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I passed it first time a few days ago but only just.
Key elements i can share with you are:
– be prepared for a slighthly different terminology used in exam questions that the ones in textbook (I used Kaplan materials) i.e. question regarding choosing the correct formula for variable overhead cost efficiency variance had standard hours for actual production that was described as standard production generated – i found it very confusing (but maybe becuause I am a foreigner and English is not my first language it was more difficult for me than it will be for others) so you would need to make a decision about the answer quite quickly in order not to waste your precious time.I found those differences occuring in a number of questions.Common sense should help you to make a right choice.
– time management is a key. A lot of questions had a multiple choice option as an answer and all options were quite long to read – so you need to read carefully and remain calm.10 min into the exam i was already quite depressed and ready to give up as i didnt think i could manage to answer all of the questions.Luckily I didnt. Remain calm and keep going through the questions.If you prepared solidly you should have enough time to complete all of the questions.
– in regards to the above point there were a significant number of questions which were short and relatively easy to answer – so expect some kind of mix
– be prepared to read quicky the questions
– I estimate there was 20%-30% of questions that required calculations. A few of them were quite lengthy so its important not to get discouraged when you get one.I got a first 2 or 3 questions like that and I got stressed out as i spent around 8-10 on them.But a lot of questions afterwards were easy calculations.
– you absolutely need to know the core topics of P1 from theory point of view. A lot of questions test the understanding of the theory of the subject.I read the text book twice and flicked through a specific topics around 5-8 times.
– last 3 weeks before the exam i mainly did tests and follow up with text book knowledge if I answered any question incorrect.I have done about 5-6 full time mock exams.
Materials I used:
Kaplan text book and Exam practice kit (and additional resources on their website – they are available once you purchased its book and set up the account)
CIMA Aptitude 2 (great help – a lot of questions helping to solidify the knowledge you studied)
Open tutition videos and exam questions (exam questions were very good , open your horizon of P1 subject knowledge).Having said that i would disagree with some of the people claiming in other topic about P1 exam that Open tutition materials are enough for P1 exam preparation.I cannot see it.And lastly , i am quite average student and not that smart person , so if i was able to pass it then you will to.
Thanks for these Tips. I have my exam on 22nd of June and these will help me immensely.
Im also using kaplan materials only….. so in your opinion the exam was harder or easier compared to Kaplan mocks?I would say Kaplan mocks are more difficult simply because they contain far more questions which require calculation and that takes time ,i.e. every time I did Kaplan mock exam (or test builder capacity) it contained 50%-75% of calculation questions which is not the case in the real exam. Real exam had at most 30% of questions that required calculation.
That is a good bit as usually theory question are easier to answer in terms of time.You need to be well prepared in terms of theory – so using Kaplan text book is a great tool.
I have to admit though that there were about 5-7 questions in the exam which were not covered in the text book so be prepared for that – i had to use my overall knowledge and common sense to answer them.Also if you still can i would advise you to get Cima Aptitude 2 set of exam questions – they are really helpful (its only £20 i think but its well invested money).
Good luck and remember keep going through the questions in the exam (dont get discouraged if you get a few difficult in a row).
Thank you (Dzieki). I got my P1 in 2 weeks. I also found around 5 questions not covered by the books on E1 and F1- don’t really understand how/why this happened?
I have also read the topic about people claiming opentuition is enough but to be honest, if I had only used it for previous exams, I would have failed, so did not rely on it 100%.The theory questions- were they like common sense? Meaning, if you understand how to calculate something, then you are able to find correct answer or they were like kind you have to memorize facts from the book?
I am worried as I am rather into calculations than remembering what type of budgets we have.
What type of questions were asked from Variance and how many approx ? In most of the questions it takes me more than 3-4 mins to complete that too with mistakes, I really suck at it.
Nie ma sprawy- powodzenia :-).
In case of opentuition materials i found about 30% -40% of crucial information missing in comparison with Kaplan textbook (a lot of information around variances, budget and forecasting technics)- it is really difficult to imagine passing the P1 exam if your preparation has been solely based on OT knowledge bank.
However I found their quiz test questions very useful as they test your knowledge from slightly different angle.Theory questions – there were all sort of questions in the exam:
– some asked to select the correct formula for variance (each element of the formula was described by words i.e. material usage efficiency variance = (standard material used for actual production generated – actual materials used) x standard cost per unit ,etc.
– there was a short real life scenario given (about some company) and you had to select the best type of the budget that would suit the company described.I found reading the bits in the Kaplan text book with the book picture quite useful.
– quite a few questions testing your knowledge around sensitivity analysis, stress testing, expected value and what type of attitude to risk a specific person/company has.
– budget types and advantages were pretty well tested – you need to know those details.
– a few questions about what causes specific variances especially variable and fixed overhead variances.
If you know how to calculate things then you should be able to use that knowledge and common sense to answer the question.
Hope this helps.
I found the time to be a bit of the problem as each question required a bit of brain excercise so being totally focused is important.
I can see you have take E1 already – can you advise (maybe in a new topic or in private message) how did you find it and how to best prepare for that exam.Thanks and good luck.
Variances were tested quite a bit in the version of the exam i had (especially operational and planning variances) so make sure you can do it quickly. Also make sure you know the reasons causing each of the variance (material, sales, labour, and overheads – its important).
Good luck
Jeez. Thanks so much!!
How on earth can I send a private message here? Moj mail to moja nazwa uzywana tutaj na o2.pl- odpowiem z detalami.
When is your E1? I used BPP book and I can say it has lots of information which was not necessary and quite a few from the exam was not there, so I do not recommend it. Most of people said Kaplan is quite good, so maybe try this one. I was going to read it if I fail but luckily, I passed (barely). CIMA Aptitude 2- definitely helped me. What I can say- there is plenty of time!! I finished the whole test with spare 30 min, so had enough time to go back to the questions I was not sure about.Hi,
Sent you priv on the same day but came back as rejected. Sometimes it happens with my o2- long story. I resent my e mail next day from yahoo account, hope you got it.Hey all, thanks for your posts. Has been super useful to prepare for my P1 Exam that I recently sat and thankfully passed 1st time. I will also echo the feedback about the actual paper being 70-30 split in favour of theory to calc.
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