[l_ACCA]

I applied for membership on 19 Oct, got it on 22 Oct. Don’t wait for the email. I haven’t received one myself. I found out about my membership status by visiting myACCA, i.e. 1st, my welcome page became different (showing AGM results and voting) and 2nd, when you go to Account > Account details, you’ll see the membership date (my one says, “Membership date 22 October 2020”).

[l_ACCA]

Passed. 64%. This was my last exam. So happy. My heart is dancing. It’s been extremely long journey but I didn’t give up.

To those who are still to pass this exam. Keep going. Don’t give up. you WILL do it.

Advice: Read a lot of news. I found it very useful. Not just for the exam but for your business acumen in general.

Love to all. Keep well.

[l_ACCA]

Passed. So happy 🙂

[l_ACCA]

Very good post, dedicatedurk.

I used to always strive to be the best, to gain best marks and if I failed, at what I was aiming for, I used to be completely devastated. The exam/test score was everything to me. I felt I had to gain the best mark to prove that I was smart and if I failed, by default, I felt stupid. Which is complete nonsense. This is typical fixed-minded person’s approach to failing. They think that the grades and achievements define them.

Now, I studied hard and yet I failed. Yes, I could have put more time in and some people try to comfort me by saying that I expect too much from myself because I study on my own (I don’t attend classes in order to save some money as I am self-funded student), I have 2 kids, full time job and a little home business on the side.
However, I refuse to use any of these things/situations as an excuse. Instead of looking for an excuse as a way ‘to feel better’ after the failure, it’s better to get up, dust yourself off and carry on.

Last night I was waiting for exam results. I didn’t know what to expect. I was, of course, hoping for a Pass. However, it wasn’t a Pass.

But… what I was surprised about is my reaction to the Fail result. To my complete astonishment, instead of feeling sorry for myself and starting to come up with various excuses, I just had one thought, ‘OK, you want to play tough?’. Maybe it sounds funny, but that was my first reaction. I saw ‘Fail’ as a challenge. Challenge which I must overcome. Challenge from which I will come out as a stronger person. Yes, I will have to study hard again. But maybe this time, take different study approach? Maybe learn better exam technique? Or maybe spare those few hundred pounds and take the face-to-face tuition so I have access to a teacher who could guide me, advise me and give me some tips. Failing helps you to look for different ways of doing things which in turn makes you more innovative.

Every time we fail, we learn something new. So how can anybody ever say that failing is bad?! It is GOOD TO FAIL. I am happy I Failed. Why? Because I saw the other side of me which I didn’t know I had. I didn’t realise that failing will make me more determined. I thought I will be devastated.

Of course, I am annoyed that I will have to miss time with my family again (my children really miss their mum) and that I will have to sit 4 hours exam again but that is part of life. You have to go through tough parts in order achieve something.

So for those who passed, well done, good for you.

For those who failed, don’t give up, be happy that now you have an opportunity to become stronger and learn something from the experience.

All of us have determination in ourselves. This is in our DNA. If you weren’t determined, you wouldn’t have learned how to walk or talk or so anything else. Look at babies. They walk, they fall, they get up and they carry on. ‘Giving up’ is not even an option for them. So why do we, as adults (with much more experience than babies) are so sensitive to falling?

Fail, get up, learn from the experience, move on and… be happy!!!

X

@dedicatedurk said:
Passed in 2nd attempt with 54%(first attempt %38) and my way comes to end for ACCA.

My advice to who failed is not to give up and do not be disappointed, since the failure is in the nature of the examinations, keeping in mind that all associations are profit driven.

Do not listen the first time passes who tries to talk and emphasize continuously how successful and clever they are, since they are taking the certifications or degrees to affect people. Work in a job and prepare for ACCA or whatever to improve and develop for yourself.

Please do not forget experience is much more important than any certifications.

I summarize my SBL preparation in order to help who failed since I know the feeling of failure. (I am a regular looser of ACCA exams and very experienced with failure).

The key points are;

-Use one set of materials to cover the syllabus and make your own notes to memorize during revision period, that needs to be start 2 weeks before the exam date.
-Make a good plan depending your availability for preparation (At least 150 hours for SBL).
-Do not jump into past and specimen exams first. Use BPP revision kit in order to familiarize with type of questions.
-Solve the past and specimen exams.
-Please do mock exams under the timed conditions.
-Please write your answers while solving questions past, specimen and mock exams. I believe this is the most important point and contribute to develop.

I hope this helps.

You will achieve if you are dedicated and insist enough. Believe in yourself nobody will help you including God, Jesus or Allah.

