FAE September 2013

applehunter

Lectures starting Saturday.

Keep it all here for general discussion.

Noni Goggins

I hope the pass rate start to go up in this. It was only 55% last year and I heard that the exams were even tougher this year. It's a pity we cant go back to the good old days when the pass rate was 90%.

I bet there are people walking around calling themselves Chartered Accountants who would fail the new FAE hands down. It's very frustrating that we only get the same qualification yet the bar is placed at such a higher level.

Anyway, lectures starting this weekend so it's time to look on the brightside.

Rant over.

applehunter

Page 292 of Finance Induction Notes.

Case Study Plastic Products.

Taxation should be (400) and not (500)

Westlife Galway

Hi there Does anyone completely understand the whole concept of Indicators? Competent and Not Competent and Reaching Competent? I'm so confused I would really appreciate it if someone could help cheers

Shane732

Westlife Galway wrote: »

Hi there Does anyone completely understand the whole concept of Indicators? Competent and Not Competent and Reaching Competent? I'm so confused I would really appreciate it if someone could help cheers

Basically, it's a lottery ticket system!

upnorthchick

hey lads have a look at FAE 2012 thread some very good attachments... Good luck this year. Hopefully i am on the pass list come Friday!

HVAN

Hey guys, Just found out I failed the core today. I would be really grateful if someone could post the list of case studies you got in your resource pack this year so that I could identify the new cases added for this year.

Thanks

applehunter

Sorry to hear that. I've been there. I'd definitely recommend viewing scripts if possible. All you can do is try and learn from mistakes.

Just got my books yesterday.

These are the case studies in the folder..

• Green PLC Case Study
• KW Surf Case Study

HVAN

Thanks for the quick reply but the list im looking for is longer mmm 20 cases or so. Basically the cases being covered in the case study lectures.


Thanks again

applehunter

I'll check when I get home later.

notanocelot

HVAN wrote: »

Thanks for the quick reply but the list im looking for is longer mmm 20 cases or so. Basically the cases being covered in the case study lectures.


Thanks again

HVAN, the cases don't change year on year. There will no doubt be a couple of new ones at some point but the 2013 crowd will have the same resources as we did for the most part.

Nervous Nigel

My advice is to go to every Paul Monahan lecture that you can and to throw the management accounting book in the fire.

Good luck folks.

Username2011

Westlife Galway wrote: »

Hi there Does anyone completely understand the whole concept of Indicators? Competent and Not Competent and Reaching Competent? I'm so confused I would really appreciate it if someone could help cheers

Yep.
Ok so there are 6 subjects.
=> Performance measurement - made up of Financial reporting and mgmt a/c
=> Business leadership - made up of a further 6 areas including strategy, change management, marketing, ethics,

=> Tax
=> Finance
=> Audit
=> IMP


So as PM and BL contain more subjects they are more heavily weigthed.

When you get your results you will be given a grade in each of the above 6 subjects.
To pass PM and BL you need to get an average Competent mark.
So for example, say there are 6 BL indicators on the FAE paper next year, and say you get 1RC and 5 Cs - this is likely to be deemed as competent overall. Now instead, say you got 3RCs and 3Cs - its not as clear cut whether your average is a C or a RC so you will be borderline. Whatever side of the border you are depends on the threshold set in advance by the ICAI.

It's important to note that 1 NC or NA or RC in one PM or BL indicator does not mean you will fail overall. Many people got a red in the AAFRP assessment and still passed PM. It just means you have to work harder in the final exam to pull up your average for PM.


For the other four subjects its easier. You only need to get an average RC mark. So say there were 3 tax indicators next year and you got 2RCs and 1NC - chances are this is likely a pass. However if you got 1RC and 2NCs - you would probably not have an average RC mark.

So as I said each super six will have a grade.
This grade will either be green (pass), yellow (borderline) or red (fail).

If you have all greens you will pass
If you have a red in any subject you will fail the core.
If you have all yellows, or a mixture of yellows and greens - then you will be borderline and whether you pass or not depends on the threshold set by the institute.

