CPA

I am a CPA! 

My license came in the mail today.  I can now use the title and am all official.  It was a long strange trip but it is all finished up now.  This was just a formality, but it still is exciting.

The Final Fee?

I got the email today saying that I've been approved for certification.  I am Texas License number 94,684.  I paid my fee online this evening.  Next week I should get my stuff in the mail and I can officially call myself a CPA.

This Week?

I talked with the people over at the Texas state board last Friday and was told all my paperwork is good and I should be issued a license this week.  This is highly amusing to me since the post office still says the package is undelivered.  That will teach me to spend the extra buck or two on delivery confirmation.

Paperwork

I finished the four hour ethics course this weekend.  It wasn't too bad, although it was pretty dry.  The test at the end was pretty tricky though, but I got enough to get my certificate of completion.  I filled out the exam that I have to submit with the rest of my paperwork.  I then filled out the rest of the paperwork and wrote my $50 application fee.  I got my boss on the accounting side of my job to sign off on my work experience this morning.  All that is left is to head to the post office and hope they deliver it quickly.  I might have a license number in the next 2-3 weeks.

I continue to get emails and such and am answering them as they come in.  Good luck to those that are taking exams in the next month or so. 

Post Exam Thoughts

I've had a couple of days to digest that I'm actually done with this exam.  I've still got paperwork and stuff to do, but the exam itself is done and the worry of grades is behind me.  I'm hoping that the exam will stop consuming my life in the near future.  Overall it was an exhausting thing.  I was tired most of the time.  I was unable to focus on other things in my life like work, house chores, or hobbies (what little time there was for it).  I would never have made it through without the support of my wife and the people I met through the live class, this blog, and the people over at another71.com.  

There are a couple of general points about this exam that are simplistic, yet really true.

1.  Nothing in this test is overly difficult on its own.  Each topic can be confusing at first, but once you dig into it, the topics aren't as bad as they look on the surface.

2.  The quantity of material you have to learn for some of these sections is mind-blowing.  You have to know a good bit about it all to survive.

3.  One Day At A Time!  This is your daily mantra.  Due to the above two items you have to look at this exam one step at a time.  FAR has 9 Becker classes.  REG has 7 Becker classes.  Each class may cover a dozen topics.  You have to break it down into small steps.  If you try to think about what has to get done in a short amount of time you will drive yourself nuts and waste time.  Truly believing this concept in your heart is hard.  If there is one thing I could give to others taking this exam, a true acceptance of the One Day At A Time mantra would be it.  It will help greatly in trying to focus.

4.  No one other than someone else who is going through or has gone through this exam really understands what you are going through.  Statements like "You're smart, you'll do fine" and other like it will drive you nuts.  The speaker means well, but they just don't get it.  Find others going through the exam.  That support is essential for those times when you will be depressed, upset, and unfocused.  Another71.com was the main source of that for me.  The people there were a wealth of information and doublely so for moral support.  

5.  13-15 hour marathon study sessions seem like a good idea but they are not.  I will learn more in two 4 hour sessions than I will in two 10 hour sessions.  Sometimes you have to buckle down and crank out a 10 hour or more day to nail down a topic, but those should be rare and far between.  Doing them regularly will burn you out and not be as productive as shorter study sessions.

6.  You have to take some time for yourself.  I did really well about taking Friday nights off.  On Saturdays and Sundays I typically kept myself to 5 hour sessions.  This left 6-8 hours of the day to spend with my wife and relax.

7.  No one likes to do what makes them feel stupid.  This has a negative impact when you are trying to study.  We tend to drift towards what is familiar and what we know.  For studying you need to do the exact opposite.  Spending 2-3 hours studying stuff you already know does not benefit you.  You have to intentionally seek out your weak areas and focus on them.  This will naturally make you feel bad or stupid.  Learning to recognize this made pushing weak areas bearable.  They are still painful and un-fun, but  if you understand why you are avoiding a topic it will help to push through the feeling. 

This exam sucks.  Not only does the exam itself beat you down but the whole process is an endurance test.  Dealing with three of four different entities to register and take the test (with fees to each person for each step).  The unlisted benefits/trials of the process are lessons in patience and frustration.  The score grading process for all the AICPA's talk of transparency is a mystery more clouded than a government special ops program.  The score release process has all the efficiency of the department of motor vehicles.