[l_ACCA]

I’m so happy that it wasn’t just me struggling with 2a. That was only one I literally didn’t know what to write about. Left it to the end and wrote something with a hope it will gain some marks.

[l_ACCA]

Good one 🙂

[l_ACCA]

OMG. LOL

[l_ACCA]

LOL!!!

[l_ACCA]

Pass! So happy.

Really didn’t know what to expect because I felt that I was waffling a lot during the exam.

Congratulations to all who passed (as the last ACCA exam)!!!

[l_ACCA]

Usually after the exam I can’t remember anythi. Lol. Everything is just a blur.
But here is what I remember

EVA
Discuss ROCE amd why EVA is better

Problems of balanced scorecard

Evaluate performance management report (I used SAIL to help me)

Key stakeholders (Mandelo)

Risk and expected values

Strategic, Tactical and Operational levels (can’t remember exact question on that. Performance pyramid?)

Value chain

[l_ACCA]

I am doing APM before SBL.

I don’t know if it’s advisable or not but I took PM (F5 back then) years ago, hence I want to do APM before SBL. By doing that I aim to refresh my performance management skills before taking SBL because, as we know, SBL is based on applied skills exams (including knowledge brought forward from PM).

But if you took applied skills exams recently then I don’t think there is a need for you to take APM before SBL.

[l_ACCA]

Thank you for you response.

[l_ACCA]

@drrana279, please do share your your study and revision techniques.

[l_ACCA]

@coolrukia94, good that you mentioned IFRSBox. I used it too for more complex topics. Very useful website.

@davour, yep, you are so right. Discipline is very important.

——————————
I really enjoy studying for ACCA exams. Not just because I will get a certificate at the end but because I am actually learning a great deal about myself as well by applying different study plans, routines and different tactics of establishing a good discipline, especially few weeks before the exam. I am also learning how to be strict with myself and say ‘No’ to distractions. I guess, that’s part of discipline. Anyway, it’s brilliant 🙂

Oh, also, I am learning a lot about the way of looking at things. For example, if you look at the studies and exams as something negative, boring, scary; you will be miserable and stressed all the way throughout your studies because you feel that studying is ‘the worst’ and you are missing out on life. However, if you only change your perception and see that whatever you are learning is interesting and useful. It will completely change the way you approach your studies and exam preparation and it will become so much easier to sit down everyday and do some question practise, rather that postpone it or do it with the reluctance. Brain is so much more receptive to things we like and enjoy so therefore if you decide (let yourself believe) that you enjoy studying, the new information will stick to your brain much easier. Also, be curious, ask questions. E.g. when you read some new material, ask the question, ‘why do treat a transaction in this particular way’, ‘does it make sense’, ‘what impact does it have on financial statements as a whole’ etc. Don’t try to hard learn rules, try to apply sense to them, connect to other things you know about the topic. That’s how our brain remembers things better, by making connections to the things we already know.

I read an advice somewhere, it said, ‘learn as if you are going to teach somebody’. I think that’s the best advise ever. It has been scientifically proven that if you learn with knowing that you will have to teach somebody that new material, you actually learn differently, you learn to remember (not to memorise). It’s just a simple psychological trick. Or, to be honest, if you want, you can teach somebody after you study something new. That will be even better. By saying things (or writing them down) in your own words makes brain remember better. Also, by saying/writing, you repeat what you have learnt and repetition is another scientifically proven way to remember things. Check Leitner system out.

When I studied SBR, I used to stop reading material for few minutes and thought about why certain rules are what they are. Then I thought what would happen if we treated a transaction in question differently. And to be honest, IFRS rules made sense, they were logical. Therefore, if you are stuck in the exam and can’t remember the rule, think what would be the logical thing to do, the logical treatment of a certain transaction. Then, most likely, you will be right without even recalling a particular rule from a textbook. Note: of course, some things will have to be learnt/memorised, no two ways about it.

Oh, just to add, when doing question practise, don’t look at the answers and think ‘oh yes, that’s what I was going to write’ or ‘oh yes, I knew that’. This is tricking yourself into thinking that you know things, i.e. confusing recollection with recognition. Recollection is when you actually remember things without being prompt, i.e. by looking at the answer. Recognition is when you look at the answer and because you have seen the material before (when you were studying it), you recognise it and you think you know it. However, you could not remember it without seeing it. This is the trick! You think you know it when you actually don’t. That’s why you see advise everywhere saying ‘don’t look at the answer, have a go at answering the question first’. This way, you are forcing yourself to remember, to recall what you have learnt.

