question per chapter. That's all I did after each chapter, and none from the QBank. I didn't want to use any of the questions in the QBank until I finish watching all lecture videos. Hope this answered your question, but please let me know if you have further questions :)
Hi, if I don’t feel deeply understanding about 1 module, do you suggest to master that module before moving to the next one or just keep going and practicing on weak areas at final review? I’m studying for FAR if that make any difference. Thank you!
My suggestion is just keep going. My approach is just watch lecture videos and only do 3-5 class questions after each module, and keep going till the end. After that I do MCQ's in random order. This is where we learn the most. So, when I watch lecture videos, I don't worry at all if I didn't understand because that step is just to get an idea of what kind of content there is to prepare myself for MCQ's in the next step. I hope I'm making sense, but please let me know if you have further questions :)
Thank you for your answer! I should have mentioned that I was at the point where I didn’t understand much after doing the multiple choice questions for a particular module. But I think your technique mentioned on videos and from this answer will still work for me to keep moving forward. Thank you 🙏😃
@@sugarcpaus2091 When you went back to read about the subject, would you do it right away or would you save all your missed questions review at the end so you can get through more sets of questions?
Tough question, but I would say, you need to be able to get about 70% (or 75% to be safe) correct on Becker's practice questions to pass the exam. In order to do so, you will have to practice most of their MCQ's and simulations, and read and understand the textbook on the questions you missed. In doing so, you will cover most of the Becker materials. I hope that makes sense, but let me know again if you have further questions :)
Just started my CPA journey today, I just wanna say these videos really inspired me
I'm glad to hear that. Good luck on your journey!
Congratulations on passing your CPA exam. Quite an accomplishment no matter the age. I'm 53 and looking to take the CPA when I complete the education requirements. It's not going to be easy but it's not impossible either. I think older candidates have more patience and perseverance than younger candidates because we've been knocked down before and gotten up so a challenge isn't something new but it does get tougher to deal with mentally as we age.
Thank you for the message. And yes, there are many advantages for older candidates. We have less distractions from friends and SNS's, and we don't need to sleep as much. Good luck on your journey!
Can relate to you. Waiting for my CPAES evaluation.
Great! Hope it goes smoothly :)
You’re amazing. I’m binge watching your videos. I have been procrastinating for years and I’m finally taking steps to send in the required stuff to be approved to take mine.
Oh, thank you. And it's great that you took the steps towards a great journey!
Please don't delete this video or channel. Rather make videos more
Thank you! I'm working on one right now, and have a few more topics in mind :)
I am planning to give my exam on 15th July. The First paper I targeted is FAR. I am using becker material & half of the portion of study material I completed with MCQ. I haven't tries my hands on sim but I am serious now coz I have responsibility now & I need to complete my paper by this deadline. Your video is really helpful. I am writing this coz I want to remember that what I was feeling when I was preparing. Thank you for these tips. The first one is so true that we normally take notes and that is without remembering. So It is actually important that we remember and then take notes. Thank You so much again. I will come back after passing my first paper in july. Have a great day!!
Thank you for your comments and best of luck. You still got time!
Thanks for sharing. It all make sense. It seems easy and effective. Eye opening!
Thank you for your comment! Good luck in your exam!
49 isn’t so old😀. But it’s so great to hear about someone passing the exam that’s not straight out of college. It’s definitely much more difficult because you haven’t studied that stuff in years and it’s all different anyway. Congratulations on passing a very difficult exam.
Thank you for your comments! Yes, I should've said "relatively old among the test takers" :)
Excelente, voy a implementar algunas cosas para el estudio de japonés.
Muchas gracias, y good luck! I'm sure these techniques can be useful in any exams.
Thanks for sharing. We have a lot of similarities based on age and study course, I will check all your videos and keep you posted
That's great! Good luck on your journey, and let me know if you have any questions.
Thank you for this video. Can you also make a video on the new CPA curriculum and how to study for the same? Also on which optional subject to choose? And what is the order of taking these exams?
Thank you for your comments and questions. Unfortunately, I don't know the new curriculum, so I can't really respond to your first 2 questions. In terms of the order, I have a video which talks about that, but it was before the new curriculum era. It may still help though...
Please make more videos. Also, tell us more about yourself. Why you took the cpa exams later in life, what you plan to do for work? Did it help your career? What did employers think? Etc etc. thanks!