Is the exam worth it?  I don't have the experience to say.  For myself, it wasn't about getting another job or a higher paying job.  I'll continue to do what I've been doing.  Doors will be available in the future that wouldn't be available without getting the CPA.  The satisfaction of finishing is amazing.  I did this for me and finished it.

I decided to take this exam in late September 2009.  I started my first classes in mid-October 2009.  I took my last test April 14, 2010.  That is 6-7 months if you don't count the 5 weeks of waiting after the last test to get the score.  It was a hellish 6 months.  I hated the lack of free time that I had grown accustom to.  I hated the lack of time for friends and family.  I hated being tired all the time.  I've now finished something that most people will never even attempt.  I jumped through the hoops that were put out for me to jump through.  I will soon be a CPA.  For me it was something I left undone in my life after college back in 2001 when I took the old paper test.  This was the one thing in my life that I started but never finished.  The conclusion to that part of my life adds to its meaning to me.

Lastly, thank you to those that supported me throughout this process.  Many of you think I helped you with questions and support, but I got much more out of it than you.  The blog and the comments/emails/etc helped motivate me and keep me focused when I was exhausted.  Once I started getting messages regularly I felt that I had to keep going and putting a strong face forward even when I wanted to just find a dark hole to crawl into. 

FAR Score Released! Also 2:30 am & 4 am Is Extremely Early

The Texas site was down at 2:30 am when I checked this morning for maintenance.  I guess this answers the "did they change when they update" question from yesterday.  A bit after 4 am I checked again after having almost no sleep and what sleep I did have was about checking my scores.  This time the site was down completely.  Another 15 minutes go by and the site finally comes up.  Scores are there.  I am so exhausted and my eyes are burning.  However, with my score of 94 on FAR I am finally done with this exam!  I'll add more later today after I've gotten some sleep.

Tomorrow?

The AICPA released almost 4,900 FAR scores to the state boards yesterday.  That means a bunch of folks will start getting their scores tonight.  Texas doesn't update until 2:30-4:30am though, so hopefully I'll know something tomorrow morning.

BEC-5 Additional Info

Someone sent me an instant message yesterday while I was out.  I then lost the window and hence the messenger name as well as the email address I was suppose to respond to.  I remember the question though, so I'll answer it here.

The mnemonics for BEC-5 relates to the direct labor and direct materials variances.  The mnemonics are  PURE, SAD, and DADS.  PURE are the different variances you'll need to calculate and DADS shows you how to get them.  SAD is what order to subtract.

P = Price variance
U = Usage variance
R = Rate variance
E = Efficiency variance

Standard less Actual = Difference (SAD)


For the SAD mnemonic a positive difference is good and a negative difference is bad (ie standard price is greater than actual means you saved money, hence a positive number is a good variance).

DA = Difference times Actual
DS = Difference times Standard


You line up the PURE and DADS/DADS nmemonics together as such:

P=DA
U=DS
R=DA
E=DS

For each one you are going to do the SAD mnemonic for the item you are working on and multiply it by either the Actual or Standard (DA vs DS to figure out which).

Price Variance:  [Standard Price less Actual Price = Difference]   Take that Difference and multiply it by the Actual Usage   (P=D x A)

Usage Variance = [Standard Usage less Actual Usage = Difference]  Take that Difference and multiply it by the Standard Price  (U = D x S)

The P & U are the material variances

Rate Variance = [Standard Rate less Actual Rate = Difference]  Take that Difference and multiply it by the Actual Efficiency  (R = D x A)

Efficiency Variance = [Standard Efficiency less Actual Efficiency = Difference]  Take that Difference and multiply it by the Standard Rate

The R & E are the labor variances.

When you line the above up you get:

P = DA
U = DS
R = DA
E = DS

This is a little complicated and confusing.  Once you work through it a couple of times though it makes the direct labor and direct labor variances very easy.  If you have my two page cheat sheet for BEC (http://www.dalesines.com/cpa-exam/BEC.pdf)  on the bottom left is where I have this part written out.

In the Becker books the above comes from the page just past where they cover the direct variances.  I do not have my books with me, but I believe the above stuff are all in passkeys, so that should help make it easier to find.

Scores

Where for art thou Scores? 

How are Scores Released?

I've been asked how/when scores are released.  I'll attempt to explain it.

