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Hi all, I’m a bit scared by p2 as I got exempted from f7 and graduated 3 years back. I am wondering what do I need to do to pass p3 first time? Anyone attended p2 lectures at lsbf Manchester ? Please advice . Thanks
It’s quite impossible to pass P2 first time. Unless you work like 10 hours a day for 4 months then you might clear it.
Gabriel is a bit too negative! Yes, P2 is tough (in my biased opinion, it’s the toughest!) but many students do pass it first time.
The key, as with all these exams, is PRACTICE! Endless hours, as many as you can devote, and it’s an achievable objective
And, of course, if you come across anything you don’t understand, you can always post your question on this site and I shall try to resolve the issue
1st time passer here. I found the breadth of the sylabus scary as heck, but practicing every past paper and revision kit question I could lay my hands on helped a lot.
The open tuition consolidation lectures are absolutely priceless!!
Good luck and keep your nerve 🙂
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I used the lsbf video lectures and passed first time with minimal practice. I also passed F7 first time…I guess find financial accounting easier to understand. Question practice is the key. I am working in audit full time and I only get one week study leave.
So its achievable my friend.Mikelittle thanks Sir for the piece of advise
@ Sarbobbear and Zondai thanks I’ll take your advice on board … This motivates me to work towards achieving this goal. I also work full time with 2 kids lol so I guess I have minimal study time too. Just hoping all goes well . Passed p1 only so far and waiting for p3 results in February .. Fingers crossed.I’m waiting for P2 and P3 result.
After seeing Gabriels and Mikes posts about P2… I already know what the result will be…@seagoat what do you mean when you say you know what your result will be? Do you mean you will clear the paper? Or rather do you mean I will not clear the paper?
I agree question practice, especially for consolidations is vital, but for Section B really, in my humble experience and opinion the question practice doesn’t help. In the Dec 2014 exam, there was not a single section B question from past exams and the questions were so different and rather challenging
Well Gabriel it was my first attempt indeed 🙂 – and many people say the exam was difficult and awkward.
To be honest I wouldn’t even pass myself…
@seagoat yes this Dec 2014 exam was very unfair and weird. Why couldn’t we just get a normal paper?
@seagoat and and anybody else interested it would be worth reading Kaplan’s exam review for P2 Dec 2014:
https://examtips.kaplan.co.uk/acca/acca-p2/december-2014-evaluation
@ kenny you need to sign up with them (it’s free). Anyway, here’s the Kaplan review:
Question 1
Many students would have been happy to see a statement of financial position in question 1a. Measurement period adjustments and a gain on a bargain purchase may have thrown those who were less well prepared. Moreover, many students would have struggled with the joint arrangement in note 5 of the question. However, well-prepared students should have been able to score many of the easy marks available. Question 1b tested some detailed rules around share based payments, but solid marks could be scored for demonstrating a basic knowledge. The ethics requirement in part 1c should have been a source of easy marks.Question 2
This question tested extremely detailed knowledge. Very few students would know about related party disclosure exemptions for government entities or about financial guarantee contracts. Although the hedge accounting question tested core knowledge, students tend to struggle with this topic.Question 3
This question had two requirements for 12 and 11 marks respectively. Questions 2 and 3 in recent P2 exams have tended to have 3 or 4 requirements, so this would have taken many by surprise. Part a concerned whether an investment should have been consolidated or not. This tested detailed rules in IFRS 3 about the nature of ‘businesses’ which students may have been unfamiliar with. However, a good knowledge of the nature of control and consolidation per IFRS 10 would have helped. Part b concerned property, plant and equipment. Both parts of the question involved detailed and relatively obscure scenarios, but students with good exam technique should have picked up solid marks.Question 4
This question concerned the impairment of assets and the extent to which IAS 36 is being correctly applied. This has been highlighted as a current issue in recent examiner reports. Whilst many would have been expecting a question on integrated reporting, this topic should not have come as a complete surprise.Conclusion
Students with a strong knowledge of consolidation as well as good overall exam technique will obtain the pass mark that they deserve. It is, however, a shame that so many requirements across the P2 exam tested non-core knowledge that is buried deeply within the accounting standards. Many students will feel frustrated that, in an exam with such a large syllabus, they are being tested on such detailed and niche areas.– See more at: https://examtips.kaplan.co.uk/acca/acca-p2/december-2014-evaluation#sthash.FQ3zrDbw.dpuf
In general, I would say P2 is passable 1st time, especially when you look at the pass rates which is generally between 45%-50%. Given that Dec paper was fairly difficult, I could see the examiner revert to a less obscure complex exam in the next sitting so the June sitting could be a nice sitting to sit the paper 1st time.
If you put the work in, it is passable – Even with a very difficult exam in Dec, I am hoping for a pass mark. I would expect pass mark in Dec 14 exam to be low 40%.
