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I didn’t work full time but I worked part time 20-30 hours a week at a WFH industry accounting internship. I also took 12 masters credits. I passed the cpa in about six months. My biggest advice would be to block 3-4 hours in your day dedicated to studying, it doesn’t have to be all at once. If your working in PA mornings are gonna be your best bet. From there block off the units your going to cover each week, and further break that into a daily checklist. You will get a better gauge of how long certain modules will take you over time, as with all things you’ll get better/more efficient as you do the task more often.
I was working 25 hours a week and taking one class. I asked the office I was working at if I could work 7-12 and then would take the afternoons to study. I took FAR, REG, and AUD between June and August when I started. It’s doable if you’re dedicated to setting a schedule and accepting that your social life will suffer for a bit.
Worked full time (40 hours, not at PwC), 2 classes , and passed all parts in 7 months (and I don’t consider myself the smartest person in the world, and I mean it). Full forecast and discipline , and no excuses (tired , don’t feel like , none of those). Didn’t go out, studied weekends, holidays , including Christmas. Also, I didn’t reschedule any exams, even if I felt like I was not ready, I went in and took the exams (and luckily passed). It’s totally doable.
Exact process for me although I passed over 15months
Pro
I had a 30 hour a week job and had night classes from 5-9 every weeknight besides friday. Studied on train two hours a day, weekends 4-6 hours a day. Passed 4 parts in 6 months.
Needless to say i didnt have much of a social life at age 22
I didnt go to school but i did have a second job (recession and my husband couldn't find work/uneployment paid more than work he could find... so we had to make ends meet). Took a full week off before the exam, crammed for 12-16 hours a day (Becker) and took the exam on the following Monday. I used all my vacation/sick time for 1.5 years and only took exams following holidays... which means 1.5 years of missed holidays, no vacations and basically working every day of the week. I survived off adrenaline, cortisol, caffeine and protein shakes. Good luck.
Chief
Wasn’t in school but working in B4 tax and had newborns at home. It was absolutely chaos and I hated it. Ultimately I never pulled it off…
Had three parts passed at one point, failed AUD twice, then FAR expired, then failed that retake and failed AUD one more time and gave up.
Got my EA license so I could promote and sign tax returns and don’t really care what people say about it. 🤷🏼♂️ Life needed to move on.
Worked full time with a wife and kid. Was challenging. Studied 2-3 hours before work then 2 after
Only working full time, commuting and taking the exams.
I worked full time, was in a Masters program full time and studied for the CPA exam. I can tell you it was brutal. I didn’t see my friends for a year (thankfully we had the Covid lockdown so didn’t strain us too much). I also don’t have a support system but I can tell you I did it all in a year. As everyone has said previously, it takes discipline and no excuses. The idea of being done with studying kept me motivated. Having a schedule is key - Google calendar was my life. Everything was planned out there from how much time was allocated for eating and sleeping to what I was going to do exactly for the time I blocked off for studies, work, etc. I’m not sure if it’s worth it now with things opening back up. If you can give up one or the other (meaning defer on studying for the exam or not have a full-time job) while your in school I’d recommend it. Life’s more important than a career. Enjoy it while you can. But if you choose to go this route, make sure the people in your life are aware 100%. You’ll want them around still to celebrate once you’ve accomplished all of it.
Yes. It sucked and I’m glad I don’t have to do it again.
Was a very boring person to talk to—my life was literally doing accounting or studying accounting all day everyday. It was brutal but it was like 5 months of my life and I’ve had a CPA license for over a decade. Was worth it.
Yes, didn’t have much of a social life working in the day and taking classes at night and weekends