Unfortunately, I did not pass BEC. Not only does this mean that I have to re-take it, but it also means I am not a CPA (I would have been had I passed BEC) and even worse, I lost my FAR credit.
It has taken me a couple of days to write about this. I was really upset when I found out Thursday night. I didn't want to look at anything regarding the CPA exam – no blogs, no forums, no review books.
It hurts twice as much to learn you have to re-take two parts because you failed one. This is reminiscent of when a little girl riding her bicycle hits a raised chunk of sidewalk and goes flying off her bike, landing on the hard cement. But this time, not only does she scrape and bruise her knee and elbow so bad she can barely get up, but the doll she had in the bike basket is now sitting in the gutter. There is no saving the doll from the dirty water and anti-freeze mixture. So now this child has to limp home with a scratched up bicycle and no doll. The scars have faded, although I still see a trace of the one on my elbow.
It hurts but I have to move on and not dwell on this setback. I have to pick myself up after failing BEC and losing FAR. I signed up to re-take BEC at the end of August and I studied for an hour tonight. Slowly, I will get there. I just have to watch out for those raised sidewalks.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Monday, June 14, 2010
Which Will I have to Buy – a CPA Review Book or a Picture Frame for my CPA License?
This is where I am now - waiting for my BEC grade.
This grade is a pivotal factor - if I pass BEC, I will have finally passed the CPA exam after taking it 10 years on and off (yes, it took that long!). If I fail BEC, I lose my FAR credit (noooo!) and will have to re-take both BEC and FAR. It took me multiple tries to pass FAR so it would be devastating to lose it. I can't imagine having to go through that again, especially at this point in my career.
My words of advice – try to pass the CPA Exam as soon as you get out of school. Become one of those "slackers" who sit in the office unassigned studying instead of asking to help on clients. I used to think they were goofing off - you're being paid to work, not to study. But that couldn’t be any further from the truth. Those of my colleagues who studied passed in a year or two (with some exceptions, of course), while I increased my billable hours. They may or may not be doing as well as me now, but at least they are done with the CPA Exam.
I haven't posted anything in a while because my energy has been zapped between work, studying, work, life, work and work. I like my job and am happy to have it, but the hours have been long the past few months. Instead of writing for my blog, I end up going to sleep early or napping during my commute (I am actually typing this draft into my phone while fighting sleep during my morning commute). Must get ideas out before eyes close.
A few really cool things have happened that I would like to tell you about:
- My blog was mentioned in CGA Magazine in a piece called Blogging by Numbers by Mindy Abramowitz! I am under the category “Accountants-to-be Who Blog” (although I am more of a CPA-to-be since I am an accountant) I am so honored! CGA Magazine is published by the Certified General Accountants Association of Canada. I want to say hi to all my Canadian readers!
- My blog is one year old :) Yay! It all started when I was looking for an outlet while unemployed and trying to pass the CPA Exam. Here are my first few posts.
- My garden is thriving. There were a few casualties though (peppers and eggplant plants) due to too much water collecting in one of the containers. I planted my vegetable plants in pots since the soil in my yard was too hard to dig. The lesson here: Make sure all your pots have drainage holes! I will write more about my garden in other posts.
- I passed REG! I was surprised because I had a really bad experience at the test center even before the test started. I had written a draft about it and will post it soon.
How are you doing? Let me know in the comments! Let me know if you are waiting for your grade in Wave 2 of this April-May testing window as well. Hopefully, we will all receive some good news this week!
This grade is a pivotal factor - if I pass BEC, I will have finally passed the CPA exam after taking it 10 years on and off (yes, it took that long!). If I fail BEC, I lose my FAR credit (noooo!) and will have to re-take both BEC and FAR. It took me multiple tries to pass FAR so it would be devastating to lose it. I can't imagine having to go through that again, especially at this point in my career.
My words of advice – try to pass the CPA Exam as soon as you get out of school. Become one of those "slackers" who sit in the office unassigned studying instead of asking to help on clients. I used to think they were goofing off - you're being paid to work, not to study. But that couldn’t be any further from the truth. Those of my colleagues who studied passed in a year or two (with some exceptions, of course), while I increased my billable hours. They may or may not be doing as well as me now, but at least they are done with the CPA Exam.
I haven't posted anything in a while because my energy has been zapped between work, studying, work, life, work and work. I like my job and am happy to have it, but the hours have been long the past few months. Instead of writing for my blog, I end up going to sleep early or napping during my commute (I am actually typing this draft into my phone while fighting sleep during my morning commute). Must get ideas out before eyes close.
A few really cool things have happened that I would like to tell you about:
- My blog was mentioned in CGA Magazine in a piece called Blogging by Numbers by Mindy Abramowitz! I am under the category “Accountants-to-be Who Blog” (although I am more of a CPA-to-be since I am an accountant) I am so honored! CGA Magazine is published by the Certified General Accountants Association of Canada. I want to say hi to all my Canadian readers!
- My blog is one year old :) Yay! It all started when I was looking for an outlet while unemployed and trying to pass the CPA Exam. Here are my first few posts.
- My garden is thriving. There were a few casualties though (peppers and eggplant plants) due to too much water collecting in one of the containers. I planted my vegetable plants in pots since the soil in my yard was too hard to dig. The lesson here: Make sure all your pots have drainage holes! I will write more about my garden in other posts.
- I passed REG! I was surprised because I had a really bad experience at the test center even before the test started. I had written a draft about it and will post it soon.
How are you doing? Let me know in the comments! Let me know if you are waiting for your grade in Wave 2 of this April-May testing window as well. Hopefully, we will all receive some good news this week!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)