CMA Entrance Exam October 2007 observations
Posted in Commentary on October 16th, 2007 by Sacha PeterNote (added September 10, 2010): I will be closing comments on this thread at the end of September. I no longer wish to spend time pruning comments. Thank you.
Prefacing note (added August 2009): This was posted in October 2007 as my own personal reaction to the entrance exam and the people that come to this site have added in an unprecedented amount of comments. I intend to keep the comments open as long as people post useful information. I will prune useless content. Posting messages such as “I passed!” or something that could not possibly help others will be deleted. Please note your identity will not be revealed unless if you choose to reveal it in your comments. When replying to other people’s comments, please use the date and time they posted the comment.
Note (added November 26, 2009): I have removed 223 comments that are irrelevant. Specifically, comments that did not relate to the entrance exam, and comments relating to “When will I get my marks?” and similar comments have been removed.
I just wrote the CMA Entrance exam. It consisted of 105 multiple choice questions over four hours. The test examines the content you would see roughly 6 courses of university (two for intermediate financial accounting, two for intermediate managerial accounting, one introductory finance and one introductory taxation).
The passing grade is 60%. My probability matrix when leaving the exam went something like this:
Score of less than 60%: 1%
60% to 69%: 25%
70% to 79%: 55%
80% to 89%: 15%
90% to 100%: 4%
(Subsequent Note: I eventually got 85%, deciles for MA/FA/Fin/Tax was 1st/2nd/2nd/6th, respectively).
The test was less difficult than I initially suspected (some of the core topics which I had expected killer questions were not asked), but the questions (especially in the managerial accounting portion) were extremely lengthy and I used 3 hours and 58 minutes to go through the “first pass” of answering all the questions.
I thought some of the questions had very tricky ways to solve them – they certainly added extra information that if you used it, would lead to an incorrect answer. One of my favourite trick questions dealt with the difference between permanent and temporary differences in terms of income tax expenses. The question gave you a piece of information that would have lead to a temporary difference, while one piece of information was a permanent difference. You had to disregard the temporary difference to answer the question correctly. Of course the multiple choice answers included both treatments of the temporary difference (subtracting and adding).
The room that I was in seated 88 students and only one person handed in their test early (about 45 minutes early and he looked rather disgruntled when doing so). After the exam, other people indicated they had difficulty managing to give each question a full amount of effort so it was clear that this test was time constrained. I don’t think the average grade will be too high on this examination.
(Subsequent note: You may find the CMA SLP thread to be useful, and the CMA Board Report review.)
Tags: CMA, CMA Entrance Exam
Jer, I am in Quebec and I failed it as well, I really don’t know how did they achieve such a low rate, I am planning to retake this exam in June ,
Montreal,
I passed.
I figure the low rate was because the vast majority of people would have been re-writes from June.
I assume this because Quebec only starts the SLP in September, so it doesn’t make much sense to write in October.
I’m thinking of doing phase 1 in Ottawa and then join the group in Montreal for phase 2.
Does anyone know what courses from undergrad are especially important for the SLP. I heard the material is mainly control and risk in the first year. Does this mean that the senior CMIS course covers a fair bit of material?
Cindy, probably the best undergrad course for preparing for SLP is a written technical communication course.
What aspect of technical writing are you thinking of Sacha/Dan?
Is it the “translation” of technical (accounting/finance) information for a non-technical (non-accounting/financial) audience?
Jer, the ability to write good business reports has much in common with technical communication – and this does involve the interpretation of numbers from financial statements. However, a lot of the SLP is just about following instructions and there is not a lot of “rocket science” involved. But the ability to comfortably write reports is the best skill you can have when going in, and less about the business know-how.
I wrote the entrance exam in October 2009 (first attempt) and I scored 55%. I thought I did better than that so I paid for the audit and my mark was still the same. I was denial all this time. I just don’t understand where I went wrong. I took the accelerated program from Jan to Aug 2009. In the first segment i scored 70% and the second segment i scored 90%. I have never failed any course or any grade in my entire life. I feel so depress, embarrassed, frustrated with myself.
I dreamt of being in the SLP program, getting a nice job, and thought my life would change once i pass but I’m back to square one. I’m unemployed and I have over $100,000 worth of debt bec I lent money to people. I feel so miserable, depress, suicidal.
Don’t give up…..enroll in the prep program and study like hell. You will pass in June.
Dont ever ever ever give up.
To Anonymous:
I’m very sorry to read of your situation especially after all the effort you put towards the program and your generosity in helping others. I sincerely hope that you have a personal support group of family and friends that can help you in this extremely trying time in your life and that the people who owe you return both the favour, and the funds if the case may be, from your earlier help.
