Follow up to my earlier post regarding the cost of various review providers for CPA US .
Here is an analysis of each review provider , strentghs and weakness . This should help every one interested in pursuing cpa
Earlier Link
https://www.caclubindia.com/forum/cpa-review-courses-100127.asp
Becker CPA Review
Strengths
- Excellent lecture notes, MCs and software. The materials are comprehensive and user-friendly.
- Big 4 endorsement. The live lectures are recommended by the Big 4.
- Materials constantly kept updated. Becker has a professional team to update the materials on a very regular basis. Their proof-reading is also done well so there are few typos and errors. If there are errors, Becker does a good job in posting in their website and letting everyone to see.
Weaknesses
- Overpriced. If you are paying full price on your own you are subsidizing those who get deep discounts from their employers through Becker’s partner program. Not Fair!
- Live classes way overrated. They show you a DVD in a classroom, tell you to “circle this, highlight that” for 8 hours straight. Quality of “lecturers” (whose main job is to turn on and off the DVD) is really mixed. Check out my experience at the Becker CPA Review Course.
- Expensive re-take. Software license expires in 12 months and this is often not enough time for many candidates. Re-take of classes costs $1,000+ (50% of retail price) with harsh attendence rate which I find ridiculous.
Recommendation
SKIP Becker. They do have great notes, but so do Yaeger (for lectures) and Wiley / Gleim (practice tests). Live classes are a waste of time, for me at least.
Bisk CPA Review
Strengths
- Recommended by Big 4. Recommended by 2 of the Big 4 for self-study courses.
- Bob Monette, one of the instructors, is legendary and is a nationally recognized CPA expert.
- Money-back guarantee is available for the software products — if you complete the course and fail the exam, you can get all the money back (see limitation below).
- Interesting features on CD on exam test customization and diagnostics.
Weakness
-
Really mixed reviews: especially on Bisk CPA’s classic series. Many students believe
- The text book is exactly the same as the CD — so make sure you don’t buy both (CD is better)
- The other lecturers aren’t as good
- The money-back gurarantee is very restrictive — so restrictive that I don’t think many of us can ever qualify
Recommendation
-
Can’t think of a reason to pick
- Check out my evaluation on Bisk CPA Review
Wiley CPA Review
Strengths
- Authority in practice tests. The homework and simulations are very popular and proved to be useful for many CPA candidates. Even competitors (Yaeger and Roger) choose Wiley to bundle-sell as supplementary material.
- It’s cheap! The software costs $79 (all 4 costs $229) — a good bargain in the world of CPA exm prep course.
Weaknesses
- Book is overwhelming. Especially when there is no guided review, it is very discouraging to go over the entire guide. Too much material in my opinion.
Recommendation
- Get the software, not the book.
- If you are an accounting major you may be tempted to get yourself only a Wiley book. But in order to pass the CPA exam, you need both knowledge AND tactics. There is no tactics in the Wiley book.
- Check out my evaluation on Wiley CPA Review
Gleim CPA Review
Strengths
- Great practice tests. Practice tests being very organized. Good supplementary to lecture-heavy courses.
- Affordable – see price comparison for details.
Weaknesses
- No lecture — the Gleim online is simply a voice reading the text on the powerpoint slides.
- Books and audios not useful — as quoted from a forum member, Gleim “reads like a dictionary”…
Recommendation
- Good for the disciplined and those who are good at self-study.
- Otherwise, forget about the full pack (which looks like a great deal) and opt for the practice test only if Wiley is not enough or not for you.
- Check out my evaluation on Gleim CPA Review
Yaeger CPA Review
Strengths
- Champion of the old-school approach. If you like someone who writes on the board and explains concept to you in the old-fashioned way, you’d appreciate Yaeger. I personally like the way they “hold your hand” and explain the multiple choice questions and possible tricks.
- Live phone support. This is quite unique, and you can often reach and talk to the owner (Phil Yaeger) himself.
- Good value for money. One of the most affordable guided review courses out there.
Weaknesses
- Old school. Obviously this can be a turn-off for some people.