Thank you again. That's a good idea! I will publish the next one soon which will be about motivation, and include some of that.
Hi, I just published a video talking a little bit about myself and why taking CPA exam. Hope you'll like it ;-)
This is awesome!
Thank you! If there are anyone studying for the exam, please share!
Thank you for making these videos. I have a few questions. Did you read the whole book or just the parts you missed on the MCs? Also, how long did you take to study for each exam? I am using Becker by the way.
Thank you for your comments and questions. 1) I only read the parts I missed on MCs, but because I did a lot of questions and missed a lot too, so I probably ended up reading the entire book. But I would be reading to really understand the points I missed, so it's a lot different from just skimming through. 2) FAR - 7 weeks, BEC - 3.5 weeks, AUD - 3.5 weeks, REG - 3 weeks (but more hours than BEC and AUD). Hope this answered your questions, but please let me know if you have further questions.
@@sugarcpaus2091 Thank you so much for clarifying this. In regards to the simulations when would you recommend doing them? If so, would you recommend doing them all or just a few? Also, did you also study on the weekends or were they days of for you? Thank you once more.
You're welcome. As for simulations, I recommend to start after getting comfortable with MCQ's. You need to understand the concepts before trying simulations. In my case, I studied for 22 days for AUD, but didn't start the simulations until day 11, so half way through. As for weekends, I did study basically everyday, but that was really possible because I have easier life than most people, i.e., I don't work full-time. Hope that answered your questions, but please let me know if you have further questions.
@@sugarcpaus2091 MCs meaning ?
Great points there! Can you share on how you took your notes on PowerPoint? I am more interested in knowing your layout per slides. I am using Roger CPA as well and see lots of visuals and side by side comparisons on concepts and it’s so tempting to use those as reference, trying to understand how you done it while putting it into your own words.
Thank you for your comment and question. I can send you a sample page from my notes if you would like. You can send me an email at mizzotini@gmail.com
Hi, thank you for an insightful video! I had two questions on your note-taking. When you said you organised notes by missed MCQ questions, did you also write the actual questions down? And also when you tried to recall the questions by reading the highlighted sections the next morning, did you just think in your head or try to type the actual questions? Really appreciate it!
Also may I please kindly ask how many hours you studied on weekdays and during the weekend? Watched your videos and found them very helpful.
Thank you for your comments and questions. I did NOT write the actual questions down. Just bullet point summaries. And I just thought in my head.
I studied 4 to 6 hours regardless of weekdays or weekends. I wasn't working full-time, so it was able to study a lot on weekdays too.
@@sugarcpaus2091 Thank you so much! Greatly appreciate your responses :)
Congratulations! I just saw your video and it is amazing. How did u watch all the lectures so quickly, still retain enough information to answer mcqs from each chapter?This method is new to me so I would appreciate if u can explain.
Thank you for your comments and question. I was not able to retain a lot of information, so I did poorly on MCQs initially in each section. But as I continued practicing MCQs, my score improved. Please let me know if you have further questions. And good luck on your journey!
Great techniques
Thank you for your comment! Please try them, it works!
Congratulations on becoming a CPA. Quick question, what is the average study time/hours you recommend for each section? Can 30 hours weekly quality study time be enough to take FAR in 5 weeks? Thank you for all you do. Your videos are of great motivation.
Thank you for your comments and questions. It's been a while since I took the exam, but if I remember correctly, I have spent more than 200 hours for FAR and about 120 hours for other sections. FAR was my first section, and I wasn't very efficient at the beginning, so I had to spend that many hours, but if it isn't your first section, 30 hours for 5 weeks may be sufficient. I recommend that you apply for the exam when you start feeling comfortable and confident though.
This question has nothing to do with the memorization video, but I noticed in your other video that you said you have working experience as an FP&A analyst. Have you ever thought about making videos on that? Career path as an FP&A analyst, what kind of hard skill is required. Or just talk about it in general. I am asking because I used to be an accountant and recently transferred to FP&A. And I found it to be harder than accounting and request a really analytical mind. Also while it is being detail-oriented, you can't lose sight on the bigger picture either. How do you train yourself to be more analytical? Thank you.
Thanks for your suggestion. FP&A is a great career, as it's closer to the business and management. So, always thinking from management perspective is very important in FP&A, imo. I would think about making video about it, but I just started a consulting business, so I need to focus on that for the time being. Thanks again.
