How to pass the CPA Exams… Realistically

The CPA exam is not easy, and we all know it. However, many people think that they can treat these exams like a college final exam, and cram everything they need to study for in less than one or two weeks and still pass with high scores. However, each CPA exam is like not a final exam, each CPA exam is like 4-5 final exams of different courses combined at the end of your college semester.

I am so happy to say I have passed all exams on my first try in 1 year and I am now a Certified Public Accountant. I moved to America when I was 13, where I began to learn English and acclimate myself to the culture. I graduated college with summa cum laude honors from Monmouth University in 2019 and I have learned that you can achieve what you set your mind to with intention, a plan and realistic expectations. You cannot wait until the week before your exam date to finally take it seriously, you need to have an actionable plan and you need to take it seriously from day 1. Nevertheless, this is achievable, you CAN do it and I believe in YOU!

Here are 4 of my best tips on how to pass the CPA EXAM:

1. Realistic Expectations:

When I finally graduated college in May 2019, I told myself that my goal would be to be done with the 4 exams by the end of 2019. I had watched a few Youtube videos with students who passed all 4 exams within 4-6 months and crushed it. They made it seem easy. I did well in college, and I am a very dedicated woman so I thought I could do it just as fast, too. That July, I opened my first book to study for FAR and a week later, I was in shock when I realized how large the book was, how long the lectures and multiple-choice were, and how challenging the material was. After 2 weeks, I was so discouraged that I stopped studying.

I realized that in order for me to actually pass the exams in 4-6 months, I needed to study at least 6 days a week and long hours, too. This is a very serious commitment and a lifestyle change that I would have to integrate into my life. However, after pushing myself so hard in college my last year, I realized that I did not want to study 6 days a week and push myself so hard until burnout. Though passing these exams as fast as possible would be great, my intention was to live my life with self-care, find joy in my day-to-day, nurture the relationships in my life and crush my goals. Therefore, the realistic expectation that worked for me was that I needed to include days where I did not study, and I could spend time with my family and friends or doing other things that I’m passionate about as well.

These exams took me about 1 year to pass and on average, I studied 4 days a week. Here are 3 things you should prioritize while you study in order to avoid burn out:

—  Get good sleep: Studies show that proper sleep is highly correlated to the learning process and to memory retention. “There are data that sleep loss leads to learning and memory impairment, as well as decreased attention and vigilance,” says Dr. Kushida. As students, getting adequate amounts of sleep will help us perform better, feel more energized and retain more information in the long run!

—  Exercise: A healthy body equals a healthy mind. Integrating exercise into my schedule even if it is 1-2 per week, helped me feel stronger, relieve stress and boost my brainpower to study more effectively. Feel free to do more research to understand the benefits of exercise and the brain.

—  Social life: Time block time to spend with friends and family each week. It is unrealistic to me that for the next 6 months to a year of my life, I am going to ignore most of the people I love. First, make sure you communicate to anyone important in your life that you will begin studying for the CPA exam journey and this will change your lifestyle. In addition, tell them that you want to be more intentional about when you see them in order to be mindful of your time and still spend some quality time with your loved ones, which will help you tremendously in the long term.

In conclusion, understand what is important to you and have a realistic mindset on how your life will change as you prepare for the CPA exams. Include day breaks in your schedule because this journey is long. If you do this, you will feel more empowered through this process and feel happier. You can do this.

2.      The Plan:

Now that you have realistic expectations on how your lifestyle will change, the next step is to set a timeline for each exam and understand our study schedule. I used the Becker CPA Exam Review tools and I will use the FAR exam as an example to explain how I set my study schedule below (if you are reading this and preparing to study for another exam, this can still be helpful for you if you know how your book is broken up).

—  The Becker book for FAR has 10 chapters with 6-9 modules in each chapter. The way I structured my study schedule was through weekly goals. In this case, my goal was to get through 1 chapter per week minimum, and as a result, it took me around 2 months to finish the FAR book. For example, if we look at chapter 1, it has 8 modules. This means that if I want to study 3-4 times per week, I need to plan how many modules, review practice problems and multiple-choice questions I am getting through each day to achieve this. You have to keep in mind that sometimes, one module could take you 2-3 hours and I was working full time while studying, so every second mattered. I would often study Tuesday, Thursdays and Sundays to achieve this. If I needed more time, I would study Saturday, too.