This threshold is never known and is decided summer next year based on a number of factors.


Hope that makes sense.
They put up a lecture online last year that lasted about 40mins that explained the marking scheme, and I found it extremely useful. It makes your study a lot more focused as there is no point in getting a highly competent in tax where the standard to pass is to get an RC.

Username2011

Nervous Nigel wrote: »

My advice is to go to every Paul Monahan lecture that you can and to throw the management accounting book in the fire.

Good luck folks.

I disagree. I definitely wouldn't throw away any book. I passed. I knew that the exams were tough leaving the exam hall, but I was also confident that I was able to attempt everything as I had covered all the material.
People were complaining this year about the IMP indicators, but the indicators that came up this year were covered in the IMP book. Traditionally management accounting has come up as discursive in nature (i.e. discuss key performance indicators), this year there was a management accouting indicator relting to Consumer Profitability Analysis which was quantitative in nature.

My advice is to cover everything on the FAE course and leave the exam hall with the feeling that you couldn't have done.
Just my tuppence worth.

Nervous Nigel

Username2011 wrote: »

I disagree. I definitely wouldn't throw away any book. I passed. I knew that the exams were tough leaving the exam hall, but I was also confident that I was able to attempt everything as I had covered all the material.
People were complaining this year about the IMP indicators, but the indicators that came up this year were covered in the IMP book. Traditionally management accounting has come up as discursive in nature (i.e. discuss key performance indicators), this year there was a management accouting indicator relting to Consumer Profitability Analysis which was quantitative in nature.

My advice is to cover everything on the FAE course and leave the exam hall with the feeling that you couldn't have done.
Just my tuppence worth.

I'm talking about the Management Accounting book of cases...each to his or her own view but I think that book is useless.

Username2011

Nervous Nigel wrote: »

I'm talking about the Management Accounting book of cases...each to his or her own view but I think that book is useless.

Definitely I think everyone has their own technique.
I did the majority of that book - as it was to a higher standard that some of the institute cases which focus just on the narrative indicators such as kpis. They're time consuming but they do cover off every area of the syllabus.
But like you said to each their own!

Conaldo87

Have most of the induction lectures done now. Whats everyones plan for study at the moment? I'm going to try and do maybe 2hrs study in the evening after work. Don't really know the best place to start and what i should be doing, i.e. reading back on notes/doing questions/practicing integrated cases. Anybody any ideas on whats the best plan of action at the moment?

Whemair0128

Yeah im like urself not sure where to start? i work in industry so i dunno am i get much time off 4 dem dats y i kinda want to plan myself ahead now! anyone from industry do de FAEs? I tink perhaps start readin through cases mite help us get a feel 4 de exam? wat you think?

aka accounts 2010

Hi guys,

Could someone post up the Dublin Core timetables. I'm registered in Cork and have that timetable but will be in Dublin a fair bit in the new year so I'll be attending a few lectures and just want to do some advance planning!!

Cheers!!

chursy

FAE NOTES SUmmary of everything

These were done up by someone who got placed in FAE. They were bible for me to pass the FAEs

Hope you find it useful.

If you need any help or have any queries please feel free to PM me.

Good Luck!

ugabuga

aka accounts 2010 wrote: »

Hi guys,

Could someone post up the Dublin Core timetables. I'm registered in Cork and have that timetable but will be in Dublin a fair bit in the new year so I'll be attending a few lectures and just want to do some advance planning!!

Cheers!!

Timetable attached!

RT2010

chursy wrote: »

FAE NOTES SUmmary of everything

These were done up by someone who got placed in FAE. They were bible for me to pass the FAEs

Hope you find it useful.

If you need any help or have any queries please feel free to PM me.

Good Luck!

Yeah those notes are excellent. Definitely played a part in getting me over the line this year! They're not a shortcut to success though for anybody who plans on using them, just a very handy summary to use when you get to the stage of tackling cases day in day out and then the exams themselves.

Beckymc85

Hi guys

Would anyone be able to post the Galway lecture timetable and the Planning and Delivery schedule if that is up yet? I am a repeat student and don't have access to these.

