A good review course will minimize study time as well as maximize the chances of successfully passing the CPA exam. However, picking out a CPA course that meets the said qualities can be tough considering how many different courses are available on the market today.
1) Course Materials
Different courses are taught by different instructors, each of which will have a unique style of teaching. Alternatively, seek out online forums where other CPA-hopefuls gather, to read about their experiences with the various CPA courses, before making your final purchasing decision.
Also the lectures can be made available thru a range of media, such as live or recorded webcasts, CDs, DVDs, and/or USB. Some questions and simulations software will become disabled at a certain time after activation. The best sort of course materials and software is the sort that doesn't require access to the web to view or use, and so does not expire.
When it comes to practice questions, some CPA review courses take the exhaustive approach by making the student do every question that has the most remote chance of being on the CPA exam. Many students simply run out of patience, and never manage to finish many of the practice questions, which leaves them ill-prepared for the exam.
On the other hand, there are those review courses that do not provide enough practice questions to adequately prepare the student for the exam. Clearly, this situation is some distance from ideal also.
The best CPA review course will contain only questions that are most certain to appear on the examination. This is done by researching past exams to identify questions that appear the most often. This could ensure the top rate of return for the student's study time by allowing the student to concentrate on areas that may probably matter the most.
3) Student Support
Different CPA review courses provide various levels of customer support. If you have a tendency to be a question-asker and prefer to talk to instructors over the telephone, then be sure to choose a review course that has that kind of service. On the other end of the spectrum are courses that have minimal support, and in the middle are courses that let students to email questions to the coaches. Some review courses provide bulletin boards and forums to allow students to interact with instructors and with one another.
4) Frequency of Updates
Because of changes in accounting-related legislature amongst other things, CPA exam study materials have to be updated correspondingly on a consistent basis. Some review courses update their course materials and practice questions more often than others, so be sure to take this under consideration when selecting a course.
One factor that many people take into consideration, which has not been discussed, is price . However , considering the typically substantial pay-raise that's experienced by many accountants after they become CPA-certified, it is suggested that you select a CPA review course based mostly on its quality and level of support from the instructors, rather than on price. Considering that the average pass rate for the CPA exam is only 47.49-49.10% (pass rate for Uniform CPA examination in 2008 ), failing one or more sections is not improbable. You will not wish to re-study for and re-sit sections of the examination simply because you decided to save a couple of bucks by purchasing a lesser quality review course. For unbiased reviews of the top CPA review courses, including Yaeger CPA Review Course, please visit his CPA Exam Blog.
1) Course Materials
Different courses are taught by different instructors, each of which will have a unique style of teaching. Alternatively, seek out online forums where other CPA-hopefuls gather, to read about their experiences with the various CPA courses, before making your final purchasing decision.
Also the lectures can be made available thru a range of media, such as live or recorded webcasts, CDs, DVDs, and/or USB. Some questions and simulations software will become disabled at a certain time after activation. The best sort of course materials and software is the sort that doesn't require access to the web to view or use, and so does not expire.
When it comes to practice questions, some CPA review courses take the exhaustive approach by making the student do every question that has the most remote chance of being on the CPA exam. Many students simply run out of patience, and never manage to finish many of the practice questions, which leaves them ill-prepared for the exam.
On the other hand, there are those review courses that do not provide enough practice questions to adequately prepare the student for the exam. Clearly, this situation is some distance from ideal also.
The best CPA review course will contain only questions that are most certain to appear on the examination. This is done by researching past exams to identify questions that appear the most often. This could ensure the top rate of return for the student's study time by allowing the student to concentrate on areas that may probably matter the most.
3) Student Support
Different CPA review courses provide various levels of customer support. If you have a tendency to be a question-asker and prefer to talk to instructors over the telephone, then be sure to choose a review course that has that kind of service. On the other end of the spectrum are courses that have minimal support, and in the middle are courses that let students to email questions to the coaches. Some review courses provide bulletin boards and forums to allow students to interact with instructors and with one another.
4) Frequency of Updates
Because of changes in accounting-related legislature amongst other things, CPA exam study materials have to be updated correspondingly on a consistent basis. Some review courses update their course materials and practice questions more often than others, so be sure to take this under consideration when selecting a course.
One factor that many people take into consideration, which has not been discussed, is price . However , considering the typically substantial pay-raise that's experienced by many accountants after they become CPA-certified, it is suggested that you select a CPA review course based mostly on its quality and level of support from the instructors, rather than on price. Considering that the average pass rate for the CPA exam is only 47.49-49.10% (pass rate for Uniform CPA examination in 2008 ), failing one or more sections is not improbable. You will not wish to re-study for and re-sit sections of the examination simply because you decided to save a couple of bucks by purchasing a lesser quality review course. For unbiased reviews of the top CPA review courses, including Yaeger CPA Review Course, please visit his CPA Exam Blog.