Hi Adrian,
Can you please guide me as to how do I go about studying the material for my June 2010 Entrance Exam, this is my 2nd attempt. I have already taken the Prep course last year… not taking it this year tho…
Can you assist as to where must I start studying (MA OR FA FIRST) to clear the entrance exam (i.e how many hours of study is necessary)
Also, can you let me know how much time do I need to focus on Theory…
Thank you in advance for your support.
regards,
Study everything technical component equally. On the exam however, you should tackle the components that you are best at first. Start studying 3 months before the exam. 3 hours per day, 5 days per week. Do ALL of the sample exams posted online. Review the mock exams you took during the prep course and learn how to do the more challenging questions inside and out.
Read theory and do ALL of the theory multiple choice questions from sample exams online / mock exams, etc. The theory questions are pretty much a crapshoot. You just have to hope that what you have studied is on the actual entrance exam.
The heaviest hitters are MA and FA. You NEED to know these areas inside and out in order to pass.
On the day of the exam, get a good nights sleep, eat something light (cereal, etc) and dont drink too many fluids. Go in with a killer mentality. You will need to keep your focus for the entire 4 hours. As I said, do the parts that you are best at first. The point is to get as many marks as you possibly can within the 4 hours. Time yourself and make sure not to spend too much time on each question. For the + questions, you should not spend anymore than 4 minutes or so on each. If you can’t come up with an answer after 4 minutes, guess and move on.
Fill out the scantron sheet as you go along, dont leave it for the end. Pace yourself and try to make sure that you at least attempt every question asked.
Read what is asked of you FIRST, and then read the details. This way you will know what the question requires and you can weed through all the red herrings to find what you need.
The way to pass is pretty straightforward….you will need to master all of the technical components (there is no easy way to pass). As well, you MUST manage your time well during the exam. Attack, attack, attack!
Hi everyone,
I am currently in the re-recording session in class where CMA is video taping the prep course taught by Supinder & Dorothy right now at Ryerson University downtown location. I am really enjoying this early version of the spring prep program. Dorothy is there to give out tips on what is commonly tested and what to look for in the upcoming June exam based on previous year’s experience. Supinder is an excellent instructor on teaching us the theory & concepts. These 2 prof are one of the best professors out there for prep courses for the CMA. So for those of you who are doing it online, you will get a copy of this DVD recording that I am currently in right now. The CMA studyguide is a lot better and more compact then last year. If you are still keep on doing the prep course in person in class, then do it with Supinder if you want to learn the concept as I find him to be very good at explaining the concepts and he breaks it down to simple steps. I find him way better than the study guide but then again I had him as my AP prof so I am used to his teaching style already…other classmates in the prep course also found him to be an excellent instructor for the prep course in terms of teaching wise
If you do the prep course/IFRS sessions online where they send you the DVD then you will save $500 versus doing it in class. If you look at the price listings, you will see what I mean. This year, everyone who wants to write the Entrance Exam have to enroll in the IFRS and prep course sessions either online or in class. You can not enroll in the Entrance Exam alone anymore!
Hi, everybody! I am in the AP and just did my 1st exam. So long way to go…. I wonder what is the + and – questions in the EE mentioned here (not in which they are weighted that was already explained). Are there some marks at the side of each question indicating which one is + or -? Another question, in the AP, it is said that one of the 4 exams can be retaken. When we can retake it? The week after the exam, or by the end of the AP? Thank you for the information!
Hey fellow aspiring CMA’s!
I have been holding back on registering for the entrance exam because I am unemployed and is afraid that I won’t meet the practical experience portion.
I kinda want to write the exam in June but I am afraid I might not be able to prep in time. Is 2 and half months of solid studying sufficent to cover everything? I have all the pre requisite courses.
Marial_53: Do you know which section surinder is going to teach? I Heard he is goign to be at toronto north? Also are the dvd’s only for people who registered in distant education ?
SY:
I’m in the Sep’09 AP. I don’t know whether the policy varies province to province but in my province, you retake the exam before the next exam starts. That means, if you decide to retake exam 1, you have to retake it before you sit for exam 2.
I’m torn on whether to take the Exam Review Series Prep. course since I am currently in the AP. Would appreciate any advice. Also, does anyone have a copy of the exam prep. manual that I can take a browse at? Thanks.
For all of you who have written the recent EE, do you remember what % of the exam was on tax? I am seriously contemplating skipping the study of this topic due to the amount of material that was thrown at us. Thanks.
In answer to the question below, I would recommend that you do not hold off on registering for the EE as you have a better chance of passing as soon as you finished all the prerequisites. Also, there is a higher chance of passing the EE if you take the prep (which is included in the EE price). Everyone who registers for distance or lecture gets access to the videos on line right up to the EE. Supinder and Dorothy are the instructors on the videos. CMA Ontario gives you 5 years from the time you pass your EE to get the required Practical Experience so don’t wait to get started.
Hey fellow aspiring CMA’s!
I have been holding back on registering for the entrance exam because I am unemployed and is afraid that I won’t meet the practical experience portion.
I kinda want to write the exam in June but I am afraid I might not be able to prep in time. Is 2 and half months of solid studying sufficent to cover everything? I have all the pre requisite courses.