Thanks

Pawwed Rig

Conaldo87 wrote: »

Have most of the induction lectures done now. Whats everyones plan for study at the moment? I'm going to try and do maybe 2hrs study in the evening after work. Don't really know the best place to start and what i should be doing, i.e. reading back on notes/doing questions/practicing integrated cases. Anybody any ideas on whats the best plan of action at the moment?

Hey, I did FAE in September and passed (barely but a pass is a pass). The FAE course assumes you know what you are at technically (Cap 1 & Cap 2) so if there are areas where you are unsure you can revise them. The exam itself isn't as technical as CAP 2 (ie I wouldn't be going into huge amounts of detail on Advanced variance analysis again.

If I was to do it over I would say start the case studies as soon as possible and do them using a clock under exam conditions. These exams are about knowing how to pass the exam as much as anything else.

Also don't under estimate the waffley subjects. They are just as important as the technical ones.

JAKE11

Pawwed Rig wrote: »

Hey, I did FAE in September and passed (barely but a pass is a pass). The FAE course assumes you know what you are at technically (Cap 1 & Cap 2) so if there are areas where you are unsure you can revise them. The exam itself isn't as technical as CAP 2 (ie I wouldn't be going into huge amounts of detail on Advanced variance analysis again.

If I was to do it over I would say start the case studies as soon as possible and do them using a clock under exam conditions. These exams are about knowing how to pass the exam as much as anything else.

Also don't under estimate the waffley subjects. They are just as important as the technical ones.

I did FAE in September and passed (just about!). Everyone will be different but for me the areas to work on are financial reporting and tax. All other areas will come together from lectures and as you go through the case studies.

So, if I was starting again, I would:
1. Do ALL Financial Reporting induction lecture questions asap!
2. Then start Derry Cotter Book in IFRS and keep doing as many questions as possible until you do the AAFRP workshop day.
3. After AAFRP workshop start going through the AAFRP toolkit until the assessment.
I would say that if you try to do the above you won't have time to do much more before the continuous assessment in April.

I highly recommend attending tax lectures. Each lecture is based around a chapter in the tax textbook. I would recommend that you read the relevant chapter very thoroughly after each session. Also, I would say that it is the only area of super six where indicators are very closely linked to sections in the book so I felt that I needed to know that tax book from cover to cover.

I would say that it is very difficult to do cases before study leave as they are too time consuming! I only started cases on study leave. I quite often found the cases absolutely infuriating, so I would not recommend doing cases all day on study leave. I generally did case studies each morning. In the afternoon I did questions from Derry Cotter's IFRS book (or old FAE questions which can be great to develop your technical knowledge although old MABF questions can be a bit too difficult for new FAE). I found that this worked well because after an infuriating morning I really appreciated attempting questions that specified a question and examined your knowledge of technical material.

womandriver

Just received our Limerick timetable and noticed we are timetabled for 9 day time, midweek lectures during April/May.

We were told at work we would have to take study leave to attend these lectures, meaning 9 days less study leave in the summer.

Can anyone tell me if it is normal to have lectures scheduled during the day midweek?

Seems very unfair to have to use study leave just to attend lectures.

Are there similar lectures on the other FAE timetables?

Thanks.

WeeDeee

womandriver wrote: »

Just received our Limerick timetable and noticed we are timetabled for 9 day time, midweek lectures during April/May.

We were told at work we would have to take study leave to attend these lectures, meaning 9 days less study leave in the summer.

Can anyone tell me if it is normal to have lectures scheduled during the day midweek?

Seems very unfair to have to use study leave just to attend lectures.

Are there similar lectures on the other FAE timetables?

Thanks.

They are probably your block release of integrated case study lectures. I am a repeater this year and last year I had to use my annual holidays for these lectures in order to get the full 7 weeks study leave in the summer, they are not recorded you have to attend them.

womandriver

Hi WeeDee,

Thanks for replying, I'm not sure but they don't appear to be. They seem to be regular lectures of various subjects.

Also we're not doing block release so don't think that's it.

