Here are 25 Tips and tricks to help you study and pass your accounting examinations. More success in accounting examinations can be achieved by following these simple tips, which apply to all ACCA Examinations. I will be covering paper-specific advice in another composition.
- Planning:
Before you start to prepare for your coming accounting examinations, take some time out to decide how you plan to prepare yourself for the examinations. Don't stay until the results of your former examinations have arrived since by also you would have formerly wasted two precious months of the test session.
When planning, consider for illustration the examinations that you intend to shoulder, the quantum of time you have to prepare for the examinations, your anticipated work routine, family commitments, and so on. Try to draft a schedule grounded on the number of anticipated days you have for each paper you intend to appear in the
ACCA examination.
When forming your schedule, try to be flexible and realistic. The most important thing is to draft one since a written plan is more likely to secure your commitment and provocation beforehand in the test session than one that only exists in your mind.
- Familiarity with Syllabus and Structure
This is one of the important accountancy preparation tip where studying the
syllabus of ACCA examinations would help you to concentrate on just the examinable motifs. The syllabus companion also details the depth at which certain content is examinable about the intellectual position of particular content.
It is essential that you cover the entire range of motifs given in the syllabus. You should also try to familiarize yourself with the test structure beforehand in the medication.
- Examiner's Approach Interview
Examiner’s Approach Interviews available at
ACCA Website give you first-hand sapience into what observers are looking for in answers handed by a pupil, which syllabus areas they consider to be most important, and how they intend to approach the examinations in the future. They are thus a must-read for anyone intending to perform well in the ACCA examinations.
- ACCA Approved Study Textbooks
You may wish to consult notes handed by your education providers or musketeers, but you must always study at least one of ACCA’s approved accounting study textbooks (rearmost performances) to be on the safe side.
The approved study textbooks are completely reviewed by ACCA for the content of the entire syllabus and also for any modification incorporated after changes in the syllabus.
Thus, you will be taking a huge threat by counting solely on test notes which may not be as comprehensive or over to date as the textbooks.
- Ideal Acquainted Approach:
Try to set attainable targets for each day. The targets you set should be concentrated on factors that will help you to succeed in
ACCA examinations (e.g., to cover a chapter or syllabus area in one day, to attempt one paper, etc). Setting targets grounded on illustration number of hours may not be as effective.
- Generalities
Always try to understand the underpinning generalities behind a given content. While you may be suitable to earn some marks for pure knowledge (particularly in the Knowledge Module), an utmost number of marks in ACCA examinations are for the operation of your generalities in a given script. Erecting your generalities right from the morning in your ACCA studies will help you further down the road as you make upon those foundations in the more advanced papers.
- Seek help:
Still, don't be embarrassed in asking your schoolteacher or a friend to help you, If you are floundering with a particular content. Get help incontinently and avoid letting effects pile up until it's too late.
- Past Papers Practice:
One of the important study tip for the preparation of accounting examination, where ACCA scholars find themselves extremely lucky to have Model Answers to one paper questions from the observers themselves. It's a veritably helpful and vital resource for scholars as it provides them sapience into how an answer may be immaculately structured and drafted.
Still, care must be taken when studying the suggested answers. Originally, the answers may only reflect the syllabus, laws, and norms in place at the time of separate examination. Test accoutrements from ACCA-approved publishers may be more applicable for the practice of subjects that are constantly evolving similar to Financial Reporting and Taxation.
Secondly, don't waste time learning gobbets of the model answers since they've been handed for the purpose of guidance only. Examiner cannot conceivably anticipate a pupil to produce an answer of similar quality and depth under test conditions. Still, you should try to learn the general content, sense, inflow, style, and structure of the model answers and try to reproduce those rates in a test.
- Examiner Reports:
Examiner Reports are published on
ACCA Global website after every test sitting pressing the common miscalculations and problem areas encountered by scholars. It's surprising how many scholars actually make use of this resource.
A careful read of the monitor reports could help you a lot in perfecting your test fashion, especially in case you have been stuck with a paper for quite some time now and haven't been suitable to figure out the cause of failure yet (or have been attributing it to bad luck!).
- Marking Schemes:
Marking schemes helps you to prepare and judge the number of distinct points that you need to mention in respect of a given question and the depth of your answer. Studying the marking scheme when rehearsing once paper questions can help you in understanding the relative marking for different types of question conditions.
A typical marking scheme for illustration would allocate one mark per point for an introductory question demand similar to list, identify, or define. Further than one mark per point is generally reserved for question conditions that bear scholars to demonstrate an advanced capability similar to as, explain, compare, distinguish, dissect, and so on.
Mindfulness of the likely base of how your answer will be marked by the monitor will guide you in writing the right number of points in your answers and inapplicable detail rather than fastening on just one or two main points.
- Test Paper Analysis:
It may be useful to look at the trend in examinations. For illustration, what type of questions are most constantly asked? Which motifs are tested most? Has an important syllabus area not been tested in the last several attempts? You could use this information to prioritize crucial motifs that you would like to concentrate more on.
Still, don't calculate on pure guesswork. Trying to decide the trend into your coming test sitting may leave you with many surprises. Just use your analysis as a tool to punctuate important areas rather than to exclude syllabus areas that you feel won't be tested again from your study plan.
- Examiner Analysis Interview:
ACCA publishes Examiner Analysis Interviews for each test paper on its website detailing the observer's view of the performance of the scholars in former examination sessions pressing the prevailing sins among scholars and the unborn focus of examinations. Analysis interviews are veritably helpful in guiding scholars on how to ameliorate their performance in examinations.