For your notes, did you put them in a certain order with each section or did you add new slides as you went through the mcqs? what is your process of adding the notes into the PowerPoint slides step by step?
Thank you for your question. I kept them organized just like how Roger textbook is organized, so that I can find what I want to look for later. When I miss a question, I go to the textbook, read and understand, then open my PowerPoint notes and go to the respective chapter and add a note to wherever it fits. Hope that makes sense, but let me know again if you have further questions :)
@@sugarcpaus2091 Yes, that's actually the way I was thinking to do it as well. Thanks for the advice!!
Great! There's probably better ways than PowerPoint though. I'm old, so I just don't know new ways to do things :)
@@sugarcpaus2091 Hi Sugar CPA. For these Powerpoints that you are referring to, did you create them from scratch yourself or are they Powerpoints provided by Roger that you can download and edit to digitally and/or physically take notes on?
Hello, did you go through each video sections at 1.5X speed or regular speed? I'm using rogers
I used Roger as well, and I watched everything between 1.5x and 2x. You want to go through the videos as quickly as possible and spend more time on doing MCQ's after watching all the videos. I didn't even worry when I didn't understand when watching the videos.
@@sugarcpaus2091 thank you!!
Hi, how many questions did you take on average after each section? I use Roger CPA and you can choose however many questions you would like after each section. Thanks for the videos and congrats on your success
Thank you for your comment and question. I only did the class questions which is 3-5 question per chapter. That's all I did after each chapter, and none from the QBank. I didn't want to use any of the questions in the QBank until I finish watching all lecture videos. Hope this answered your question, but please let me know if you have further questions :)
@@sugarcpaus2091 thanks for the feedback.
How many hours did you typically study per day?
You're welcome. I studied about 5-6 hours a day, weekday and weekend. For REG, over 6 hours a day because I really struggled in that section.
@@sugarcpaus2091 yeah, makes sense. Thanks for sharing your experiences.. time is truly the biggest factor for most
thank you for your video. how do you review each chapter. How do you analyze whether you understand or not.
I’m 41 years old. Accounting has always been my dream career. This year I will start. But I want to do the degree as quickly as possible.
All the Best
It's never too late! Good luck!!
Hi, if I don’t feel deeply understanding about 1 module, do you suggest to master that module before moving to the next one or just keep going and practicing on weak areas at final review?
I’m studying for FAR if that make any difference.
Thank you!
My suggestion is just keep going. My approach is just watch lecture videos and only do 3-5 class questions after each module, and keep going till the end. After that I do MCQ's in random order. This is where we learn the most. So, when I watch lecture videos, I don't worry at all if I didn't understand because that step is just to get an idea of what kind of content there is to prepare myself for MCQ's in the next step. I hope I'm making sense, but please let me know if you have further questions :)
Thank you for your answer!
I should have mentioned that I was at the point where I didn’t understand much after doing the multiple choice questions for a particular module. But I think your technique mentioned on videos and from this answer will still work for me to keep moving forward.
Thank you 🙏😃
I see... for any missed MCQ's, I spend time reading textbook and taking notes, so in that sense, I do take time and try to understand :)
Thank you !
@@sugarcpaus2091 When you went back to read about the subject, would you do it right away or would you save all your missed questions review at the end so you can get through more sets of questions?
I want to meet and udergo 3 days intership on how to study... Sad.. I need more details !! any zoom meetings ?
Hi, I'm sorry, but I can't do zoom meetings, but you can always ask me any questions here, and I will try to answer within a few days.
@@sugarcpaus2091 What sounds harder to your "ears"? 1. Certified Public Accountant or 2. Masters Degree in Statistics?
Im 63, so i can do it??, Greetings from Puerto Rico !!!!
I think so! It's never too late!
Do i need to learn the content of becker to clear the cpa exams?
Tough question, but I would say, you need to be able to get about 70% (or 75% to be safe) correct on Becker's practice questions to pass the exam. In order to do so, you will have to practice most of their MCQ's and simulations, and read and understand the textbook on the questions you missed. In doing so, you will cover most of the Becker materials. I hope that makes sense, but let me know again if you have further questions :)
What did you major in university? I really wonder
I majored in Accounting back in the 1990's :)