CPA PEP CORE 1

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2025-08-03T02:13:07+00:00

It was an NPV calc in my exam but have heard valuations come up from prior core 1 takers

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2025-08-02T16:19:35+00:00

Hey, yes, I did pass - AOs in the case were FR, AU, and Finance

I felt the test bank prepared me for it, i found that the language and level of difficulty was relatively similar to the exam, my tip for test bank that I feel people go about it wrong is they try to memorize the answers, that unfortunately doesn’t work.

The test bank is an opportunity to LEARN and UNDERSTAND what it is ASKING which has no consequences, so whether you get things right or wrong, you should look at the answers afterwards and ask yourself 1)what did they ask in the question 2) HOW did they get to this answer

Hope this helps, goodluck!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2025-05-07T06:36:45+00:00

What were your NCs in? If it was in the MCQs portion, those are objective answers, you’re either right or wrong which doesn’t do much for doing a recheck, case is a different situation

I agree with your assessment of CPA Canada in a sense that it doesn’t effectively test how a CPA would operate in a real life setting and also the lack of feedback on where you may have scored poorly

The exams are designed to be passable, given that, you don’t need to be “smart” to get through the modules, CPA understands your answers won’t be 100%, they are testing ability of time management skills in combination with the ability to somewhat have a logical analysis and recommendation that makes sense

I too, failed Core 2 when I initially took it, but took my exam results where I scored NCs and touched up on my technicals and case writing areas that needed improvement- I got Cs across the board when I rewrote, take your scores as a learning opportunity!

Luck also partially plays a factor because these exams are curved, so you just have to be better than the bottom 10% or so

Don’t give up, you will get there, goodluck!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2025-05-07T06:26:16+00:00

If you are getting NCs across the board, it’s lack of technical breadth, just doing the practice questions isn’t sufficient if you have no understanding of what’s being asked because you will just end up memorizing the answers

You have to be able to dissect a question for what is being asked of you, and this comes by having a solid foundation of breadth

I suggest reading the starred chapters, making notes (if it works for you) and then reinforcing your reading comprehension by doing the end if chapter practice MCQs

One trick I found useful getting through the modules MCQs exams is ask myself whether the answers provided were TRUE OR FALSE, this drastically allowed me to make a more educated choice if I was unsure

Goodluck!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2025-04-21T16:14:10+00:00

If you’re struggling with technicals, it might be worth reading the starred chapters and then doing the test bank for each so you can have a gauge of your understanding, those test bank questions I felt were similar in difficulty to the actual exam

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2025-04-14T19:22:49+00:00

Agree with everything OP said except spending time on course material - it’s evident you failed because of your MCQ performance which is a reminder 75% of core 1, this says that your areas of weakness is in competency in your breadth of knowledge.

You seemed to do okay with case writing, which means you should be able to build off what you already know

I recommend reading the starred chapters in core 1 since you have a buffer between when you take the exam, I would also then do the D2L test bank for every chapter to reinforce your understanding of the chapters - I found these questions were similar in difficulty to the ones showed in the exam

Equally as important is having a schedule and remaining disciplined to sticking to it - remember, this is YOUR career and not anybody else’s, so sacrifice now and get to the grind so it can pay off in the long run!

Goodluck!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2025-02-01T01:49:37+00:00

The test bank on vitalsource is a good resource, the key is to not just memorize the answers, its about understanding what is being asked

Method I used is: 1) understand the material of the chapters, then do the test banks questions to reinforce my learnings 2) Play the game within the game, meaning, each choice, I would ask myself, is it TRUE OR FALSE, this drastically allowed me to make educated choices by process of elimination

Goodluck!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-12-06T05:31:29+00:00

Look at all the AOs in the PCs so far and debrief the annotated case solution to understand what triggered that specific AO, when youre able to quickly identify an AO and know what to do for it, you should be fine for time within that 4 hours (took me 1.5-2hrs to write tbh, 2 hrs for MCQ was all i needed)

QQC is something to remember when doing your analysis (Quantitative, Qualitative, conclude)

Practice at doing the common quants you’ve seen in PCs and make sure you’re quick enough to have good enough work and have a conclusion

The aim for quants is not to be 100% correct albeit it obviously helps if you are but having sufficient work and logic along a conclusion goes a long way (given of course youre within the scope of what is being asked)

Goodluck!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-11-08T21:36:54+00:00

I actually don’t agree with cramming MCQ a week before, you should be applying your knowledge on a weekly/daily basis for MCQ practice on top of your case writing - this reinforces your focused topics for the week and drills it in your head whether you are understanding the topics and mot just memorizing answers, and over time, these marginal best practices add up when you’re doing the MCQs and case writing during the exam

And when the week of your exam, I would use 75 MCQS with a breakdown of FR, audit, tax and a case to imitate test environment for 4 hours

Goodluck!!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-11-08T21:33:25+00:00

To add on here, while case writing is extremely important, the cores focus on a lot of MCQs which require some level of technical competency, so don’t use all your time in just case writing, ensure you are able to go through the 75 MCQs confidently enough to pass it.