Marial_53: Do you know which section surinder is going to teach? I Heard he is goign to be at toronto north? Also are the dvd’s only for people who registered in distant education ?
Hi there,
I have failed (less than 50%) the first exam of 4 in AP program. I am having challenges on finding time to study other time than midnight. I work full time, have young children, and I thought I could study all nights and now I am realizing this is impossible.
For people that are ahead of this stage, what would you suggest me, to repeat this First financial acc. exam, or to wait for the 2nd exam that includes Taxation and little bit of Management Accounting and again if I don’t pass, to repeat the 2nd one?
I am currently in AP and I understand 100% the time pressure you under but you seriously got to ‘bark up’ fast. Initially, when I first heard that I would be asked to leave the program if I don’t average 50% over the first two exams, I felt CMA is a bit heartless to do that. Now that I am 3/4 in the program, I understand why they have such a policy. It really is difficult to catch up once you fall behind. I always think I can go back and review my FA but I never did because the current workload doesn’t afford me any free time to do the review. Just to let you know what’s coming after exam 2. 12 chapters of reading for 3 sessions of taxation, 21 chapters of reading for 5 sessions of Corporate Finance.
I would advise that you study your FA like crazy right now so that you can pull up a high grade in exam 2 to ‘smoothen’ out your marks. If I didn’t recall incorrectly, exam 2 covers a lot of FA as well.
Hi I am currently registered in the AP program – just finished my first exam as well and going to start preparing for my second one -
If you are having concerns already about passing the second exam – after already failing the first one. I would suggest rethinking if this program is right for you at this time.
The workload is what it is.
I wish you all the best
In response to Anonymous on March 29, I hope you understand that you cannot just not write Test 2 and then attempt the rewrite exam. The rewrite exam is meant for students who have attempted both exams and have failed Segment 1. Test 2 is coming quickly. I agree with VanJ that you study like crazy and write Test 2 and then try to re-arrange your study habits and start fresh with Segment 2. If you pass Segment 2, then all you have to do is rewrite the Segment 1 exam in September.
If you are not finding the time to watch the videos/go to class and you cannot keep up with the work, then perhaps you should consider doing one of two things: (1) dropping and coming back to it when your life can support this program or (2) take the prerequisite courses at University.
The program is accelerated but it sure isn’t easy.
I took the AP last year, failed the first unit with a 54%, didn’t get discouraged and passed the 2nd unit with a 69% not the greatest marks, but i was balancing many things in my life at the time, most likely the same as all of you, i found the MA and corporate finance section made alot more sense, anyways I wrote the section one re-write in September and passed and now I am getting back into the swing of things for June 15th. I guess what you can take from this is that even thought you did bad on the first unit, there is still hope, pull up your socks and set your mind to it.
Could anyone who took the test tell me how representative the sample tests posted on the CMA website are comparing to the real one?
thanks.
I thought that the real test was harder then the sample test overall.
Ok so I’m beginning to freak out.
I completed and passed the AP. I am scheduled to write in June but I am freaking out. I took a LONG break after the AP and now getting back into the swing of things is so difficult.
I have less than 2 months to study all the material.
Can someone PLEASE recommend a strategy, I am studying at a really slow rate and I feel LOST
Make sure that you are able to do a lot of theory questions….
theory questions mostly consist of Audit, Operational accounting, MIS
The cost accounting questions are usually very very long, and theyre very very tricky
make sure to develop a strategy, and be able to finish the test in a given time…
it is not how much u know, it is how much can u prove u know given the time restrictions
Hi, HELP!
My best advice for you.. DO NOT FREAK OUT! I wrote the OCT 2009 exam, got 55% (sucks), but 1st of all I freaked out right during the exam and had a panic attack, so I forgot who I was…. 2nd – I started with MA (wrong strategy.. )… So, before you start studying you have to have a plan in your head where to start…. I would suggest starting with FA, continue to MA and Corporate Finance and don’t forget to take time to do soft topics as well. And when you study do the cases. It will give you an idea what you don’t know. Do a lot of past years sample exams, it really helps to pick up the speed that you will need during the exam. Before the exam you will have to have a strategy where you are going to start. I would suggest to go for the topics that you most comfortable with (it will boost your confidence). My friends who passed in October, they started with MA, then understood that it was wrong move and left it till the end of the exam. Remember, because it is a bell-curve and complexity of the MA questions are very high, 90% of the people will do poorly on them. And one more time, get your nerves together and stay focused. I hope it helps!
“DO NOT FREAK OUT!” is good advice.
You have four hours, which is a long time. Don’t feel afraid to utilize a bathroom break 2 or 3 hours in – the two minute break can be quite mentally therapeutic, plus you probably will perform better when your bladder is not bursting at the seams because you drank 7 cups of coffee in the morning.
The questions should be done in the order of “stuff I can do easily and quickly” to “stuff that will take me forever to do”.
Quick Tip: If you have only 2-3 minutes left to complete the exam and you still haven’t completed it then just randomly answer all the questions that are left. If the questions are out of 5 then you will get, on average, 20% of them right so it only makes sense to at least guess.
