I expected my CPA journey to be difficult, but it has proven to be more difficult than I expected.
We had a long weekend last week and I studied for 10 hours over Saturday and Sunday and 3 more with my study group from college on Monday. Half of our readings were on company’s valuation methods and they were all new to me. Up until this point, most of the material has been more of a refresh (revenue recognition, contract, non-monetary transactions etc) for most of us. This past week (Week 4) had the most amount of reading so it did not help that it consisted of brand new materials.
In my last post, I said I planned on studying for an hour before work Mondays to Thursdays and that plan failed spectacularly. I tried setting an alarm for 5:30 AM (had trouble committing to 5 AM) and each time my eyes remained shut. I also tried studying at the library during lunch but that also did not last.
I have come to terms with studying in the evenings and on the weekends like many others I know. My study group and I managed to meet up on the Wednesday after work for Week 2 & 3 which helped greatly with tackling our weekly assignments. CPA doesn’t allow group work but we are encouraged to discuss ideas and then work on our own responses individually.
My assignments grades have improved week after week. I started with getting a couple of NAs (Not Addressed – missed analyzing an issue completely) and RCs (Reaching Competence – issues addressed but analysis was not competent) to no NAs and even a couple of Cs (Competent). CD (Competent Distinction) is the best grade you can get and I have yet to get one (or got maybe one). I have been debriefing the cases as CPA suggested so I feel I have a better idea of how to structure a C or CD response.
~ More CPA Posts ~
CPA PEP Core 1 – How to Study for the Module and the Exam
CPA PERT – Ultimate Guide on How to Get Your First Experience Report via EVR Approved
CPA PERT – Enabling Competencies Examples
Densmore for CPA PEP – Are The PEP Essentials Packages Worth It?
CPA PEP Module – Regular Module or Extended Module?
Also, I am getting more comfortable and familiar with the CPA Way. The CPA Way is THE method to structure your responses as the marker (called the facilitator) grade your cases methodically following a case-specific feedback guide.
Week 4 is about to end meaning I am half-way done with Core 1. Time flew by so it is so important to not fall behind, not even for a day. Learning from my mistake for underestimating the time required to do the reading for Week 4, I am already planning the schedule for the upcoming 2 weeks (5 & 6) since there is another set of full-day workshops next weekend. Even though Week 5 reading is light (60% of Week #4), Week 6 is the heaviest to date (10% more than Week #4).
I almost had no life this past month but since we bought tickets for The Polar Express at the Orpheum Theatre next week and with Eric’s company’s holiday dinner happening on Friday, it will be a busy week for me. #stayawayfromNetflix
I will try to do an update after Week #6 to see how the next 2 weeks went 🙂
