Accounting students have strong similarities The personality traits of all students pre-disposes them to certain thought processes, beliefs, strengths and weaknesses. We often find ourselves saying that ‘students generally…’ or ‘most students…’ and a lot of lecturers indicate that students behave in similar ways. This is not intended to box all students into the same…
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You’re more emotional than you think We all need help with overcoming demotivation when we’re in a tough battle. Studying is quite an emotional rollercoaster. As accounting students, perfectionists, and most of us have fixed mindsets, we don’t like to acknowledge that emotions are a large part of our decision-making criteria. We like to believe…
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Why did I chat to Mandi? Mandi Olivier CA(SA) is a Senior Executive at SAICA, involved in the pre-qualification process. Everything from university studies to the Board exams. I felt that students need to hear directly from the source what SAICA expects from them as they’re studying. (If you enjoyed this, want us to chat…
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Why did I chat to Pat? Pat is another example of the fact that we are NOT boring, grey accountants! He is in Business Development at BDO, he mentors students and so he understands the journeys of many students. We chatted about his journey, the idea of ‘boxing’ yourself, the breadth of your potential career,…
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“Am I too old to start?” I get emails from students all the time asking me “Am I too old to start my CA(SA) qualification journey?”. I answer this question all the time, I wrote a short article on it before as well, and I thought I’d chat to someone else for their perspective, on…
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When you’re IN the moment, it’s tough to see past it I’m sharing some of my story because when you see people who are qualified and ‘doing stuff’ that you want to get to, it’s really easy to feel that they didn’t struggle the way you did, that you’ll never get there, because your situation,…
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Why did I chat to Milpark, CA Connect? Milpark, CA Connect offers an online, SAICA-accredited PGDA (CTA) and Bridging programme. They’re currently taking applications for their July 2020 programmes, so I chatted to them about their programme, and some advice on how any student can put themselves in the best position to pass. PGDA /…
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What’s in this article and videos? Introduction I spoke to Bruce about career opportunities in the Public Sector a while back. I found that quite a few people were interested in exploring the topic of the Public Sector a little more, so I decided to chat to him again. This time, we chatted about the…
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I’m taking Tabaldi’s FAC1502 and FAC1601 class this semester, you can register here: Register for Tabaldi’s FAC1502 online course here Email Tabaldi: queries@tabaldi.com DISCOUNT CODE: YVONNE10 Register before end-February 2020, and a get 10% discount. Use the above code Are you struggling with FAC1502 or FAC1601? I developed the online course for Tabaldi Education’s FAC1502…
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Table of Contents SAICA-accredited CTA / PGDA We all love choice, and students are always asking me what options are better for them, so I thought I’d find out more about CA Connect, to give you as a student more info. CA Connect has been assisting students with their CTA studies since 2010. In 2019,…
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Are you too old to pursue that goal? I get this question all the time. “Am I too old to study?”; “Am I too old to get this qualification?” Here’s what I want to say to you: I chatted to Gareth from CA Connect about this I thought I’d get someone else’s input for you…
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What’s in this article? Are you studying properly? MOST of my Study Coaching students struggle with this. I’ve lectured for over a decade, THOUSANDS of students. You WANT to pay attention to this. What are your expectations with your study process? Is it really how it works? 90% of my students avoid Step 1 I…
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“make enough mistakes…” Most of my students are not ok with failure and making mistakes. I get that. I’m there too! Trying to really comprehend and value the benefits of the mistakes we make, is tough. But I really want you to think about why someone like this advises you to make LOTS of mistakes!…
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Study Coaching assessment I use the questions in this quiz to help assess my Study Coaching students and their study habits. The answers help me understand where they need to focus, and the types of things they’re struggling with. Each of these questions have an impact on your exam performance, directly or indirectly. what do…
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Do you need motivation to study? I get messages from students every single day, saying that they’re not motivated, or they’ve lost motivation. They’re worried because without motivation, they’re not studying. What they’re hoping I can do is ‘motivate’ them so that they feel like studying again. This is a bit of an oversimplification, but…