Would be interested to see if the other timetables are similar, if anybody has Cork/Galway/Dublin timetable can they please post a link.

Thanks again.

WeeDeee

the dublin timetable is attached to this thread

womandriver

WeeDeee wrote: »

the dublin timetable is attached to this thread

Oh thanks, just spotted that

Nervous Nigel

You absolutely have to go to those integrated case study days.

They are the key to FAE.

When you see Paul Monahan is taking a lecture, get yourself to it.

Passing FAE is not about knowing how to do advanced variance analysis...it's about being street smart.

ferike1

Didn't go to the integrated days. Still passed.

Do the case studies and find something that works for you.

fuschia0910

Could anyone who passed the FAE's this year post their study timetable for the year - esp how much needs to be covered before going on study leave in June. Thanks!

Coola Boola85

Hi all,

Could someone please put up the FAE 2013 Timetable for Dublin Group 1? Many thanks.

froggatt2011

I attended only a handful of case study days and still passed. I would go to the first one, take note of the exam technique required and from then on consider yourself on your own. Working in groups is fine if you are doing a group assignment. It is of no use to you in the FAEs.
Make sure your technical knowledge is fair (know how to do a journal!!), have all your notes as condensed as possible and WELL REFERENCED in case you need to refer to anything on the day. You need all your time in the exams for reading the cases, finding the indicators, preparing your answer and writing it all out. Little time to flick through your notes.
The big focus in 2012 was on management accounts and business leadership (the more "waffly" non accounting topics).
Do every single case in the resource pack then do them all again and again and again. Start doing the cases now. Eat the Derry Cotter book.
Do that and you can't fail.

tomfoolery60

My big takeaways from FAEs 2012:

- Do cases early. If you can even start in Spring and do a case a week under exam conditions and go over the solution in depth you will develop great exam/case study technique which is crucial and takes time to develop. During study leave I'd do at least two/three cases a week and "technical material" the rest of the time. As September neared I did more cases but they are hard to cram, so spread them out.

- Cover all subjects and areas. You don't want to fail on something like IMP because you didn't read the book or ensure you ticked off all the competency statement.

- Put a lot of effort into the FR Assesment in Spring. You will have covered all you need to in FR if you do this and all you need do in study leave is quick revision through those Derry Cotter cases. I suggest you revise all the standards, preferably through using the IFRS "Red Books" and CAP2/Revision notes, then crack through the Toolkit and finally past papers in the weeks immediately before the assessment.

- Have a detailed timing plan for the exams themselves (you can worry about this later in study leave). For the core comp you need to work out how long you will read and prepare for (i did 50min) and then how long each indicator deserves. For the SIMS I did the longest first, using the 30min reading time soley for that case. I also built in extra time towards the end (i.e. aimed to complete my first case in a shorter time then the second and in turn the third) as I always get tired and take longer. Other people try read all the cases and plan them then start writing - do what works for you.

Hope that helps you. I don't envy you guys!

badbeatcentral

Key Tip: Don't look at this thread from now until the second week in September!

Take advice from your lecturers and the exam support staff in your firm.

Nervous Nigel

My advice is as follows:

- Keep an eye on this forum as it can throw up some very useful stuff (e.g. the notes from the guy who placed in the 2012 thread, a summary of what topics arise in each case, etc).

- Throw everything at the AAFRP. A competent in that is a great thing to have going into September. Plus your work's an investment for September.

- Go to every lecture and case study day that Paul Monahan gives. He is the guru of FAE. Note everything he says. Little things like "DCC pays a multiple of 6 for its acquisitions" are what you need to say in the exam.

- Attend all of the case study days. They get you into the FAE mindset.

- Read the business sections of the papers. Putting real life stuff in your answers is the route to success. Even reflect on stuff you know yourself and use it. If the indicator is dealing with a dominant individual or succession, talk about something like Steve Jobs' death and Apple. In FAE 2012, there was an indicator about knowledge protection. All the company's technical info was in one guy's head. I talked about Coca Cola having two guys with the formula who fly separately etc. The examiner loves this stuff.

