Tips to clear CA Final exams

Hi friends,

This is the first time I would be posting something on this forum as a CA.

I feel happy to be among the 3.11% students who qualified in the recently announced CA Final Nov 13 results. 

I keep reading the messages in the forum and I can imagine how disheartening it must be for all those who have not been able to qualify inspite of having put in their best efforts. Hence, I wanted to share some of the useful tips which I got from my seniors which helped me to sail through successfully in my first attempt only as well my experiences after writing the exam.

I would like to suggest the following to the aspiring CA final students in the following subjects :-

1) For ISCA, please follow study material strictly. You can refer Dinesh Madaan for understanding of concepts. But your ultimate Bible/Gita/Quraan  should be the study material. ISCA is one subject which can make or mar your second group.  I know of a person who wrote exams this time and got exemption in all the 7 papers but got 22 in ISCA. Can you believe that.!!  Had he got even 40 marks in ISCA, he would have been among the top 10 rankholders..!!

Now the problem which arises is no matter how many times you study this subject, you are not able to recollect it. I also felt the same and I feel that the best technique is to make acronyms and your own codes. I am sure you must have heard of the mnemonic version book by Manish Valeccha for ISCA. However, I feel that you should try to make your own personal acronyms. For example, there are four types of audit tools and techniques for disaster recovery procedures and the code to learn that is I-PAD, i.e., Internal Control Auditing, Penetration Testing, Automated tools and Disaster Security Checklists. This way , you will be able to remember very easily and it will bring life to this otherwise dull subject.

So, try to make as many codes as possible. I also did the same and I have got the highest marks in ISCA  among all the 8 subjects, i.e., 66 marks.

I have also attached a pdf file which I came across on caclubindia website only and I found it very useful. It contains some very interesting codes which you are never gonna forget even after your exams.

2) For Financial Reporting, I would suggest that first do everything except holding accounts. I have seen my friends taking tension over holding company which carries only 16 marks weightage and that too even when you have an option in the paper. Believe me, think of FR without holding company and you will not feel burdened by this subject. I personally left Holding company accounts but if you have time , study atleast the basic adjustments so that you are able to get marks for steps in case the other option is altogether unexpected.

Moreover, 2-3 months before the exams, do question only from practice manuals. There are also several questions in the institute FR books. You have to do them at all costs. In Nov 13, there was a question on brand valuation of 8 marks as well as on cash alternative in share based payment of 10 marks which were similar to that given in the 2 volumes of institute's FR books but the tragedy is we dont even bother to open the institute material.

My marks in FR- 57

3) For SFM, study from your coaching notes whichever coaching you have joined. Though I myself did not study from Rajesh Makkar notes, I have heard that they are good. For those who think they cannot waste their 4 precious months on coaching, I would suggest J.B. Gupta video lectures are best for self study.They are very much exam oriented.

My marks in  SFM-51

4) For Auditing , you can refer either Surbhi Bansal or Pankaj Garg or Kamal Garg or Padhuka or any other book. I referred Pankaj Garg, Eten faculty as I had video lectures of him with me but you can refer any book as all are basically the same.

My marks in Audit-52

5) For Corporate and Allied laws, I feel all those giving exams in May 14 are lucky that Companies Bill is not applicable and should target exemption in law so that even if anything goes wrong, they do not have to study an altogether new law in their next attempt which is sure to add to the pressure... Munish bhandari handbook is ideal for law. Corporate law carries 70 marks weightage and is easier to remember than allied laws. There are around 6-7 allied laws and they carry only 30 marks. So first secure your 70 marks and then only start studying allied laws as they are gonna be more time consuming and difficult to remember than the Companies law.

My marks in Law- 54 

6) For Advanced Management Accounting, I would say first cover the OR portion as it is easy and the questions types are limited as compared to costing. Theory is also an important part and going by Nov attempts, the theory was not direct but the examiner gave practical situations in which ultimately if you knew the concept, you will find it comfortable to handle. The theory notes available in the market and of teachers mostly contain past year questions. Hence, you need to also pick up that 5 kg institute book to make sure you have covered all the topics. In May 2013, there was a question on DPP (Direct Product Profitability) which was not covered in any book but there was a 2 pages content on the same in the institute book.

My marks in AMA- 65

7) For Direct and Indirect taxation, I feel that you should immediately purchase the Select cases book and the Supplementary study paper issued by ICAI. Amendments and recent case laws form an important chunk of the taxation papers.

For those who have time for coachings, well and good.

For those who dont, I believe for IDT, Bangar is the best book for self study. It is quite detailed and there is also a summary module by Bangar which is very effective for revising the entire syllabus one day before the exams...There is also an IDT teacher Prof. Rajesh Tayal who has this online classes named "IDT capsule" available for subscriptttttion on the CCI website wherein he covers all the amendments, select cases, practical questions and complete service tax in just 35 hours. I took the same and found it quite effective. You can see his demo lecture as well on the CCI site and make your decision.

For DT, VG summary module should be studied completely. I think the summary module is very handy even a day before the exams.

My marks in DT and IDT- 48 and 62 respectively

Some general tips

I think besides the above specific points, you should cover the RTP of not only your attempt but the previous 2-3 attempts as well because the questions in RTP are generally new which you have not encountered before and so that also boosts your confidence.

The most important thing I feel is sticking to the institiutes material as much as possible be it in any  subject especially ISCA. Believe me, there are so many institute publications such as RTPs, Suggested Answers, Practice Manuals and then of course, those 5 kilos books each; that you will not be able to cover even these completely before the exams. So dont waste your time on random books.

Remember that it is the BOS who is setting the question papers and not the coaching teachers, So dont ignore institutes study material. Subodh Agarwal, the president of ICAI has also stated that the "The question paper was totally from the study material provided to the students and that the students have scored on what they have written". So, you should take the hint from this and clean the dust off your study material.

All the very best for the upcoming exams.!!