Free ACCA & CIMA online courses from OpenTuition

Free Notes, Lectures, Tests and Forums for ACCA and CIMA exams

20% off ACCA & CIMA Books

OpenTuition recommends the new interactive BPP books for March and June 2025 exams.
Get your discount code >>

Article for ACCA Students with exemptions

VIVA

This article is aimed at new ACCA students. Do you have exemptions from any of the first four ACCA examinations (F1, F2, F3 and F4)?

Are you worried for later exams that you might not have covered everything at university, even though you are exempt?

Below are details of which topics are examined again in later examinations and which you should therefore make sure you are happy with.

Paper F1 – Accountant in Business

Although this paper does underpin the later examinations P1 and P3, you will learn what is needed for these two papers when you come to study for them.
The background knowledge that you will have from University is sufficient – there is no need to study this paper if you are exempt.

Paper F2 – Management Accounting

This paper leads directly to Papers F5 and F9 and a great deal of the syllabus is assumed knowledge for these later papers – especially for F5.

The best way of making sure that you are familiar with all the important topics is to download the Course Notes from Opentuition and work through them.

In theory, all of the topics in F2 can be tested again in later papers.

Process Costing (Chapters 6, 7, 8 and 9 of the Course Notes) is unlikely and you should pay less attention to this area.

Variance Analysis (Chapter 16 of the Course Notes) is extremely important. It is always very likely to be asked in Paper F5. When you study for F5 you will cover additional variance analysis also, but it is vital that you are happy with the ‚basic‘ variance analysis in Paper F2.

This is the most important of the first four papers in terms of needing the knowledge for later exams. Paper F5 in particular has an enormous syllabus which includes most of Paper F2.

See also:

From ACCA – Exam Technique
Download ACCA Candidate Answer Booklet front sheet

 

Paper F3 – Financial Accounting

This paper leads directly to Paper F7 and most of the syllabus is assumed knowledge for F7.

As with Paper F2, the best way of making sure that you have covered everything is to download the Course Notes from Opentuition and work through them.

If you are exempt from Paper F3 then you should certainly find the chapters on basic bookkeeping (chapters 1 to 7) easy. However, depending which language you studied in at University you might not be aware of some of the terminology, and if this is the case do work through the chapters properly.

Accounting for Limited Companies (chapter 11) and Statements of Cash Flows (chapter 12) are extremely important as an introduction to Paper F7 and you must make sure that you are completely happy with these.

You should look quickly at the other chapters also – especially those relating to Accounting Standards.

Paper F4 – Corporate and Business Law

None of the later papers examine law directly, and although the later accounting and auditing papers assume an awareness that there are laws relating to accounting and auditing you will already have sufficient knowledge from your studies at University (assuming that you are exempt from F4!).

There is therefore no need to study anything from this paper.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Hi I am doing f4 in dec. I have a full time job and full time family. Doing Classes part time….i am listening to ur lectures while i work or cook. Any tips that may help me? I am scared.

    • Why be scared? How does that help?

      Listen to the lectures whilst you work – that’s good :-). Do that over and over again until you can say the lectures as I’m speaking them

      Then practice, practice and practice over and over and over again and again and again the questions from a revision kit / exam kit from a reputable publisher

      (Don’t mark your guesses in the book itself – write your guesses on a separate piece of paper!)

      And if you need any guidance over any tricky point that you don’t understand …… post again and I’ll try to help

  2. HI, GOOD MORNING. I WANT TO DO ACCA . MY QUALIFICATION IS MASTERS IN BUSINESS ECONOMICS. I HAVE TO START FROM F1? PLEASE GUIDE ME SO THAT I CAN START PREPARATION FOR EXAM THAT WILL HELD IN DECEMBER 2015??

  5. hello sir,
    i,m trying to study both kaplan+bpp text for the exam thoroughly,but one of my friend suggested me to study only kaplan as its easy and in detail for f3,now could u please recommend anyone or should i go for both of them?and also tell me will it be beneficial to practice both kits(bpp and kaplan) or just one?

    thank you

  7. Hi,

    Wondering if someone could give me some advice.. I have just completed my AAT, and now looking to start studying ACCA to become chartered. I have exemptions from F1-3, so looking to start from F4 in the June 2015 sitting. I have a full time job in accountancy, so was looking to start ACCA part time, possibly on evenings/weekends.

    How many papers do you recommend for me to take? And also which papers are recommended to take with F4?

    I look forward to your reply.

    Thanking you in advance 🙂

  8. admin! am taking f7 this december and was exempted first four courses. my question is how important is it to quote IASs when answering theory questions? is it compulsory to quote or not because i was made to believe through my earlier studies that if you quote a wrong IAS the whole answer automatically becomes wrong. whats your advise on this matter? do you encourage or discourage quoting of IASs?

  9. No difference at all with someone who is getting these lectures directly from these experts(lecturers) …..an invaluable benefit.
    LONG LIVE OPEN TUITION ….LONG LIVE!

  10. What are the qualifications for being registered for ACCA course? Is it necessary for all candidates to learn at one site and do the exams? Can i take the course on line?

Leave a Reply