- Ignore the management accounting case study book. It's nonsense and far too technical and confusing. Use the CAP1 and CAP2 Toolkits instead.

- Don't get bogged down in technical material. You need a broad knowledge of everything rather than in depth technical knowledge of specific areas.

- Be ruthless timewise on the day.

- The mocks will come too early. Use them as a dry run to spot indicators and get comfortable with seemingly silly things (e.g. to bring food and drink, timing your journey, how many times you need to go to the loo, what material to bring, etc).

- Try and use as much info from the case as you can. In FAE 2012, there was a company (which was part of a multinational) that was doing something new. 14 other branches worldwide had done the same in the past. Later in the paper, you were provided with a list of people and asked to advise on how to staff the change management team. My answer was built around seconding someone from one of the 14 jurisdictions that's already done it. That's FAE thinking.

FAE is no longer an accountancy exam. It's a business advisory exam. Common sense is just as important as knowing what IFRS3 means.

Best of luck.

bellaj.210

Hi guys,

Just wondering if there is a repeat assessment exam (AAFRP) because I will be abroad for a wedding on the 27th of April?

Any help would be great!

applehunter

I received an email saying attendances will only be recorded on a new app on smartphones.

What happens if you don't have a smartphone?

AB6891

I have to agree with Nervous Nigel above who says 'FAE is no longer an accountancy exam. It's a business advisory exam. Common sense is just as important as knowing what IFRS3 means'.

Then again, I failed on IMP this year so to me its highlighted the importance of every area and shows no one area is more important than another. I would like to think I know where I went wrong now.

Is anybody attending the revision course for repeat students? Does anybody have any experience with this course - any feedback is appreciated.

timo87

Hi Guy's,

Could somebody based in Cork post/pm me the cork FAE core timetable please?

I'm training in dublin but will be home a lot of weekends, and I want to attend the case study lectures.

Coola Boola85

You just sign the attendance sheet before class in the library, then sign out at lunch, before signing in again after lunch for the remainder of the day.

Coola Boola85

applehunter wrote: »

I received an email saying attendances will only be recorded on a new app on smartphones.

What happens if you don't have a smartphone?

You just sign the attendance sheet before class in the library, then sign out at lunch, before signing in again after lunch for the remainder of the day.

apeking

Could someone please help me with the timetable?

According to my work I am on block release for 5 days at the end of February and for 4 days at the start of june.

Are the timetables for these anywhere?

From looking at the timetable on my portal page I was supposed to be in lectures all day last wend, thur, fri however I was in work (I have attached a copy of the timetable). I am confused.

Thanks

Coola Boola85

apeking wrote: »

Could someone please help me with the timetable?

According to my work I am on block release for 5 days at the end of February and for 4 days at the start of june.

Are the timetables for these anywhere?

From looking at the timetable on my portal page I was supposed to be in lectures all day last wend, thur, fri however I was in work (I have attached a copy of the timetable). I am confused.

Thanks

Your firm must think you are in Group 6/7, the only lecture you will have missed is yesterdays Tax lecture. Call the FAE staff and get it resolved, as if you are going to be in either group 6/7 you will need be assigned to a new sub group for Case Studies.

I hope this timetable helps.

Tricky1979

Anybody know when the elective timetables are out?

srm23

what kind of exam is the FR one in april?
what preparation will i need to do for it?
thinking of doing the chartered grind school lectures for it, anybody been to that last year, how'd you find it?

RT2010

Would recommend the AAFRP course with CGS. Not only good for the AAFRP exam but a good high level run through Financial Reporting in general.

Have AAFRP, Audit and Tax materials from the CGS revision courses last year if anyone interested in taking them off my hands! PM me.

rtw

Does anyone know if there is an AAFRP workshop this weekend? Also, can you go to any one or does it have to be in the group you were assigned to? I can't make my one. Thanks

ugabuga

rtw wrote: »

Does anyone know if there is an AAFRP workshop this weekend? Also, can you go to any one or does it have to be in the group you were assigned to? I can't make my one. Thanks

There is a workshop on Sunday. Not sure if you can go to any one, but I would presume not.