How to Pass the CPA Exam – Choose the Right CPA Review Course

Last Updated on Wednesday, 9 November 2011 11:17 Written by admin Wednesday, 9 November 2011 11:17

Most accountants who study for the CPA (Certified Public Accountant) exam use one or more CPA review courses to help them prepare. The best course reduces the risk of failing to pass the CPA exam and significantly reduces the time needed to take in the key concepts. With plenty of different courses on the market today, it can be challenging to select the optimal course. Below are some things you need to consider when choosing a CPA exam review course.

1) Course Materials

Despite all courses covering similar accounting concepts, every tutor describes things in their own way. The best courses use experienced instructors who are able to teach difficult ideas while making sure students grasp them. Also, a great instructor will concentrate more on key theories and briefly touch self-explanatory ones to make lessons more relevant. The best value CPA review courses have free lecture samples available that you can examine before purchasing. There are lots of discussion forums and sites which offer valuable insight to the most valuable courses. Feedback given on those sites will almost certainly help you make the right choice.

Additionally, the lesson plans can be obtained from a variety of sources, such as live webcasts, CDs, DVDs, or USB. If course material access is restricted, it limits how you can benefit. It is therefore wise to consider how the course material is delivered prior to deciding which course to buy.

Always keep in mind, access to course materials expires and you must make a note of the expiration date before making a purchase. Valuable simulation software may become unusable when access terminates and this can reduce your chances of success in the exam. Some courses allow access for a certain duration before terminating access. Access expiration is normally only relevant when you access materials on the net, but the material can become redundant as subjects can change. If you decide on a course without access expiry, you need to make sure to make use of the material before it is removed from the exam.

2) Practice Questions

Practice questions offer an alternative way to make sure students know the key ideas and are able to retain them. They help make it easy to retain through use of practical real world examples.

Each of the CPA review courses take varying approaches with practice questions. A lot of courses aim to tackles every question likely to show up in the CPA exam. This tactic requires a considerable time investment, but makes sure all areas are covered. It is not unusual for students to run out of time and fail to cover some of the key questions. This hampers their exam preparation and ability to pass.

On the other hand, there are courses that fail to offer sufficient sample questions to adequately prepare the student for the exam. It is not ideal.

The best CPA review course will contain relevant practice questions. It is possible to reduce options through careful analysis of previous papers and to concentrate on questions that appear frequently. This tactic ensures students use their time efficiently and have a better chance of learning questions most likely to show up in an exam.

3) Student Support

All CPA review courses provide some level of student support. If you like to make use of phone support services, it is crucial you check the course provides this service prior to subscribing to it. Some courses provide limited student support while other courses provide email support. Other courses rely on interactive support and provide forums or simple message boards where students chat with each other and the teachers. Naturally, you need to check whichever course you decide to buy offers the right level of support suitable for your requirements.

4) Frequency of Updates

As accounting procedures change, CPA exam study materials need to be updated quite regularly. The update frequency of course materials can impact on whether or not you are successful as courses that fail to update regularly may teach obsolete procedures.

Cost is something else to consider as it varies between courses. However, price is only an issue if you fail the exam. This is due to the fact CPA certified accountants can expect substantial pay rises. Keep in mind it is possible that one section results in failure if the 2008 Uniform pass rate is anything to go by – the average pass rate was between 47.49% and 49.10%. The cost of failure the first time is normally due to opting for an inferior review course or lack of effort from the student.

Read more about how David Bryant has managed to pass 3 previously failed sections over the course of just ten months, with impressive scores, in his blog here: Yaeger CPA Review Reviews

To locate fair comparisons of the different CPA exam review courses please click over to: CPA Review Course Ratings

Wiley CPA Review Course – Why You Should Consider It

Last Updated on Tuesday, 8 November 2011 02:42 Written by admin Tuesday, 8 November 2011 02:42

The Wiley CPA review course is a well known, widely used study system that has helped numerous students pass the CPA exam. This course is published twice a year regularly, for more than thirty years. It is released in two formats: the two-volume format and the four-volume format.

In the two-volume format, tips, strategies and study guides are gathered into the first volume while practice questions and answers make up the second volume. It is republished each June which ensures the questions and information is always up to date.