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Get marks for format questions One of the topics I spend time on with my study coaching students, is how to get marks in exams, with limited knowledge. In this case, I’m referring to your ability to get marks in format questions. Format questions are popular. Financial Statements; Notes to the AFS; Deferred Tax tables;…
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Does highlighting information in your exams help you get marks? Students LOVE highlighters! (I do too, I love stationery!) We have developed the habit of highlighting (or underlining) information thinking that it’s going to help us learn and get more marks. We feel that it’s ‘active reading’. Take a look at this video and think…
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“How should I study accounting to make sure I pass?” I’ve lectured thousands of accounting students at various levels over the last 15 years, and I get asked this all the time. There’s a LOT of advice, tips, study hacks and info out there. My advice takes a different approach designed to help you with…
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Over 70% of students I survey say procrastination is a big issue for them I respect you for the sacrifices you make for your studies. There are a lot of them, and they’re not easy to keep making, day after day, year after year. No matter how many lectures / tutorials / online courses you’ve…
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Perfectionism: use it? or lose it? A lot of people believe that perfectionists make the best students. They have drive, ambition and a desire to achieve. surely this would make them excellent students? Take a look at this video from my Study Coaching Programme, in which I explain why perfectionism can make studying tougher: Did…
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More than the theory of our subjects, and the technical details, ineffective study habits can keep students from succeeding. A lot of students need to change their study habits. I wrote an article recently on how studying is like going to gym. SO many students sent me messages saying how much they relate to it.…
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expectation We sign up for studies for very similar reasons as the gym contract. We want to improve ourselves and our lives. We FULLY intend to stick to our commitment. THIS will be the year that we get ourselves healthy, and pass those exams. THIS is it. Everything will change and we’ll be better than…
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“I’m not Ready” “I’m not ready to do questions” “I’m not ready to write the exam” I hear this ALL the time from my study coaching students. Let’s talk about it Think on these things As you listen to the video and read this. I want you to CONSCIOUSLY note the thoughts that run through…
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What’s “Right Now” studying? What are you able to do RIGHT NOW? What knowledge are you comfortable with RIGHT NOW!? Before any revision. Before any notes, material. What can you do RIGHT NOW? If you’re able to get marks for topics, and you’re comfortable with the knowledge now, why are you going to re-learn it?…
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Who is James Perry? James Perry, is a Chartered Accountant, and one of Northern Ireland’s Top 40 Under 40. He’s the owner of AccountingExamCoach.com, a unique business coaching Accounting Students on mindset, motivation, study & exam techniques. He has successfully coached over 80 people globally including Jamaica, India, Zimbabwe & New Zealand. Holding a First Class…
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“What do I need to do to pass?” I get asked this ALL THE TIME. Here’s my answer. It’s your ‘mindset’. Yes, you know this. But do you know what ‘mindset’ actually is?! Hint: It’s not a few motivational posters and lots of ‘determination’. So, I created a course for you to go through BEFORE you…
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If UNISA won’t allow you to repeat CTA, what are your choices? I have a number of students asking me what their options are if UNISA won’t allow them to register for CTA again (Or even if they’re looking for an alternative to UNISA). Just because UNISA doesn’t accept you, doesn’t mean you’re out of…
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I always encourage students to be honest with me about their struggles, so I thought it’s only fair for me to do the same! What am I studying and why? I need to refresh my IFRS knowledge, I haven’t gone into a lot of detail on the Standards for quite a while! I need the…
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What is exam technique? Your exam is a game, learn to play it Why do I say this? You have very limited time to write your exam You get a question you’e never seen You have to ‘gather’ as many marks as possible in a limited time You have to apply knowledge that you’re probably…
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“If I had more time…” Students often complain that the time restraint in exams and tests is their biggest challenge. I often watch students write tests in class, to assess where their challenges are, and what I find is that they’re so busy focussing on making sure they’re writing EVERYTHING they know, that they’re ignoring…
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