I am currently writing the EE on June 15th and after writing the 1st mock exam I found that the material covered in the prep course was not as helpful as I thought it would be. I spent a lot of time covering questions in the provided books and found that I could do the questions with a relatively high degree of success. However, despite knowing a good portion of the fundamentals, I found that the questions on the mock exam left me feeling unprepared and unconfident. I scored an overall 4 in the mock exam but I do not believe I hit a 60. This leads me to two questions, should I just start focusing on older EE exams and solidify my fundamentals or work on topics I do not get? Secondly, how does the bell curve/pass mark of 60 work? Thanks.
around top 7 deciles pass…..so you want to be in the top 70% of all writers regardless of raw score
I am writing the June 15th Enterance exam. I have taken the AP and done fairly well, averaged above 80%. However, it has been a couple of months and most of the material is not so fresh. I have been passively preparing for the EE but looking at the mock exam, I am not so sure I will pass with my current level of recollection. I realize I need a lot of practice for all types of questions, which I have not yet done. I basically need to go over everything. So I have about 10 days left to prepare, and I have taken vacation days to prepare all day and night. What kind of strategy should I employ with the amount of time I have left? I basically have to go over everything. I am stronger at financial accounting than managerial accounting.
notes from the june 2010 EE…
100 questions in total….about a quarter were soft topics based on strategic management and internal controls. lots of (-) and (+) questions throughout every section. certain questions were tricky (ie: joint costs, service department allocations) but nothing really too brutal. several questions were actually pretty damn easy where for example they gave you a ton of useless information and all you really had to do was calculate a basic breakeven or profit maximization sales bundle.
Boris, I found the exam pretty much close to 2010 sample and mock exams. I found difficulty in solving joint costing, service department costing and 2 of mix constraints (MA). In FA The leverage question was tricky and also I didn’t get clear answer for revenue recognition (contract).
Hi everyone,
In regards to those who were struggling in the AP program. I myself have failed the first exam Module 1 in FA. I think I got 40%. I then studied really hard for Module 2-FA and pulled myself up to average a 60%. The trick is to read the notes that they provide and go attempt the In Class Problems. Focus on the In Class Problems, look at the solution and learn it well. Atleast memorize the format/template on how to approach the question so that atleast when you write the Exams, you will get part marks for getting the stem…I just redid the In Class problems over and over again to help with my memory. When I got the the actual Exam, I just did the In Class Problems and even had no time to even do M/C section. I just guessed and put all C down when I ran out of time on the test. I still ended up passing the AP program overall…That’s my tip for those who don’t have time to study, just focus on the In Class Problems, select a few good & hard ones and do it over & over again….Write really good notes and know your theory & concepts well as it will help you out alot with the June EE.
I just wrote the June 15, 2010 EE yesterday. I am so happy & reliefed that its over b/c I studied my ass off. I studied for this exam even way harder then when I studied for the AP program so thats why I said when you do the AP, make sure to write really good notes/templates on how to approach the questions as you will use it/review it for the EE…
My overall feedback about the June 15, 2010 EE:
-Extremely similar in format, writing style and the types of questions as the Sample 2010 like 80-90% for the FA, MA & Corp Finance/Tax questions.
Total Q# =100 with 21 soft topic (Strategic Mgt, Risk, Internal Control, Governance), format & lay-out similar to sample 2010.
Overall, the topics that were most challenging to me on the June EE to me was Joint Process Costing, Service Department Costs, Transfer Pricing, Special Order, Leases, EPS, A/R if change in policy, were most twisted and different from previous mock/sample exams…I feel confident about this exam and I think that they Mock & Sample 2010 exams this year have prepared me well for this June EE compared to last year. The Mock 2010 exams this year were much better, similar in writing style and structure to the actual June EE compared to Mock 2009. I found the October 209 exam last year was much more difficult then this June EE but then again last year I was not as knowledgeable and prepared as this year with the right strategy from Dorothy & Supinder
I just wrote the exam yesterday as well. After going through the entire process, I really have to commend CMA, as I think they seemed to have heard the concerns that were voiced by people that had gone through the exam before in terms of making the actual exam way harder than the simulations/mock exams provided.
Going into the exam I was nervous as hell, as a few days before we had received Mock Exam 2, and that mock exam was HARD!!! I was really bracing myself for the worst, but on the actual exam there were enough questions that were fairly straight-forward and similar to the sample exam that you should be able to pass reasonably comfortably if you’ve studied and understood the 2010 sample exam questions. Now that’s not to say the entire exam was a cakewalk, there were still some very tricky/challenging questions, but I didn’t feel as time-constrained as I thought I would be, there was only 100 questions, and I had plenty of time to really try and think my way through the more challenging managerial accounting questions.