Please note, I am only sharing my own experience. Each student is different and you need to apply a study technique which works the best for you.

Apologies for a long post. Got too excited 🙂

[l_ACCA]

Pass (first time).
Phew… My most feared exam.

[l_ACCA]

Hi Ken,
Thank you very much for your response.

[l_ACCA]

Hi,
I can’t post pdfs or screenshots here so I am pasting the list from the Excel file I made for myself.

The list is based on question number and which topics each question covers.

It starts with question 17 just because first 16 questions are preparatory, i.e. non-exam-standard questions.

Hope that helps at least a little bit.

17
Ethics
Global reporting initiative
Intangible assets IAS 38
Integrated reporting
Social and environmental reporting

18
Ethics
Fair value IFRS 13
Leasing IFRS 16

19
Corporate responsibility
Ethics
Segment reporting IFRS 8
Social and environmental reporting

20
CSOCF
Disclosure initiative
Ethics
Integrated reporting

21
CSOCF
Ethics

22
Ethics
Related party transactions IAS 24

23
Current issues

24
Conceptual Framework
Current issues
Disclosure initiative
Events after the reporting period IAS 10
Financial instruments IFRS 9

25
Conceptual Framework
Current issues
Disclosure initiative

26
Conceptual Framework
Revenue recognition IFRS 15

27
PPE IAS 16
Revenue recognition IFRS 15

28
Intangible assets IAS 38
Interim reporting IAS 34
NCA held for sale and discontinued operations IFRS 5
PPE IAS 16
Revenue recognition IFRS 15

29
Ethics
Leasing IFRS 16
NCA held for sale and discontinued operations IFRS 5
Revenue recognition IFRS 15

30
Conceptual Framework
Employee benefits (pensions) IAS 19
Ethics
Impairment IAS 36
Related party transactions IAS 24
Revenue recognition IFRS 15

31
Accounting policies IAS 8
Government grants IAS 20
PPE IAS 16
Provisions and contingencies IAS 37
Revenue recognition IFRS 15
Segment reporting IFRS 8

32
Impairment IAS 36
NCA held for sale and discontinued operations IFRS 5

33
Borrowing costs IAS 23
Impairment IAS 36
Intangible assets IAS 38
Related party transactions IAS 24

34
Fair value IFRS 13
Financial instruments IFRS 9
Impairment IAS 36
Intangible assets IAS 38

35
Impairment IAS 36

36
Deferred tax IAS 12
Financial instruments IFRS 9
Investment property IAS 40
NCA held for sale and discontinued operations IFRS 5
PPE IAS 16

37
Events after the reporting period IAS 10
Financial instruments IFRS 9
Joint arrangements IFRS 11
PPE IAS 16
Provisions and contingencies IAS 37

38
Impairment IAS 36
Intangible assets IAS 38
Investment property IAS 40
Leasing IFRS 16
Provisions and contingencies IAS 37

39
Provisions and contingencies IAS 37

40
Fair value IFRS 13
Financial instruments IFRS 9
Related party transactions IAS 24

41
Financial instruments IFRS 9

42
Financial instruments IFRS 9

43
Financial instruments IFRS 9

44
Financial instruments IFRS 9
Leasing IFRS 16
Revenue recognition IFRS 15

45
Employee benefits (pensions) IAS 19
Fair value IFRS 13
Provisions and contingencies IAS 37

46
Deferred tax IAS 12
Leasing IFRS 16
Share-based payment IFRS 2

47
Deferred tax IAS 12

48
CSOFP
CSPLOCI
Deferred tax IAS 12
Employee benefits (pensions) IAS 19
Financial instruments IFRS 9
NCA held for sale and discontinued operations IFRS 5

49
Disposals of investments
Ethics
Events after the reporting period IAS 10
Impairment IAS 36
NCA held for sale and discontinued operations IFRS 5
Share-based payment IFRS 2

50
Provisions and contingencies IAS 37

51
Employee benefits (pensions) IAS 19
Provisions and contingencies IAS 37
Revenue recognition IFRS 15
Share-based payment IFRS 2