My first go at it and it was definitely the most challenging exam i have ever sat, and I was pretty well prepared I thought and had just scored 73% in F7 last june.
I balanced the consolidation (compensating errors probably) but i’m still pretty doubtful that i passed the exam overall……
actually i don’t know, i could have anywhere between 40% and 65% cos i have absolutely no idea if my answers in part B where on the money or way off the mark… it’s that kind of exam.
I gave something masquerading as an answer to each part so i’m hoping that will stand to me
@tallaghthoop me and Seagoat also put in the work but we don’t think we can pass it this time round. So I don’t think that the P2 exam is passable no matter how much work is put in. I think the examiner is very unfair and why do you say that the June paper will be very easy, after all, an exam paper is set 18 months before the sitting so I suspect it could be more challenging or just normal
Of course it is passable, If we set another sitting first time we may have got a friendlier paper. The last few sittings prior to Dec 2014 were passable. Dec 2014 was a brute which I am hoping to survive with a pass. If I fail, its unfortunate that Dec 2014 was a bad paper. Just because of one bad paper, it does not make it an impossible exam to pass first time for other students for future papers.
Did everyone else choose the international variant for the last exam? I chose the UK variant, and wish I hadn’t. I tried to memorize the UK supplement, but in the end I was overwhelmed by all the information. I’m very sure that this will be the first exam I’ll fail!
I wish to switch to Intl. Variant from UK for the first time when taking p2.
I passed Financial reporting under old syllabus long time ago.
In anyone of your opinion is it manageable? Or how hard i should prepare for this transition?Any advice will be invaluable..Tx
It can be passed first time but it is not easy and there is no short cut. I disagree with Gabriel though, practicing questions is the key.
The same questions may not come up again but question practice is the only way to get inside the examiners head, understand the wording, the approach and produce the kind of answer he is looking for and the kind of answer that will maximise your marks from the knowledge you have.
But passing first time is totally doable, the pass rates are consistantly higher than F7 which is regarded as a much easier exam
It’s quite easy to pass first time. All you have to do is:
1) Neglect your kids
2) Obsess about P2
3) Ignore chapters 18 to 21
4) Do the past papers until you want to cut yourself
5) Question the meaning of life
6) Get angry at ACCA for making you jump through hoops like a little lab rat
7) Pray that what you’re strong in comes up
8) Don’t get caught up with Question One. They throw in very specific topics to mess with your mind.
9) Don’t worry about the exams. You can always take it again in the next session.
10) Get a can of monster and sip it during the test so you don’t day dream about having a lifeI’m just annoyed because I failed P2 for the first time and just realized that I missed an obvious topic (New UK GAAP) because of my book.
In all seriousness. Devote your life to P2 and you might pass. Nothing is certain in the world of ACCA. Unless you’re a cyborg, you won’t remember every topic in 100% detail.
Personally, I eat loads of cakes a week before the exams, while I cram all that I can.
@sarbobbear said:
1st time passer here. I found the breadth of the sylabus scary as heck, but practicing every past paper and revision kit question I could lay my hands on helped a lot.The open tuition consolidation lectures are absolutely priceless!!
Good luck and keep your nerve 🙂
Amen!
I thought it was scary as heck ( know too many persons that had to resit multiply times) so i decided to tackle it alone.
I was pretty intimidated by the paper so i procrastinated until last month or so and to keep focus i covered a chapter in the book then did a past paper question on that topic. acowtancy.com helped me there
as always Mikes lectures and tips on how to work the ?? in exam helped a lot. Technical articles in student accountant helped.
When nerves hit in an exam its very easy to mess up and make silly mistakes and waste time that’s why it is good to get as much practice in as possible.
in the exam I spent two hours on the consol only so i had an hour to complete the rest of the paper. the good thing is that i read the last four technical articles the night before and had gone through them several times prior so it was just about writing as much as i could remember to cover in marks for the question i remember the most about. luckily i did enough to pass.
i know i wrote a lot but the responses on the forums help me when i am studying and i hope that mine help others.
I will also add that persons believe that this is computational paper and going in i was told that all i needed to do was master the consol. but the fact is that is only 35 marks the other 65 is about you understanding the standards and be able to apply your knowledge.
Theory papers are not my strong point so it means working twice as hard, what i realize studying this paper was i would read through the question and have an answer similar to the model answer in my head but when it comes to putting that on paper it wasnt so easy and a of persons dont appreciate that they need to practice writing out the answers for the theory as well and not just practice the computational aspect.
to quote MikeLittle the only way to pass ACCA exam papers is to “PRACTICE, PRACTICE and the PRACTICE some more.”
he also said to “read it and then read it again and again!”
and to listen to the lectures until you can sing it to him.
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