A HUGE lifesaver for me was the 3 blue volumes of the CMA Study Manual. For those of you who are going to be writing the Entrance Exam in the future, my No. 1 piece of advice is to BUY THE STUDY GUIDES!! It’s only about $50, and it will REALLY help focus your studies. Make sure you buy it at least 3-4 months in advance of the exam so you have enough time to work through it all. I think most provincial CMA offices sell it, if your’s doesn’t, ask them why not! ;) After that you just need to keep working through problems and sample questions and keep practicing to increase your speed and accuracy.
In terms of time management during the exam, that whole 2 minute per question advice, throw that out the window at least for the first two sections. For the Strategy and Risk Management questions, really there’s rarely any calculations involved, so you should just be decisive if you know the material and spend less than a minute per question. Get through those within say 20-25 minutes at the start and you’ll build up a bank of excess time that you can then use on the lengthier tougher MA questions. The same applies in the Performance Management/Measurement sections, there were a few questions on HR/Marketing/other topics that if you know the concept you will nail that question in 15 seconds and move on, so definitely make sure you leave time to review the “soft” concepts in the manual under the Performance Management/Measurement sections as those are easy marks.
Hi Jeremy, do you remember the % contract completion and financial leverage Q’s ? I got 26M on % contract and 2.39 for financial leverage. I don’t know whether I did right with the Q’s but the answers were in the choices.
The sad part is that wrong answers are in the choices as well. They’ve figured out many ways one can calculate an answer and have it as a choice. It makes you think you’ve answered it correctly. CMA can be tricky like that!
Hi guys,
I too did the exam, and I actually didn’t find it as easy as most of you did.
Yes, you are all right with regards to the format being very similar to the Mock Exams provided (For that I commend them, as it really helped big time). However, I still found that the twists and turns they adapted to the questions were quite difficult and somewhat hard to manipulate (at least for me) because I never really saw a question in the book nor on the sample/mock exams that showed ways to calculate such a “twist/turn”.
So I’m actually getting scared now, as everyone sounds like they did very very well. Seems like i’m the only one who is actually worrying about this…. Sigh…
We will find out our results around the week of July 20th b/c that’s when it was release around that time last year for the June 2009 writers. I hope we all pass :)
As for the Soft Topics, for me I find it too time consuming to study for them. I think you should only study them if you really had the time. For me, I had to end up guessing most of the soft topic questions on the exam anyways. Most of my AP classmates that I spoke with who passed last June 2009 with 70% and higher didn’t bother studying for soft topics. Those who did said it was not that helpful as there was so many wild card questions. I would focus my time on studying the MA/FA questions as they are worth the most marks. I do agree that for soft topics, you should allocate around 1 min or less per question is just zip through them quickly. I did the MA/FA first then move on to FM and then soft topics last. I had around 5mins left to double check my work.
Finger crossed, I hope I pass even though I felt confident. The questions that I was not sure of how to do, I just picked a letter and move on. I’d rather spend my quality time attempting questions that I already know to scoop those marks that are more guaranteed then waste time of questions where the answers is unclear…
Check out this great website also on exam writing strategy blog from a CMA writer who wrote the June 2009 EE last year. I agree with alot of the advice that he gives and he got 81% on the June 2009 EE.
http://www.darranb.com/10-steps-to-cma-entrance-exam-success/
For those of you who are wondering how many times can you write the CMA Entrance Exam?
You are allowed to write it up to 4 times and then appeal to write it the 5th time. After that then you have to start the AP program again and get another 4-5 times. So I think they give you tons of chances so don’t worry. I have emailed CMA about this question and that’s what they told me :)
Also, my prof told me that the June EE is usually easier than the October EE. I think its b/c they get the first batch of SLP students from the June EE. After that the Oct EE, gets the left over students so maybe if they get most of the quota from June EE, then they don’t need as much students from Oct? LOL…I am just guessing :)
Hi guys,
I think if you enrolled in AP and attended the CMA entrance exam review program and attempted in the exams 3 times but failed. Probably you must hardly think twice if CMA is the right designation for YOU!
hai guys.i also write june 2010ee and i also think this exam was way easier than the mocks we did ii in ap prog..and the thing is that we r prepared for 120 ques and 100 ques was just awesome…the only thing which always scared me is softtopics overall wait age bec even if u read the softtopics we still not 100 % sure of the answer..so otz always good to focus on the other topics..
I wrote the the June EE as well and found the exam fairly staighforward. I was confident in answering at least 2/3 of exam. Hoping I passed as I do not want to rewrite this coming oct. Does anyone know how these exams are scored? I wrote CFA level 1 a couple of yrs ago and was pretty sure got greater than the MPS of 70%, but ended up not making it. I heard from a previous CFA marker that unpublished MPS is more like 88% to pass. Does anyone know if CMA is like that?
is everyone that confident they got 2/3 of the exam right? I thought I did as well, but is it possible that is not enough? i hope not….
Hello,
My plan is to take the CMA Entrance exam October 2010. Do you think that 2 months is enough time to study in order to pass? I work full time, but i am considering on taking time off work to study if they let me. Also, are the prep course materials and mock exams the only tools you need to study?
