CPA Exam difficulty

This is what I thought the order of difficulty was.

1. REG (scored 94)
2. BEC (scored 87)
3. FAR (scored 95)
4. AUD (scored 98)

I thought I failed REG and BEC. They are deceiving. If you feel good about it then you are definitely fine.

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HATE cost accounting

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This.

I think REG is the toughest, then FAR, AUD, & BEC

sat for all multiple times. Lost credit for BEC 3 x and AUD 2x. I got FAR & AUD done right now (BEC just expired on me again) and working on REG now. Most of it is I didn't really commit myself to sutdying FAR or REG enough. My prior employer required us to sit for every part once per fiscal year or we'd lose part of our raise. So you just go sit for it even if you didn't study for it. I'm out of external audit so explains why I don't know anything about tax.

1. REG (scored 97)
2. BEC (scored 12)
3. FAR (scored 96)
4. AUD (scored 99)

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2. BEC (scored 12)

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BEC got the best of ya, sir?

i wish your name was eric

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I found it to be significantly easier than any of the Becker practice

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I dont mean to scare you, but it is an adaptive test. The test seeming easy may mean you werent doing too well. Of course this doesnt necessarily mean that you failed, just giving perspective.

From my experience I put the order of difficulty as

1a.FAR
1b.REG
3. BEC
4. AUD

Obviously I find FAR and REG to be the most difficult of the 4, and either could be the hardest depending on your test. BEC can be pretty tricky, but still a big gap between it and the other 2. I found audit to be an absolute joke.

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I think REG is the toughest, then FAR, AUD, & BEC

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I agree with this. The tax stuff on REG got me and was probably my biggest hurdle of all 4 exams.

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I graduated 12+ years ago

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I was in the same situation, just not as long as 12 years.

Graduated with a BS in Accounting (had 150+ hrs) and was offered a SALES job with a medical device company. Made serious money for 5 years and then had to get out. Started working for a small private accounting firm and after a year there I started studying for the CPA. I used Becker and what I like about there guide is they assume you have limited accounting knowledge. Each book is treated as if its the first section your taking.

I passed three sections on my first attempt and had to take BEC twice. It took me 14 months (you only have 18), but I only studied about two hours a night 4-5 times per week. I also took about a month off in between each section.

As for difficulty, Like I posted earlier, I think its different for every person because everyone has different strengths and weaknesses. For over a year I was preparing tax returns, payroll and bookeeping so REG and FAR were more familiar to me. I rarely assisted with audits and never faced any complex cost accouting practices, so AUD and BEC were more difficult.

I didnt use any guides other than Becker, but I can say that Becker will have you prepared. The Becker guide for REG and BEC had me thinking the exams were going to be impossible, but the actual exams were much easier than the Becker tests.