- Somewhat disorganized. There are times when you would expect the team to retape the video (e.g. a typo on the white board, or the guy accidentally talked to his wife…) but Yaeger just let it go live. The ones I spotted did not affect the quality of the course itself but I can see some candidates find it annoying.
Recommendation
- Great for people who need help in accounting concepts, or a “real person” that can explain things to you (by phone).
- Check out the demo to see if you are fine with the old-school teaching style. No worries on lecture notes etc because everyone says it’s good. They also provide quality supplementary materials from Wiley.
- Check out my evaluation on Yaeger CPA Review
Lambers CPA Review
Strengths
- The ipod format is a “must-buy” if you are busy and want to utilize all your “dead time” during commute and between meetings and children’s naps.
Weaknesses
- Low key or not good? You don’t see a lot of past students actively promoting their products other than the ipod format, but it could be a reason of its low-key approach. Afterall, 200,000+ CPA candidates have picked Lambers for the past 43 years.
Recommendations
- Get Lambers if you like the ipod idea.
- Check out my evaluation on Lambers CPA Review
Roger CPA Review
Strengths
- Entertaining lectures: Roger Philipp (the founder) writes his own notes and lectures for every class. He is a good speaker.
Weaknesses
- Lots of access and viewing restrictions. Only 9 month access for online format — even worse than Becker.
- Slow response in message forum (main help channel) and no live phone help.
- It’s essentially a one-man band. Can he keep up with the expansion and quality?
- Check out my evaluation on Roger CPA Review
Kaplan CPA Review
Strengths
- Established name: Kaplan is well known for standardized test preparation, and its Schewser brand is an authority in CFA exam preparation.
-
Free BEC course: believe it or not, Kaplan is offering their full BEC course for free if you are willing to pay the shipping cost (around US$15 if within the
Weaknesses
- Too comprehensive: If Wiley / Gleim book is a dictionary, Kaplan is an encyclopedia.
- No one talks about Kaplan CPA: If you are good, people talk about it. But it is difficult to find any discussion at all on Kaplan CPA…
Recommendations
- If you have extra time, you can check out the BEC freebie first
- Check out my evaluation on Kaplan CPA Review
CPAExcel
Strengths
- Bite-sized lectures: This is a god-send for those who hate long lectures as much as I do. The lecture length ranges from a couple of minutes to ~ 30 minutes. A more efficient way to learn in my opinion.
- State-of-the-art technology: CPAexcel fully utilizes the online capability and churns out personalized exam plan and a collection of diagnostic charts and analysis for you, which I (as a financial analyst by profession) finds very attractive.
- Unlimited upgrade: no more pressure of not finishing within 12 months and have to pay an extra $1,000 for a retake!
Weaknesses
- You’ve got to be a PC-based learner. Since everything is delivered online, if you are a type of learner who needs “live support” (a real person to explain something to you, either in person or by phone); or if you are accustomed to highlighting, circling and dropping notes on the side of the textbooks, then CPAexcel may not fit your learning style.
- Would expect more past students to talk about the program. Given how unique and efficient the program seems to be, I am surprised that no many people talk about CPAexcel. There are good reviews, just not much. This may not necessarily be a “weakness” per se but it impacts the level of confidence I have on their products.
- Possibly underprepares candidates. Based on the limited number of comments I gather, it seems like many candidates decided to get Wiley (and to a lesser extent, Gleim) as a supplementary study material, and even a full set of Yaeger to complement CPAexcel. It seems to me that CPAexcel alone may not be sufficient for the CPA exam preparation.
Recommendations
- Depending on your learning style, CPAexcel could be a great choice, but expect the potential of getting Wiley / Gleim / Yaeger as supplement.
- Check out my evaluation on CPAexcel
Go For Yaeger CPA If You Want To:
- Understand concepts and tactics at the same time
- Get the best value for money (good lecture, unlimited access, live phone help, quality homework)
- Learn from someone with the best record (88% passing rate)
OK! Thanks for going through this long post with me. I hope you will be able to make a decision with this information. Let me know how it goes. Good luck!
Please post feedback on suggestions / improvements
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