Congrats to all who passed! Not an easy accomplishment that is for sure. I managed an 82%. It felt like a mid 80 score after I wrote the exam but I am usually 10% optimistic so either way I was pretty sure that I had passed. Never know until you get the mark though. I went through the AP and EE prep course and probably practiced 1000-1100 mc questions in the last 5 weeks. I found the mock exams to be the toughest in terms of content and time. By the time this exam came it was much shorter in length and I found the individual questions less complex as well. This is what Jacques had indicated in the AP videos too. While the Entrance Exam Questions were not exactly like the sample or mock exams, there were similarities obviously, and they were clearly trying to test application of the concepts in slightly new or different ways that would confirm knowledge of what you were doing, rather than a memorized approach. What do you guys think? I was disappointed that Mock 1 had so many errors in the questions (approx 25% of them ! ) I had to just let it go because it was frustrating me. Fortunately Mock 2 was much better.
General comments from CMA says that 56.9% of the questions on the EE was the average. I am not sure that translates directly to a final average with the (+) and (-) questions, but very interesting indeed. More people did not pass than passed?
To those whom didn’t pass this time around,
Guys, don’t get discouraged. I, too, did it for the 2nd time. I know for a fact that luck was on my side when I saw that I passed. Reason why I say that was because I did not have enough time at the end to do the last 15 questions properly, so I just skimmed through and guessed them all randomly. Either I got the majority of the first 85 questions right, or I got lucky at guessing near the end.
In any case, if you didn’t pass just keep working at the Mgmt Acct, the Financial Acct, and the Finance questions. I think everything else is pointless to study for. This is what I should’ve done to begin with I believe. Another thing is to redo those mock exams! I think we all know that the CMA is trying to make their actual EE very similar to the mock exams (due to alot of complaints from candidates). With this knowledge and a bit more hard work (and of course luck), I’m sure you guys will do well next time around. Don’t be discouraged, nor scared. It’s a test. If you don’t do well, figure out why, what went wrong, and correct it. You guys got this far, why stop half way? Just rmb when doing the exam, “Failure is not an option”.
FYI – I believe 4 repeats are allowed. They bumped it up as opposed to 3. Email the CMA office to reverify. I’ve asked this question before and thats what they told me.
71%…. OMG…. It was my second time around…. 1st time 55%….. Congrats to everyone who passed and for those who didn’t pass I just want to say to NEVER GIVE-UP…… DO HEAR ME? NEVER!!!! Don’t listen to anyone who is going to say that CMA may be is not right choice for you…. Just don’t….. If CMA is your goal, keep this goal in mind when you study, work your butts off, manage your time wisely during studying and during the exam… When you approach the questions start with questions you are comfortable with and then finish with the rest…. And keep track of time… Don’t think that you will have time to catch up later (it’s never the case)… During the study time understand the material well, don’t just flip the pages thinking that you know it, do the cases in the book, if you can not do that go back to theory and see what you are missing or don’t understand… Don’t study the last day before the exam, get a good night sleep…. Going to the exam be confident in yourself and try to remain calm (I know it’s hard but it’s manageable)… Everything that I’ve said I’ve tried… It worked for me….. Good luck!!! SLP is coming, people…. :)
also a good tip which helped me during the prep program was pick your battles carefully….you will most likely run out of time when studying and have to skip certain sections and either guess or be lucky its not tested much or at all…the goal of this exam is 60% and not 100%…having said that, you should really master the CORE topics (ie: process costing, service department allocation costing, joint costing, EPS, pensions, variances, CVP, transfer pricing etc) as these tend to appear quite often on the EE and are usually multi part (+) questions.
And don’t forget about F7 part….. This can really stone you…. Last year it was CVP analysis, this year it was NPV + probability (together)…. You have to get into a bell curve…….
I wrote the EE last year, and gave a few people this year my mock exams, I never got in trouble. The people I gave the exams to were really greatful and they all passed, some of them were sure it was because my exams.
Funny story, I also cheated on my EE last year, and barely passed. I got extra drunk when celebrating my EE passing!
It also was my second attempt at the EE and I passed!! 70%. Congrats to all who passed!! For those who were not successful, please don’t give up. Yes, it can be discouraging but use that to fuel the fire in wanting to pass! Do as many MC questions you can get your hands on. Dont’ waste time on topics that you know. Get a good grasp of the weaker ones. If you are contemplating re-taking the exam in october…….from my experience (and many others) the october exam is ALWAYS much harder than the june exam. This june EE was very similar to the 2010 sample exam. Last years oct exam was like nothing I’ve ever seen. The questions were way out in left field. They give you the same prep materials but it can in no way prepare you for the types of questions that you encounter. The decision is yours, but it’s just advice from what I’ve experienced. There are many theories surrounding the disparity in the exams…………..they have the majority of quota for SLP, most sitters are re-takers. Last oct the CMA received countless of complaints about the content of the exam. Also, they allow 4 attempts.
