It’s not so long ago when the last CPA licensure/board examination took place last July 2014, yet, another is going to take place this October 2014. The results of the July 2014 CPA made noise due to the unexpected or unusually low passing rate of 20% and of course, the new sets of officers of the Board of Accountancy (BOA). Some has interpreted this as BOA becoming more strict while some says that maybe it’s just a reflection of the caliber of the batch’s candidates.

What is your forecast on the October 2014 CPA board exam result? 

The October 2014 CPA board examination will take place on October 4, 5, 11 and 12 in Manila, Baguio, Cagayan De Oro, Cebu, Davao, Iloilo, Legaspi, Lucena and Tacloban City.  Do you already know the schedule of subjects?

The professional regulatory board of accountancy released the schedule of subjects for the October 2014 CPA board examination early September as follows:

Updates: For Room Assignments, PRC has already posted some in its website, Click Here.

As usual, examinees are given the general instructions below that they should strictly follow.

General Instructions to Examinees

1. Your school/building assignments will be posted at the PRC  premises two or three working days before the examination.  Bring your Notice of Admission when you verify your school/building assignment.  Visit your school/building assignment prior to the day of the examination.
2. Report to the school/building assignment before 6:30 AM on the first day of the examination to verify your room and seat number.  Be punctual. late examinees will not be admitted.
3. Examinees are required to wear the following attire every examination day.
   • Male Examinees – white polo shirts or t-shirts with collar
   • Female Examinees – white blouses or t-shirts with collar
4. Bring the following on the examination day:
   • Notice of Admission
   • Official Receipt
   • One piece metered-stamped window mailing envelop
   • Two r more pencils (no. 2)
   • Ballpens with BLACK INK only
   • One piece long brown envelop
   • One piece long transparent/plastic envelop (for keeping your valuables and other allowed items)
   • NON-PROGRAMMABLE CALCULATORS (refer to list on the examinees guide)
5. The following are prohibited inside the examination premises/rooms.
   • Books, notes, review materials, and other printed materials containing coded data/information/formula.
   • Programmable calculators
   • Cellular phones, beepers, portable computers or similar gadgets/devices.
   • Bags of any kind (ladies bag, shoulder bag, attache case, backpacks, etc.)
   • Other examination aids not stated on this program shall not be brought inside the examination building
6. Read carefully and follow instructions on your Notice of Admission and Examinees Guide.

Now that all is set for the October 2014 CPA board exam, we are once again leaving the candidates with these tips.

Tips to Pass the CPA Board Exam

Is it your first time or taking the exam for the second time, third time or may be more…? One feeling we can’t deny.  It’s being nervous.  You can be happy but nervous, excited but nervous, afraid and nervous, confused and nervous.  Whatever it is, taking the CPA board examination is one decision that may change your life forever.

Are you prepared?

There are a lot of tips we can give but nothing bets preparation.  No matter how you prepared, when you are prepared enough, you have nothing to worry about.

You should not take chances. If you are not confident enough that you will pass it, don’t push it!  You will just put yourself in an uncertain position and will probably burn your resources, unless you have plenty of it and you don’t care how much resources you may burn.  It’s a basic rule – don’t get into a battle unarmed.

Passing the CPA Board Exam requires investment.  Investment in the form of devotion of time and effort, commitment, serious intention and preparation.  If you are prepared, you will definitely pass, we assure you that.  However, you may need to define “prepared”.  This doesn’t mean confidence alone.  You should ensure that you understand the basics and know the complexities.  You may not know everything but at least have an idea of everything.  Questions may come from everywhere you less expected, so expect the worst.

Preparation is the key! So if you are just preparing, better defer your plan of taking it in the next batch.  To keep yourself mentally sound during the examination, follow these tips:

1. Have a good rest before the examination.  Spend your one week before it refreshing your mind, and resting.  Breath some fresh air, don’t think too much, don’t tire you body.
2. Eat healthy foods.  Avoid alcohol.
3. Settle conflicts days before examination.  Don’t keep negative thoughts bother you during the exam.
4. Wake up just in time during examination days.  Not too early.  Not too late.  Waking up early increases the chance that you will feel sleepy during the examination and it will be a bad sign.  Wake up late and you will cram yourself.
5. Prepare your examination stuffs the day before and ensure they are correct and complete.  Bringing up the wrong or incomplete stuffs increases risk of being rejected.  It will keep you worried and out of focus.
6. Stay focused.  Know what the question is asking, trust your instinct but challenge your answer.
7. Take it easy.  Why waste your time answering the first hard question when the rest are all easy questions.  When you can no longer drain your brain, skip to the next, then go back later when all the easy questions are done.  Each question number have equal weights anyway.
8. Shade it right.  Follow the instructions carefully.  Don’t encircle when it says draw a straight line.  Before you shade your answer, make sure that it’s the right number you are shading.
9. Don’t be pressured, but watch your time.  You have choices, maybe four or five? So that’s around 20% to 25% probability of getting the right answer for every question.  So if you are 74% sure of your answers, you might get 1% from the 20% to 25% probability.  But in as much as you want to get the right answer, watch your time as the rule is, finish or not finish, pass your paper.

Oh, I guess I’ve mentioned that preparation is the key.  So keep yourself prepared. Good luck!

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