—  After taking these exams, I realize how important it is to read and get through the whole book. I did not obsess to understand every detail in each module due to the information overload, but I took good notes and tried my best to understand the concepts the first time. If I really struggled with the material, I would spend a little more on the multiple-choice questions and review material, but if not, I would only do a few of these and move on. I would also review the Flashcards after each module.

—  MY SECRET: Even though, I did not obsess about remembering every detail while going through the book, there is a time where I did go hard with my studying and that is, the Review Week before the exam. After I finished the book, I gave myself minimum 1 week to just review. Becker gives you practice exams that are just like the CPA exam, and I took those seriously (the AICPA also has free sample exams on their website). On Saturday and Sunday, I would take the practice exams for 4 hours each, and then review every single answer I got wrong. For the answers I got right, I would read it over one more time to make sure I was more confident with my answer but for those I got wrong, I would take notes and if I needed more reinforcement, I would go back to the lectures and do more multiple-choice questions and simulations for those topics. Doing this allowed me to prioritize and review the material I really needed help with and be better prepared for the exam. My advice is for you to take the sample exams so you can practice what it is like to sit through the actual examination period and review your results seriously to tackle the topics that you need to reinforce. 

3.      Intention:

Whether you are studying for the CPA exam or another challenging exam, it is important that you are clear on why you want to achieve this. Passing all exams took me about 1 year and it was really hard by the third and fourth exams. I sometimes felt so exhausted and depleted that I began to question if I should even continue to follow this path. During these hard moments, it really taught me the importance on setting intentions daily and knowing WHY I was doing this.

An intention is a guiding principle for how you want to be and show up in your daily life. This guides our thoughts, actions and attitudes. This becomes the driving force behind your goals. For example, here were some of mine:

•  My intention is to learn and grow daily.
• My intention is to challenge myself with new information because growth does not happen when you remain stagnant.
• I intend to be a woman who is determined, committed and intelligent.
• I want to pass these exams so that one day I can help the people around me.
• I choose to take responsibility of my future and have a vision.
• I want to inspire those around me to be better versions of themselves by leading through example.

Setting intentions will help you carry yourself in a way that supports your goals and vision for your life. These should motivate you and push you to keep going in the tougher times. However, do not mistake intentions with the following misconceptions:

Misconception #1: I will be worthy when I pass this exam. WRONG. You are worthy now and whether you pass or not, you are an important part of this universe.

Misconception #2: I need to get every practice answer right or I am a failure. WRONG. Failure is part of the learning process. This is what teaches you to reframe your mind into different solutions which makes you smarter.

Misconception #3: If I don’t follow my schedule perfectly, I will not succeed. WRONG. Life is filled with obstacles, and you should expect to this happen. The most important thing is how you deal with the obstacles that come your way and how you adapt.

I hope this gets you thinking about a deeper side of you and inspires you to start or continue this journey. Setting intentions for your goals, taking action and then, watching how they become reality is one of the most beautiful things in the world. You are capable of doing amazing things. “Believe that you can do it and you are halfway there” – Theodore Roosevelt.

4.      Community:

I hope these tips have been helpful so far. My last tip for you to get through this study period is to join a community or be in constant communication with friends who are also taking the CPA Exam so you can talk to them about your experience, your struggles and your accomplishments! As humans, social interaction helps us stay sane, learn from others and remember that others experience the same emotions we do.

Did you know that there are Facebook groups for each CPA exam where people ask questions, share tips and tricks and share when they have passed the exams? For example, go on Google and type: "Becker FAR Study Group". Join them! For me, having a support system through the study period was very valuable because most people in my life did not truly understand the magnitude of these exams and the hours and dedication that it took to pass. Being around people who are also going through this makes you feel like you are not alone and allows you look other’s experiences for encouragement and inspiration.

Thank you for getting this far in the article and I seriously believe in you. If you set up a realistic plan with weekly goals, understand the lifestyle change you need to make, set genuine intentions for this process and join a community, you can pass the CPA exams. It won’t be easy and there will be days where this all feels very overwhelming, but you will learn a LOT and there will also be days where you will feel so proud of yourself, your confidence will be stronger and you will become a Certified Public Accountant.

Like this if you enjoyed reading this and please leave a comment with your biggest take away or how you are feeling right now. Sending you love on your study journey and good luck!

Much love,

Celeste Leon