52
Employee benefits (pensions) IAS 19
Leasing IFRS 16
Provisions and contingencies IAS 37
Share-based payment IFRS 2

53
Leasing IFRS 16
Share-based payment IFRS 2

54
Fair value IFRS 13

55
Fair value IFRS 13

56
Agriculture IAS 41
Fair value IFRS 13
Share-based payment IFRS 2

57
Fair value IFRS 13
Impairment IAS 36
Intangible assets IAS 38
Investment property IAS 40
PPE IAS 16

58
Deferred tax IAS 12
Financial instruments IFRS 9
Impairment IAS 36
Investment property IAS 40

59
Fair value IFRS 13
SMEs

60
SMEs

61
Accounting policies IAS 8

62
Accounting policies IAS 8
Borrowing costs IAS 23

63
Agriculture IAS 41
Deferred tax IAS 12
Foreign currency IAS 21
NCA held for sale and discontinued operations IFRS 5

64
Accounting policies IAS 8
CSOFP
CSPLOCI
CSOCF
Deferred tax IAS 12
Foreign currency IAS 21
Government grants IAS 20

65
CSOFP
Disposals of investments
Share-based payment IFRS 2
Step acquisitions

66
CSOFP
Disposals of investments

67
CSOFP
Ethics
Financial instruments IFRS 9
Segment reporting IFRS 8
Step acquisitions

68
CSOCF
Government grants IAS 20

69
CSOCF
Disposals of investments
Ethics

70
CSOFP
PPE IAS 16

71
CSOFP
Foreign currency IAS 21

72
Deferred tax IAS 12

73
Changes in group structure and group reorganisations
CSOFP
Foreign currency IAS 21

74
Changes in group structure and group reorganisations
Foreign currency IAS 21
Provisions and contingencies IAS 37

75
Interpretation of financial statements

76
Interpretation of financial statements

77
Conceptual Framework
Corporate responsibility
Current issues
Financial instruments IFRS 9
Integrated reporting
Interpretation of financial statements
PPE IAS 16

78
Interpretation of financial statements

79
CSOCF
Current issues
Integrated reporting

[l_ACCA]

Congratulations and thank you for sharing your story. It has few very useful tips which I can apply to my studies.

[l_ACCA]

Dear Ken,
Thank you very much for your prompt reply.
That is very helpful and encouraging.

[l_ACCA]

Hi,

Maybe it will not answer your question but I will share my view and experience. Hopefully it will be somewhat helpful.
I just finished my fundamentals level and I am preparing for SBR exam in December. I spoke to few of my colleagues at work who are ACCA qualified (one of them is FCCA) asking if I should take a revision course, if it’s worth it. And all of them told me that, in fact, the revision course is more important than the tuition one. Tuition phase you can do it on your own by reading books, articles, listening to opentuition tutorials. No real need to spend £800 especially if you already covered the material before, but… the exam technique and question practise is paramount, hence, in a way, taking the revision course is more important, especially in the professional level. This is because during the revision course tutors give you some helpful tips. If you are worried or not sure about your approach to questions you can always get their advice. I booked a BPP revision course for my Dec exam and in addition to attending revision classes, I also get an access to online tuition materials, i.e. pre-recorded tuition lessons. They are very useful when you get stuck on some topics and you need clarification or simply a refresher. You also get access to an online forum where you can asks tutors for help if you don’t understand something. I’ve been studying with BPP for almost all of my exams. I like them.
You mentioned that you prefer doing question practise on your own, which is fine but what I experienced, is that during the revision class, most of the questions you do do it by yourself and in addition you get a walk-through afterwards with the tutor which includes some helpful advice on how to approach that particular question, what to look out for etc.

Again, this is my own view and experience, you don’t have to follow it. But I hope whatever choice you make it will help you with your exam preparation and you will pass in December 😉 I genuinely wish you well.

P.S. I am only talking about BPP because the experience I had with Kaplan was years ago and I can’t really compare the two. Especially after Kaplan changed their online interface which I found completely non-user-friendly. Hence I stuck with BPP.

P.S. 2. I fund my studies myself too since day one :/ It is very expensive indeed because I always take tuition and revision courses. Taking into account all other commitments in my life I find it difficult to do self-study hence I have to enrol to a structured course to keep me on track.

[l_ACCA]

As it’s computer based I guess all of us get different exam questions.

Mine was share issues, nci and convertible debt all over the place.
Part C ratios, goodwill and consolidated P&L.

[l_ACCA]

Thank you very much.

[l_ACCA]

Thank you John.

[l_ACCA]

Thank you very much for sharing your opinions. That is really helpful!

kim2311, I guess I will have to come to terms that I am missing June’s sitting and just take one paper at a time from September. It is indeed better not to put too much pressure on myself.

anon100, you are right. If the syllabus is so large it’s better to take this paper on it’s own.

I almost booked P6 course today but I guess I better concentrate on revising for F7 exam for September and then take SBR in December. Better to prepare well for one exam than stress, overload my brain and not to pass either just because I tried to bite off more than I can chew.

[l_ACCA]

Passed F8 and F9. Yay. So happy 🙂

[Author]

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