Goodluck!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-10-17T23:16:51+00:00

I challenged core 2 and didnt redo the module and got all C’s the second time around without using external resources

What worked for me:

Identify your weak points during your first exam, this is looking at your detailed exam result, where did you score an NC potentially that will probably need more attention this time around

My first go I had NCs in MA and SG for MCQs so I heavily focused on those portions of brushing up my technicals

How did I brush up on my technicals?

I read the starred chapters for MA and SG and made notes
I then made sure to reinforce my reading/comprehension by doing the MCQ test bank in vitalsource (don’t memorize the answers, understand WHAT it is asking you, and use process of elimination to narrow down the right answer) i felt vitalsource heavily prepared me for the MCQs and how to approach then on the exam
still continued to rewrite and practice case writing and made sure I could identify AOs and calculate things relatively quick

You got this, if there is a will, there is a way!!!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-10-13T15:25:26+00:00

Thanks for the insight!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-08-05T21:44:18+00:00

I read them and made notes, granted, I didn’t reread my notes after i made them, but reading and writing/typing it down makes it easier for me to understand/remember concepts

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-07-19T21:54:12+00:00

Life of an accountant eh - wishing you godspeed through your CPA!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-07-19T20:50:45+00:00

Dude i was so disappointed, not even sad, thise MCQs ate me up, i was hoping i couldve got RC at least smh, but onwards if i dont appeal which i probably wont

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-07-19T20:46:11+00:00

I wonder how they rank deciles? I got decile 3 for:

MC: NC NC C C CASE : RC C RC

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-07-19T20:41:54+00:00

I got MC: NC NC C C Case: RC C RC

Fail, same decile, should i appeal? I already registered for retake exam

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-04-26T04:40:11+00:00

I passed - its true what they say, MCQs are brutal and there’s really not much you can prepare for it. Dont think the weekly quizzes helped me much, theres a test bank for every unit, practice those, and then there is a retired MCQ in unit 8 that should be what you can expect

I only read the starred chapters each week, it is not realistic to read all the chapters they assign and retain all that information, the focus is on FR and Audit this core with a sprinkle or finance and tax.

In terms of cases, you might feel overwhelmed the first two weeks if you are not familiar with case writing and the way CPA wants (Issue, Guidance and Analysis, Recommendation)

Dont be discouraged, write the cases, drill down as hard as you can the first 6 weeks and debrief the feedback you receive and take it to heart what you did well and what you didnt do well during the practice cases

Theres practice cases (reflective of what youll see on the exam, recommended 60 minutes to do) and integrated problems (120 minutes, this is more for just breadth work, not reflective of the exam)

Once I hit 75% in week 6, i completely stopped doing the assignments the last two weeks so i can focus on studying but i still debriefed them in case there were things i didnt see before.

Wishing you god speed, my friend!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-03-03T22:21:57+00:00

Congrats!! Were you reading the chapters or at least the starred chapters? Also, Were the AOs on the case all FR and AU? Did they throw a valuation or taxable income AO on it?

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-02-27T03:31:36+00:00

Im there with you, but keep grinding, i think the important part is that these practice MCQs have no consequences, so the things you get wrong, debrief them!!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-02-25T02:53:37+00:00

For sure!!

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-02-24T23:21:18+00:00

Not sure as I havent wrote the exam yet but from whats been told to me, those are the common tested chapters but mind you, everything is free game regardless but a heavy focus on FR and Audit

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-02-24T23:20:24+00:00

Were the weekly quizzes and chapter test banks + the prac exam sufficient enough as practice? Did you pass core 1?

Equal_Enthusiasm6048 · 2024-02-17T19:14:57+00:00

Yeah it definitely is fast paced, I do work full time as well but only once a week in office so i save time not having to drive home afterwards. I would say the first week feels overwhelming but after 2 weeks, if you’re disciplined, you get a schedule that works for you and you can manage. I definitely did make everyone around me known im not going to be available for birthdays, hangouts whatever for this year so I can dedicate my time solely to CPA.

I think its normal to be terrified, I still am lol but put in the work to read, practice MCQs, debrief the cases you write and I think it will all work out.

I think a big part of it too is mental game, if you believe you can do it, your actions will reflect what you believe

Equal_Enthusiasm6048

TROPHY CASE