Core 1 – CPA PEP Program

Core 1 has been, so far, the hardest of all for me. It does have the lowest passing rate, and I guess, in my experience, was proven. I do not think it is because the content itself is hard, but because it is lots of content. It felt like going over all the accounting content I learned when I was doing my bachelor’s degree. Maybe, if you are fresh from college and start doing your CPA PEP this module will not be as hard.

I had 2-2 days workshops; one was the introduction to PEP and the other was the actual Core 1 Module. They were a couple of weeks apart and I could see how drained my fellow CPA PEP colleagues were, we were zombies. So do not feel discourage if you feel like it is too much for you, because you are highly likely not the only one feeling that way.

As I said, the module has a lot of content and it is technical content, so it is time consuming. I was spending about 20 hours a week just in readings and concept tailoring, and another good 10-15 hours practicing cases, learning the CPA way, practicing multiple choice questions, completing the module submissions and quizzes.

I also remember my first case writing attempt, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing, what I was supposed to be doing, how the grading would be and even worse, I did not know how to approach the case. The case was supposed to take 1 hours of writing, but it tools me 4-5 to complete. I even checked with other candidates, and they also took hours of writing to complete it. So again, if you are struggling with this in core 1, you are not alone.

The Strategy

It does take a lot of practice, understanding of the CPA and a good strategy to pass Core 1 exam. The exam had 1 case and 75 multiple choice questions, they gave us 4 hours to complete, and the suggested allocation time is 3 hours for the multiple-choice questions and 1 hours to write the case. My strategy was different though, but before I tell you what my strategy was, let me tell you how I studied for this module:

Use of flash cards:

I used them to summarize the bullet points to hit when approaching the requires in the case. For instance, I had 2 flash cards for revenues recognition, one for ASPE and the other one for IFRS, each of them had the section number (ASPE 3400 and IFRS 15), the criteria and the measurement.

I made flashcards for almost every chapter of the syllabus that was marked as commonly tested. I carried them everywhere and read them whenever possible: Lunch time, while in the subway/train, first time in the morning, right before bed…

I memorized them and this was helpful when writing the exam because I did not have to go back to the handbook (Knotia, yes you will have access to Knotia) to find the section, number, criteria and so on. I suggest you do the same and only use Knotia in the exam in case of an emergency but first learn how to use it and find things fast in the library.

Practice my case writing skills:

This goes from doing the outline and time allocation to creating a skill in how to identify requires. I made some of my flash cards based on the bullet points CPA used in the responses, just to have a structure handy should a similar require come in the next cases I had to submit or in the exam.

I submitted all my cases from unit 1 to 8, even though I was done with my 75% by ween 6. Some candidates stop the submissions as soon as they get their 75% in the module, however I found that having the feedback from my facilitator would help me to better identify the weaknesses and the areas or competencies I had to work on.

Debriefing is super important, I can not quantify how much I improved from a good debriefing, reading the response, reading the sample response, reading my response, even watching some videos about how to approach the case, taking notes, learning from my mistakes definitely made a difference when taking the exam.

2 weeks before the exam I started to write the practice cases that come in the module content and debrief. I recreated the exam conditions at all times, that is printing the case and using my laptop keyboard instead of my very convenient work-from-home station.

Practice multiple choice questions (MCQ):

With 75 MCQ coming in the exam, and not the best skills in case writing, I decided to practice a lot of MCQs on a daily basis in the Technical Review portal. And when I say a lot, I mean between 40-60 MCQs/day for almost 4 weeks.

Maybe it is a lit bit too much, but I believe in consistency and discipline. There are way too many things that talent WON’T do, but discipline and consistency WILL. And when talking about the accounting profession, being consistent pays very well.

This practice of mine wasn’t about memorizing, although maybe in the back of my head I had the hope that some would come in the exam. But it was about being able to skip the ones I did not know, and continuing, handling the time constrains, applying techniques like process of elimination, reading carefully, making smart guess… and so forth.

Taking care of myself and my mental state:

I am an active person, I enjoy going to the gym, walking, hiking, skating, running, biking, anything that involves movement. I worked out everything single time I could squeeze it in, early in the morning, middle of the day, after work or late night. This helped me keep my blood moving and maintaining good energy levels.

I also spent time together with friends, attended family events, chatted with coworkers… Talked about anything but CPA PEP related stuff. Not thinking about case submission, exams, MCQs and so on helped me to disconnect and re-focus.

I maintained myself fuel, ate good proteins and healthy fats, supplement myself with vitamin B12, and later doing my freak healthy research about how to improve brain function I found eating berries was good, and so I now eat them every day.

Take case of yourself doing whatever it is works best for you, it looks different for everyone but do it. I met some highly competent candidates that failed the module exam because they did not take care of themselves, and the one dreadful day was the exam day.

The Exam Day

Now, about what I did during my exam. I allocated more than the suggested time to the case and less to the MCQs. I started the exam by writing the case, and the first 5 minutes I was reading the case and understanding nothing, going anywhere. So, I decided to type in a simple generic outline (Memo, to, from, ref, type of thing), and when went back to reading I was able to keep it together.

The case took me 1 hour and 45 minutes, which means I had 2 hours and 15 minutes for MCQs. And let me give you a piece of advice: Focus on answering “what” and “so what” when addressing requires. Do not do knowledge dumping and talk about things that are not in the requires. This might make you feel that you are showing the marker you know stuff, but this will not give you marks, and you will likely fail to achieve the proficiency level.

I skipped everything that looked too complicated, was too long, or just did not know, and focused on secured the easy bullets. Then I went back to the questions I skipped and did educated guess for them, applying techniques like process of eliminations, but made sure to read each question completely.

I honestly guessed about half of the MCQs but managed to pass. When I asked other candidates, it turned out they all guessed lots of MCQs. So again, I was not alone. I did not pass with distinction, but it was not a marginal pass. It was just pass. A win is a win.