The four-volume edition reflects the same structure as the CPA exam with one edition available for each of the four CPA sections. It enables you to choose only the sections for which you are sitting. It offers more convenience than the two-volume section as it enables you to take each section on its own without disruption. The four-volume books are republished every December, which ensures that you are always getting the latest information.

The Wiley CPA review course makes use of various materials to make your study more effective and to ensure that you make the most of your chances in passing the CPA exam. This includes Focus Notes with hundreds of questions to drill you and hone your knowledge of each section. These can be bought as a set or per section, depending on your requirements. These notes are well developed and provide intuitive answers to relevant questions on different accounting techniques. They are conveniently packaged in a spiral bound, flash-card format.

Audio CDs are another study material that the Wiley system uses. It is available as a complete package or as separate products for each section. The lesson plans are given in a clear, succinct and captivating manner.

To improve your exam-writing skills, there is the How to Master Simulations series that concentrates on simulation questions and how best to handle them. This comes in the form of a CD-ROM with 6 full mock-ups.

The Mastering Account Research program included by Wiley makes a huge difference as it enables you to improve your research method. This program includes practical ways of handling issues having to do with research. The course makes sure you are familiar with how the test is ran and that you make sufficient preparations.

Judging by the assessments given by candidates who have used Wiley products, they seem to be popular and quite useful for CPA exam preparation. The 4-volume review guides and the software CDs are the most recommended by most users as the best Wiley product. Each of the tips and guidelines are simple to follow, suitable, up to date and useful. This means if you opt to buy the Wiley CPA review course, you should keep in mind the software CDs as they are an extremely useful part of the study material.

Compared to other CPA exam review courses, the Wiley CPA course offers the best value for money. However, Wiley’s materials will require lots of studying in order to maximize the potential for success.

Read more on how David Bryant has ultimately managed to pass three previously failed CPA sections over the course of only ten months, with impressive scores, in his blog here: Yaeger CPA Review

To locate objective evaluations of the various CPA review courses please hop over to: CPA Review Course

Lambers CPA Review Course – Why You Should Buy It

Last Updated on Monday, 7 November 2011 12:37 Written by admin Monday, 7 November 2011 12:37

The Lambers CPA review course has helped many candidates pass the CPA exam for more than forty years. Among the best CPA exam review courses on the market, Lambers seeks to bring answers to the most difficult questions in a straightforward way. The tricky concepts are broken down into concise segments that make them simple to grasp. There are various study materials provided by the Lambers system. They include audio courses, DVDs, flashcards, ipod courses, review textbooks, test prep software, and intensive reviews.

The Audio Course includes lectures on many topics likely to appear in the exam. The lectures are taught by professors who have been in the accounting field for a long time and know their stuff. They discuss hundreds of questions to ensure that you get the workings behind each type of question. These audio CDs are portable and ideal to be listened to when driving, working out, walking or on the bus. They help make sure your time is effectively used. Other advantages of Audio CDs include the given in the lectures, definitions and explanation of key concepts.

The Lambers Review DVD Course made up of videos captured in a class setting led by professional instructors. The lesson plans are separated into small, manageable sessions to enhance efficiency in studying. Plus, you are able to control the pace of the lessons by watching the DVDs at your own pace. These DVDs can be used along with the review textbooks. In fact, these DVDs include printable files of the review textbooks so you do not have to buy the textbooks separately.

Many candidates find the Lambers flashcards a good addition to their CPA prep tools. The flashcards have questions on the front and answers on the back. There are over 250 Lambers flashcards for each section of the exam, and because they are easy to carry around, they will help you to review your materials wherever you are.

A popular method of revision is through the Lambers iPod courses. These videos are able to be loaded into an iPod and watched or listened to anytime, anywhere. Plenty of students listen to these lectures over and over while they are doing housework, driving, or walking the dog. Another thing with the iPod courses is the valuable “Ask the Expert” service, which allows the student to email questions to Lambers instructors and receive prompt responses. The subscription service increases the overall value of the course as it also includes free updates.

Overall, Lambers CPA review course has been able to help many candidates pass the CPA exam during previous years. This CPA review course could pave your route to success.

Read about how Dave Bryant’s managed to pass three previously-failed CPA exam sections in 10 months, with impressive scores, in his blog here: Passing The CPA Exam

To locate objective comparisons of the different CPA exam review courses please browse: CPA Review Ratings