Each quarter is a testing window.  Each window you are able to take the test during Month 1 and Month 2.  Scores are released twice per window.  If you take the exam in Month 1 through the 1st week of Month 2 you have a good chance at being in the Wave 1 score release.  Wave 1 score release usually happens between the 16th-25th of Month 2.  Everything after the 1st week of Month 2 (and everything not released in Wave 1) gets released towards the end of Month 3 (again, typically the 16th-25th).  This is not an exact science, but it is what I've seen and what others I've heard of have experienced.

Even if you take the exam in the time frame that would be in Wave 1 it is possible to be in Wave 2.  If you get any of the non-graded pre-test simulations I understand you are automatically moved to Wave 2.  There is no way to know if you get these pre-test simulations though.

On the actual score releases each wave:  There is a two-step release process.  The AICPA releases the scores to NASBA & the State Boards.  The next day usually NASBA releases the scores to the students.  A few states do not use NASBA to release scores to the students.  For those states the State Board releases them.  Those states do it however they want.  In my case, Texas does not use NASBA but rather releases scores on their own website.  This usually happens a day or two after the NASBA release.  Other states come out as fast as NASBA while others only send scores by mail.  Basically, pray you are in a NASBA state or a state that has their stuff together.  Each section of the exam is released separately.  The goal is typically for them to release a section per day for 4 days.  That doesn't always happen, but it is the general idea.  The end result is the AICPA starts the release process and everyone is glued to their computers for 4-7 days checking to see if their scores have been updated on a website.

Jeff over at another71.com has put together a good video explaining the above and has more information.  Check it out:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZhniViOfPr4

Waiting

I'm getting fidgety now waiting on scores.  I've still got 3-4 weeks to go assuming I don't end up having to wait until June.  I am enjoying my free time again though.  I'm still checking the forums over at another71.com daily as well as responding and checking my blog a couple of times a day.  The test is over but the obsession has remained.

Post Exam Thoughts

I had a pretty relaxing weekend.  I got caught up on a ton of house stuff I've been neglecting for months as well as saw friends and relaxed.

Thinking back on the exam is getting fuzzy already.  It was brutal overall.  I think I did alright on the MC portions of it.  I am hopefully at least 50% on the simulations.  The more I think on my written the responses the worse I feel.  I doubt there is any good way to be comfortable with this section of the exam.  Overall I still think I passed.  Assuming I did decent on the MC portion that should be enough to carry me through.  There is always the possibility that I'll have to retake this one, but I'll leave that stress for the week results get released.

FAR was the worst section of the four by a wide margin.  The amount of material and complexity of it is astronomical.  You could prepared for this section for a year and still end up with stuff you have no idea about.  I really am glad I saved this one for last.  If I didn't already have 3 sections behind me I would have been completely flustered during the test itself which would have been detrimental given the time constraints.  For those looking for reassurance on this section I don't know what I can offer.  Expect to go in nervous and come out feeling like crap.  The trick is to understand that ahead of time and not let it trip you up during the test itself.  Focus for the 4 hours and then feel free to stress after the exam.  You have to remain calm and focused during it though.

Good luck to those I've spoken to in the past week that are testing this week.  I'll be thinking of you on your respective test days.

FAR Exam Taken

It was brutal.  The simulations were a complete killer.  The written were not on topics I was strong in.  I couldn't tell a difference in difficulty in the MC testlets.  The only saving grace I have on the MC testlets are that the 2nd and 3rd testlets took longer to get through, so I'm hoping they were actually harder.  I couldn't tell a difference like I was able to in REG or AUD though.  I'm pooped and a bit cranky at the moment so I'll try a more detailed good post after I relax and settle down.  It may be tomorrow.  For now I can rest at least.

The End is Nigh!

1 days remaining (adjusted to final test date - saved 9 days over October 2009 estimate)
Mood - Getting Nervous
Study Time – 0.5 hours (403.0 total - FAR: 122.5 - BEC: 74.5 - REG: 118.0 - AUD: 89.5)
Scores:  AUD-94, REG-97, BEC-93

I looked at the ratios tonight.  None of them are particularly hard.  I know the main ones from previous classes.  If I get one of the really odd ones I'll just go with what I think and not worry too much about it.  I'm as ready as I'm going to be.  Hopefully I don't keep myself up all night or keep waking up dreaming about the test like I've done on other sections.  

My test is scheduled for noon tomorrow.  Like in previous sections, I plan on showing up around 10 (why won't they just let you schedule to start at 10 already) and should be allowed to start then.  If for some reason they can't I'll have some time to review my notes and the book and such.  I should be done around 3pm tomorrow.  