^ +1 on what Patrice said…
If I were the candidate who didn’t pass this June, I would wait until NEXT June to rewrite. I heard many things where October is not only harder, but they also accept LESS people than in June. Like Patrice said, they took MOST of the candidate in June already…..and Oct is pretty much the leftovers. If anything, they would bell the marks down.
I did the Oct exam last year, and it was EPICALLY hard. I redid my exam in June, and it was honestly a lot more fair, and the structure made MORE sense (based on the mock exams).
But of course do everything at your own risk! If you ask me though, I would wait till June 2011.
I’m not sure that I agree. Yes, there were some difficult (+) questions on last Octobers EE, but you really didn’t need to nail those in order to pass the exam. Most of the questions were completely straightforward, like calculating ROI, or allocating joint costs.
Now the 2nd mock exam from last Oct’s prep class, THAT was brutal!
I wanted to get some advice from those who have done the CMA Accelerated Program on whether or not it is right for me. I have a Bachelor of Arts and I have done the 4 pre-requisite courses to enroll into the AP but I plan on doing Intermediate Financial Accounting, Corp Finance, Taxation and Advanced Management Accounting at UFT continuing education prior to enrolling into the AP because I take a long time to grasp concepts and I am not the fast learner. I have also a wife and baby daughter and was wondering if the AP would be manageable for me given the above circumstance? If not, I plan on doing the CGA program through college continuing education. Which one would be more suitable?
Hi Curious,
I did the AP program and from my experience you really had to stay on top of things. If you fall behind it’s very difficult to catch up. I have 2 children, one was 2 years old at the time. Thankfully I had a great support system and was able to get thru it, but it wasn’t easy. Every week you have to watch DVD’s of the course material (taping of past AP classes). These DVD’s are on average 4-5 hours long. I used to set aside time on Saturdays to look at them. You are assigned homework, which does not have to be handed in, but if you expect to get a grasp of the material it would be in your best interest to do all assigned homework. You also have a weekly quiz that is due every Thursday before midnight. It’s open book and you have all week to work on it – answers are submitted online and require 50% to pass. Sounds pretty straightforward, but sometimes this was not the case. Some of these were challenging for me.
In saying all of this, you definitely have to put in the hours if you want to pass the program. It’s quite a bit of sacrifice for people in our predicament (spouses and kids), but if you have the understanding and support from your wife and family members you can get thru it. It’s not a cake walk……but’s its attainable. I’m proof of that.
Thank you for the response Patrice. May I ask what your educational background was before the Accelerated Program? Was your undergrad in Accounting or Finance? Did you do any other courses besides the 4 prereq courses?
Neither……..I have a BSc in Marketing! :) After graduation (1993) and once I decided on accounting, I took Intermediate and Cost Accounting, but that was years before I even thought of pursuing the CMA. I also had taken the 4 prereq plus corp finance, startegic mgt, operations mgt, org behavior/HR, and mkting. When I signed up for the AP program they included a Financial Accounting refresher…….boy did I need that because I couldn’t even remember what accounts were debits/credits. It was like starting from scratch for me. Many concepts were forgotten because of the many years that had passed.
I’m not Canadian, so taxation was a huge struggle for me – had no concept of it, but the very basics. I didn’t even study much of it for the exam. That’s why I’m a firm believer that if I can get thru the AP and pass the EE……..you can do it. Dedication and hard work, that’s all.
The thing that I find interesting is that they make taxation a much bigger issue in terms of preparation for the exam than it actually is on the real thing. If I remember correctly, in June there were only like 2 or 3 tax questions I think?? Yet in the study guide there was a whole section (almost as big as the financial management section) dedicated to tax and we spent a whole afternoon on it in the review lectures. If the future exams are like this, you’d be way better off skipping tax if you struggled with it in school or the AP and really put that time into financial/managerial accounting instead which is where the marks are. You’ll do some tax carryforward/carryback review anyway if you’re being thorough with your financial accounting review.
I am considering doing the CMA entrance exam in Quebec. I originally planned on getting the CGA designation, but for some reason I find myself more attracted to the CMA designation. I’m new to the game. Does anyone know if there are any prep classes here? and where I can get sample/practice exams.
For those of you who have passed the June 2010 EE and also wrote the Oct 2009 EE. How did you find the Oct 2009 EE compared to June 2010 EE?
Was the OCT EE alot more difficult the the June EE? Some ppl said before that June EE is much easier and pass rate is higher. Is that true?
I am going to be writing the OCT EE and I am very nervious…Any tips or advice? I am doing the OCT 2010 EE via distance online…
Hello Jennifer,
Please don’t listen the comment for October and June EE. The only thing you just need to do focus on your studying. There is curve bell if the exam is really harder than average. My advice is as much as practice the past exams and be master of 3 books. You shouldn’t memory the solutions , you should learn the logic. They may ask similar questions but with more trick. Don’t waste your time with the questions if you are not so sure . You have to be very careful with your time. So if you can not solve problem in 2 min , go to next one.