- Specialized Articles:
Student accountant magazine offers several test applicable specialized papers geared towards motifs in which scholars have frequently underperformed. Pay special attention to specialized papers released just before the month of the test since they might allude to motifs that could potentially be tested in the forthcoming examination. Observers also bandy in these papers the impact on
ACCA accounting examinations of the changes in syllabus, examination structure, norms, and council and should thus not be ignored by scholars.
- Modification:
Allocate sufficient time in your study plan for modification towards the end of the test medication. Going through the whole study textbook when only two or three days remain in the examinations is not recommended. You would presumably feel exorbitantly exhausted and stressed from trying to retain the information contained in the study textbooks in such a short period.
A better approach would be to draft your study notes throughout the test session, which you could also use for modification purposes right before the examinations. Test Pass Cards from one of the approved publishers could prove handy in case you aren't in the habit of making your notes.
- Visit the Test Centre:
It's important for you to know not only the precise position of the test centre but also indispensable routes to get there. However, plan a visit to the test centre before the test date, If doubtful. This may also help you in estimating the quantum of time needed to get there.
- Sleep well before the test:
Ever got the feeling that you're suddenly forgetting everything you have learned right before the test? It was presumably because you stayed up too late the night before the examination. A good rest before the test is essential to remain alert and concentrated during the test.
While it may be veritably tempting at 3 am in the night before the test to study one final chapter, the fact is you would presumably be doing yourself further detriment than good. Sleep beforehand and rise fresh on the test day.
- Fear Control:
ACCA examinations bear you to apply your knowledge in a given environment. This requires you to be suitable to suppose logically. The last thing you want to pass to yourself is to get panicked before the test. This can leave you confused during the whole test and force you into making crimes that could be fluently avoided. The trick is to just suppose positive before the test starts.
You may try to recall your achievements and accomplishments, the trouble you have (hopefully) put in, and the prayers of your loved ones. Stay down from scholars who are trying to study a 500-runner textbook book 15 twinkles before the test. They will only make you more nervous. Just relax and hold your whim-whams!
- Reading Time:
Effective use of the 15-nanosecond planning and reading time could help you produce further applicable, well-planned, and structured answers in the test. Reading time is ideal for pressing and understanding the crucial conditions of all questions. The remaining time could be used to draft brief answer plans and in case of Professional Stage examinations, you may use this time to elect the most applicable voluntary questions you wish to answer.
- Question Conditions
Close attention should be given to the precise demand of each question. However, don’t compliment yourself but rather read the question precisely again, If it appears to you that two corridors of a question are asking the same thing. It's important to have an understanding of what the monitor is demanding before you do answer the question. It would be a waste of time if you realized halfway through the answer that you have misinterpreted the demand of the question.
- Answer to the Point:
ACCA marking scheme is veritably specific in satisfying marks. However, it will not attract any mark, If a seven-line preface to an answer does not relate to the question demand in any way. It's thus more worthwhile to go straight towards answering the question demand rather than wasting time in lengthy prolusions. A valid exception to the below would be cases where you have been specifically asked to draft an answer in a form of a report or a memo. In similar cases, try to keep the intro as brief as possible.
Observers also encourage scholars to include several different points in their answers rather than explaining many points in too important detail. Studying marking schemes and monitoring reports could help you understand these aspects of test fashion.
- Plan your Answers:
Observers always appreciate well-structured answers. A little planning at the launch could help you give the necessary structure and consonance to your answers. Try to fit short answer plans before the answers which should be crossed latterly to avoid confusing the monitor.
This gives monitor the print that you have tried to organize your answers, and also, in case of time runs out, an answer plan mentioning the crucial points could be awarded many marks indeed if the answer was left deficient.
- Grease the Examiner:
Observers have a tough time checking loads of answer wastes from hundreds of test centres worldwide. Make every trouble to ensure their time isn't wasted unnecessarily while checking your answer distance. Mark the question figures easily and try to follow the sequence of sub-parts to avoid confusion. Writing is maybe not a commodity that could be changed over short notice.
Still, if people in history have planted you are jotting hard to read, try to ameliorate it over the course of time. Make sure you leave ample space in the answer folder for any unanswered question that you may wish to return to latterly in the test to avoid having to squeeze your answer in a little space or asking the monitor to find the remaining portion of the answer away in the answer book. Cross out any rough workings easily to avoid any confusion.
- Don't leave any questions Unanswered:
Still, simply jot down a list of main points before pacing to answer in detail, If you sweat you won't be suitable to complete the answer to a question in time. In case you were unfit to complete the answer, the monitor would know that you are apprehensive of the main points and award you accordingly.
However, guessing would not hurt, especially in the objective-type questions in the knowledge module, If you don't know the right answer to a question. Still, always answer questions that you know first and leave the guesswork towards the end of the test.
- Review:
As you advance in accounting examinations, it becomes decreasingly hard to complete the test in the distributed time. However, review the entire question distance first to make sure you have missed any question part. If luckily you have some time remaining towards the end of the test. You may also snappily review your answer folder for any egregious errors. However, try to ameliorate answers that you feel you can most fluently do in the remaining time If you still have time left.
- After the Test:
Still, try not to waste too important time agitating the test you have formerly given with your musketeers (especially if it didn't go too well!) If you have another test listed soon. Go home, get a good rest and come fresh and well set for the coming test.
Following are the above accounting study tips and tricks with determination help to achieve success in the exams.
However, if you are still finding it difficult to pass ACCA accounting exams feel free to
contact us, we will guide you in the right way.
