F8 December 13

I think I read the same post (OpenTuition by any chance?) I can see how studying P7 might work for some people but bearing in mind the level that P7 is set at, I think you'd either need the F8 basics to understand it or have enough of an affinity for audit to be thrown in at the deep end.

I know you've struggled with F8 in the past so I really think studying P7 will knock your confidence. I have just passed F8 and used a BPP study text. I'll be honest with you, I worked damn hard to get the mark I did, there are no short cuts. I knew the study text from cover to cover, I did every single past exam paper and completed the BPP revision kit from start to finish. I also trawled YouTube for exam technique tips and ensured I knew exactly how the examiner wanted the questions to be answered. I went into the exam confident that I would know how to answer the vast majority of the questions, and know what the examiner was looking for. My advice to anyone sitting F8 is answer the question being asked, not the question you want to be asked, and this is repeated time and time again in the exam advice. Most of the exam advice online centred around students consistently making the same mistakes ie. giving business risks when the examiner has clearly asked for audit risks, or testing for completeness when the question has asked to test for accuracy etc. I found a lot of audit to be common sense so I think it sometimes helps to look at scenarios from a normal persons view, rather than an accountants view (not that accountants aren't normal!)

My point of all the above is that, to pass F8, you need to know the F8 syllabus, not the P7 syllabus. And if you know the F8 syllabus, then you will pass. Great if you can go into the F8 exam with the P7 knowledge as well, I'm sure you'd pass, but I think you'd be making life really difficult for yourself.

As for taking two exams in December, I also did F7 and F8 together, and I think F7 is the hardest F paper by far. And this comes from someone who found the associated AAT paper straightforward. F7 really tests your knowledge of financial statements and the time pressure in the exam is something else. You need to know your stuff as there is no time to calmly think about things in the exam.

Unless you are really confident that you can give both exams your best shot then I would really advise just concentrating on 1.

I may be wrong but I seem to recall that you haven't passed any F papers yet. I actually think that ACCA have numbered the papers in a fairly sensible order and I do think that they get more difficult (in general) as you go through. Why not look at starting with F4 and work from there. It's completely new so there is no assumed prior knowledge and most of it is just theory, even the application questions are usually just a case of repeating the theory and adding your own conclusion at the end.

I managed the auditing paper last year without doing F7 first.

I guess it is preference really although I was told to consider doing F7 before F8.

Mark

Hi Glynis

I also wouldn't recommend going anywhere near P7 until you have/choose to! You would have a lot more to learn that you don't need to worry about yet, and you don't want to get stressed over things you don't understand in P7 if you don't need to know them for F8. Focus on F8 and make the best use of your time to study that in as much detail as you can.

I agree with Nps that it helps to try and look at things from a 'normal' person's view - imagine in the scenarios you have invested say £20,000 as a silent partner with the promise of say a £5,000 dividend after the first year. What if after the first year the business owner said you weren't getting the promised £5,000 as the business had in fact made a loss, and showed you accounts to prove it. What sort of things would you want to check to see if what you were being told is right, and where your £20,000 investment has gone?!

Good luck!

I too passed F8 at the first attempt in the June sitting just gone. I read the textbook and my notes over and over again until I near enough knew it back to front!

I studied all questions in the workbook, all past exam papers available, pocket notes daily during my lunch break at work.

F8 is certainly not impossible, but it does take hard work and understanding of the questions being asked and how to answer them appropriately.

I'm sure you'll be able to crack it in December, good luck!

Hi Mark, firstly I think your score of 75% for F8 is fantastic! I only got 68% on this one.

I studied F8 alongside F6 in June and scored 85% in my Tax exam. I did not choose Tax during my AAT Level 4 so this was the first time I had studied it in any detail, so I used everything and anything I could get my hands on to aid me with this unit.

Do you study yourself, distance learning or in college? Everyone has different techniques and materials they prefer to use. I study by myself so I utilise any study material that is available. The reason I use past papers too is to compare my answer against the model answer to see what I got right/wrong and also to see what the examiner guidance is and what type of answer they're actually looking for.

What exams are you going for in December?

Thanks Blue Wednesday and Rebecca.

I'm just going to do F9 in December Rebecca. I'm finding it ok but just wondered if I could be doing
things any better really.

I just buy the texts, passcards and revision book and teach myself really.

Just wondered if there was a key to just get my marks higher that's all but guess I just need to practice
more.

I've got an average of 71% over my first three papers so not too bad.

Thanks

Mark

To all you guys studying further in Accountancy,

I am not doing further studies as yet, just plodding along level 4 in aat (still doubting myself as to whether I will be able to complete it myself or not without any work experience in accountancy!) . I came across this website recently which I think might give you guys some exam tips. It is free to register and join in. Here it is
http://accountancystudents.co.uk/

Good luck to you all.