Good Luck
HELP!
I’m writing the Oct EE and I need some study tips and what you thought was the most helpful?
- Reading the textbook and doing long answers problems at the back of the book?
- Doing the sample exam questions?
Any advice on how to create the ‘Templates’ for studying?
Thanks!
relax dude
I have the following question regarding the Oct 2009 EE…
1) Was there a hedging question (calculation)?
2) What type of cash flow questions was on it? How many? Was there a theory one and one calculation?
I made mistake about the # of times that you can re-write the CMA EE in the post above. I have verified with CMA Ontario. The max amount of time you can write the Exam officially is 3 times. You can appeal for the 4th try depending on the situation. Best to pass on the 3rd try if you can :)
I wrote the June enterance exam and passed….as far as specific questions that were asked and how many and the type i do not remember the specifics
What i do remember is that the exam very closely mirrored the sample and 2 mock exams….i would strongly recommend to focus your studying based on the topics covered in them….i also skipped studying pensions which is a lot to cover/study for 1 or 2 questions
ALSO…..
if you did the accelerated program as i did you are ahead of the game since you know where to forcus and the types of questions that are asked and how to solve them…..
If you are in that boat then this was my study strategy:
I watched the prep course video which i did not find useful except for maybe one or 2 study tips….I did not want to answer the questions the way they were since they varied somewhat from the way it was taught in class so from that perspective its a waste of time…..you only need to know how to solve the quesiton 1 way so dont confuse yourself with there methods
As I mentioned focus on the sample and mock exams (I did nto go in to write the mock exams but rather i did them at home and used them as a study guide to focus my studying)
I did not use the study guides that were sent except for reviewing some of the theory stuff at the beginning of the exam over all out of the 3-5 study guides they gave i only reviewed like 10 pages….
This strategy may not be for everyone but it worked for me…..hope this helps
Hello Jennifer,
There was very simple question of foreign exchange at June 2010. I found very hard to study at hedging from study manual. It is up to you but I wouldn’t have study for a week just at hedging .
Someone ask about templates. Templates were very helpful for me. For each topic, I would put the formula and any other information on one side of the card, and a good example question on the other side. I made the templates as I studied each topic in the prep course. I had four bundles of templates, one for each section. I would take them with me everywhere and study them when I was waiting for appointments etc.
I highly recommend the prep course. They do narrow in on the types of questions you are likely to see on the exam.
Studying for soft topics are important. From the study guides, I read the soft topics over 4 or more times. Pay attention to lists of things. I spend a good deal of time reading soft topics on my lunch hour every day. With up to 35 soft topic questions, you cannot afford not to prepare for them. They can be easy marks that take very little exam time.
There were several questions on process costing. Many of these are + questions. I used to struggle with them, until I used the method taught in the prep. course. It is almost foolproof and my rate of accuracy on these questions was almost 100%
Having made many errors on mock and practice exams by missing something in the wording of the question, I made up my mind on the exam to READ THE QUESTIONS CAREFULLY. The questions can be very wordy and are designed to trip you up on wording if you are not careful. Eg. risk free rate vs. risk premium.
Hope this helps. I cannot comment on the October exam being more difficult than the June exam. I believe the level of perceived difficulty depends on how well prepared you are.
also remember to take some time to learn/memorize the financial ratios…..2-3 usually show up on every EE and are a source for some easy marks
TIME MANAGEMENT is # 1, that’s it!
Thanks everyone for the advice!
I can vouch for both exams. I did the Oct and June EE, passing the June exam. The October EE was much harder than the June. The June exam very closely resembled the sample exams. I don’t know where they got the Oct questions from!! The wording of the questions were like none that I had studied. The study manuals and sample exams were not even close!! They say this is typical of the Oct exams. I know for a fact that the CMA received many complaints from writers after the Oct exam. Look as past posts!
I agree with Dave about his templates and preparing for the soft topics. READ THE QUESTIONS CAREFULLY AND TIME MGT.
The curve every exam, the process goes something like this; in every exam there is about 40 questions that are standard/similar. What i mean by it is, the test the same concept, slightly reworded and numbers are changed. They then check to see how the group ( all who took the exam ) did on these 40 questions and then determine, how good the group is. If a large number of students scored well in these questions then pass rate will be higher, if lower number of students got these question correct then the group is poor and then the pass rate is lowered.
@yyz How do you know that that’s how they figure out the pass rate?
I didn’t find the Oct entrance exam that hard. The 2nd mock exam was much harder than the Oct entrance exam. There were a few tough questions (like a tricky joint costing question) but most were straightforward in my opinion. I scored 80 on the EE.
Can recent EE takers comment on the level of IFRS knowledge required for the exam? Is it wise to go through the IFRS bridging manual?
if you went through the AP, they already teach everything under new IFRS guidelines/requirements so there really isnt any need to go through the IFRS bridging manual, if however you did not take the AP then it might be wise to go through the manual to make note of the various changes associated.