I'm sure I'll feel horrid after the exam and be somewhat negative (same as other sections).  I'll unwind in a day or two and can hopefully have my life back.  It is hard to believe that it has been less than 6 months since this whole thing started.  It feels like two years.  I've put in the effort and should be just fine.  If I can convince my stomach of that so it settles down though it would be better.

The Final Push

2 days remaining (adjusted to final test date - saved 9 days over October 2009 estimate)
Mood - Good
Study Time – 1.0 hours (402.5 total - FAR: 122.0 - BEC: 74.5 - REG: 118.0 - AUD: 89.5)
Scores:  AUD-94, REG-97, BEC-93

It is really easy to study when you don't have much to do.  I didn't put much into tonight.  I reviewed a minor point on pensions, reviewed the foreign currency stuff, and reviewed the reconciliation of government-wide financials.  Tomorrow I'll hit up the ratios. 

Thanks for the emails of encouragement over the past two days.  My inbox started to explode Sunday and I've enjoyed emailing with many of you.

Ending on the Wrong Note

3 days remaining (adjusted to final test date - saved 9 days over October 2009 estimate)
Mood - Annoyed
Study Time – 3.5 hours (401.5 total - FAR: 121.0 - BEC: 74.5 - REG: 118.0 - AUD: 89.5)
Scores:  AUD-94, REG-97, BEC-93

My (hopefully) last practice final exam is my weakest performance yet.  I did outstanding on the simulations and very poorly on the MC.  They really twisted the questions in the MC for this exam to the point of insanity.  Wording on many of the questions was beyond poor.  I hate knowing the topic and being unable to figure out what the heck the question is saying or asking.  I do have two topics to go review tomorrow though.  All in I think my score would have been a 69 (again giving myself 5 points for the written).  This is only 2 points worse than yesterdays, but seems worse since I dropped under that 70% mark.  I'm still good overall once you figure in my actual performance over practice exam performance.  I am a bit scared about this section though.  Sadly I think it could come down to the luck of which types of questions I get.  Luck is not a strategy though.

Hmmmmm

4 days remaining (adjusted to final test date - saved 9 days over October 2009 estimate)
Mood - Unsure
Study Time – 4.0 hours (397.5 total - FAR: 117.5 - BEC: 74.5 - REG: 118.0 - AUD: 89.5)
Scores:  AUD-94, REG-97, BEC-93

I just scored the lowest I've scored on any practice final exam of any section.  By my calculation I 66 before any consideration of the written.  While I am nervous about the written in general, I've done average to better than average on the actual exams.  If you add 5 points for the written that puts me at a practice final exam #1 score of 71.  This is a couple of points lower than what I did on the second BEC one where I got a 73.  All in it isn't too horrible.  I've done at least 12 points and as much as 20 points better on the actual exam, which would put me at 83-91.  I expect this exam to actually be my lowest, but I should be ok based on this practice final exam.  Obviously I'd like to be higher, but it should be good enough.

Onto the practice exam itself.  I had 3 RTCDQ issues (2 in MC, 1 in a simulation).  These are pretty silly mistakes that I should know better.  I had 5 misses that I consider stupid.  These are basic things that I know that I just plain missed (net of tax, mis-added/math error).  While I'm sure I'll miss some on the actual exam, between these two areas I lost 5-7 points on the exam.  If I could get half of those back I'd have gotten a 74 or 75.  Three of the questions I knew the topic being asked but due to piss-poor wording in the questions and answers missed them.  I'll see a couple like this in the exam and they are frustrating there too.  I just have to remember there is nothing to be done about them and do what I can without wasting time.  

On the timing I am ok.  I am not getting through the MC as fast as I would like, but my goal on the MC question timing is a bit unrealistic.  I want to have an hour for each simulation so that I can spend extra time on the written.  This means I have to do the MC in 2 hours which is like 1.5 minutes per question.  This just isn't practical or reasonable.  If I can get 45 minutes on each simulation I should still be in good shape.  On the practice final exam #1 I had a bit over 30 minutes to work on each written.  It is less than I'd like and less than I've actually used on the other exams, but I'll have to make due.

Simulations

5 days remaining (adjusted to final test date - saved 9 days over October 2009 estimate)
Mood - Unfocused
Study Time – 3.0 hours (393.5 total - FAR: 113.5 - BEC: 74.5 - REG: 118.0 - AUD: 89.5)
Scores:  AUD-94, REG-97, BEC-93

It took me 5 hours of work to get in 3 hours of real study time.  I just had a bad case of the "I don't wanna".  I did get through the simulations though.  I did decent on them, better than I though actually.  Overall I think I'm in good shape.  I'm looking forward to relaxing for the rest of the day.  Tomorrow I'll try the practice final exam #1.

The Good News Is.....The Bad News Is....

6 days remaining (adjusted to final test date - saved 9 days over October 2009 estimate)
Mood - Good and Frustrated
Study Time – 2.5 hours (390.5 total - FAR: 110.5 - BEC: 74.5 - REG: 118.0 - AUD: 89.5)
Scores:  AUD-94, REG-97, BEC-93

The good news is I did a progress test tonight.  The other good news is I am just fine on my overall timing.  The even better news is I got 89 out of the 100 correct.  Two of my misses were RTCDQ issues (calculated year 1 when asked for year 2 type of crap).  One of my misses was me second guessing myself.  I had the right answer, knew it was the right answer, and then went with the other answer anyways.  Several of the others I missed weren't too bad and I'll be ok on those topics in the future.  I've got a sheet of notes going with quick one line statements to remind me of things I've missed (ie. Gov't-wide F/S = operational accountability and Stock dividends effective as of beginning of period for WACSO calculation just like stock splits).  I'll review the one line notes for items I've missed just before walking into the testing center as a last minute reminder.

The bad news is I felt like I was struggling through the questions.  After three of these tests I really shouldn't let the questions get to me while doing a section, but they did tonight.  The other bad news is I still missed that damned $12,000 truck with FV of $20,000 non-commercial substance exchange question.  That is the third time I've missed that freaking question.  It is getting annoying.  I think I am going to watch that section of the lecture and work through those examples tomorrow until I can do them in my sleep.

On a "Dale is insane" note, I did try to reschedule my test today.  I was going to schedule it for this Saturday if possible, Monday otherwise (moving the day up).  There were no days available in the Austin testing center though before the 14th, which is when I'm scheduled for anyhow.  The Monday test day wouldn't have changed my studying.  The Saturday test would have meant I would not have done one of the practice finals.  I just want the whole thing to be over that much sooner at this point and would have been willing to pay the $35 to make it happen.

My current plans for the next week:
Friday - took vacation from work, will work the simulations in Becker's software (yard work & rest/relaxation)
Saturday - practice final #1
Sunday - practice final $2
Monday - (work) and  read notes, spend little bit of time with the ratios
Tuesday - (work) and rest & relaxation
Wednesday - TEST.........
Thursday - not study, not study, do happy dance, not study some more

Bad Study Night

7 days remaining (adjusted to final test date - saved 9 days over October 2009 estimate)
Mood - Annoyed
Study Time – 2.5 hours (388.0 total - FAR: 108.0 - BEC: 74.5 - REG: 118.0 - AUD: 89.5)
Scores:  AUD-94, REG-97, BEC-93

It took me 4 hours to get in 2.5 of actual study time.  I could not get focused at the start or even throughout my review portion.  Ultimately I did not have time to do a full progress test (that would have taken 2 hours or so to get through).  Instead I did the supplemental questions for FAR-7 since that is the section I reviewed tonight and I had not done them before.  I scored 75% on the 52 supplemental questions.  I gave away 5% to very minor things that I would not miss again.  I gave away another 5% on ratio questions that I missed.  I did not even look at the ratios in the book yet (planning on doing that Monday or maybe even Tuesday).  Overall I think I am in the low-80s on the actual material.  While it isn't as good as I'd like, it isn't bad and is consistent with what I've done on the harder materials.  

Just as a reference, I got 79% on the main FAR-7 questions my first time through, which was one of my lowest scores for FAR questions.  I've been doing about 2-7% less on the supplemental questions than the main questions, so that fits in with my normal performance as well.

I almost checked today to see if I could move my test up to Friday.  I really just need to review the simulations in the Becker software and review ratios and I could be ready.  The other days are really for the 2 practice final exams.  While they would be helpful I think I could get by without them.  The thought of not having to study this weekend at all was very appealing.  It was a nice day dream today.  In the end, there is no point in taking a short-cut this close to the end.  I will miss some some really stupid things in the practice final exams that I'll learn from and I will see at least some of those stupid mistakes on the actual exam.  But still, a weekend without studying.........