Tips for CA Final Self Study: Here is the subject wise tips for cracking the CA Final Examination.
Group-I
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§ Financial Reporting: Based on the pattern of previous attempts papers a question on each i.e from Holding company, Amalgamation, Accounting Standards is frequently coming which covers almost 50% of the paper. So Student should carefully concentrate on these topics to score good marks in financial reporting.
Guidance notes issued by the ICAI, Valuation, Value added statements, Economic Value Added are also the important topics from examination point of view and covers remaining 50% of papers.
Students are advised to cover their syllabus as follows:-
ü Accounting Standards and IFRS
ü Holding Company
ü Amalgamation of companies
ü Valuation (i.e. valuation of goodwill, shares, brand etc.)
ü Guidance Notes issued by ICAI
ü Value Added Statement, EVA and other topics
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§ Strategic Financial Management (SFM): SFM is one of the subjects which is quite unpredictable. There is no fixed pattern of SFM as per previous attempts question papers. Students are advised to cover the syllabus as follows:-
ü Portfolio Management
ü Derivatives
ü Lease Decision
ü Merger
ü Dividend Policy
ü Mutual Funds
ü Other topics
Students are also advised to cover theory as weightage of same is 30-40 marks.
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§ Advance Auditing and Professional Ethics: Students are advised to cover the syllabus as follows:-
ü Professional Ethics
ü Company Audit
ü CARO Reporting, Corporate Governance, Sarbanes Oxley Act, Peer Review
ü Special Audit
ü Other Remaining Topics
About Standards on Auditing my opinion is that students should leave this topic. Although weightage of this topic is almost 20 marks but this topic is very vast and students are not able to learn this topic. So students are advised to focus on 80 marks paper rather than going for 100marks.
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§ Corporate and Allied Laws: Students are advised to cover the syllabus as follows:-
ü Director (Covers weight age between 24-28 marks)
ü Company Accounts and Audits
ü Dividend and Meetings
ü Winding up and dissolution
ü Producer Company, Foreign Company
ü Prevention of Oppression and mismanagement
ü Compromise, Arrangement
ü Corporate secretarial practice
ü Other topics of Corporate Law
For Allied Laws students are advised to read as follows:-
ü Foreign Exchange Management Act
ü Competition Act
ü Banking regulation act
ü IRDA
ü Interpretation of statues
Group-II
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§ Advanced management accounting: This subject can be divided into two parts:-
1. Costing (70 marks)
2. Operational research (OR) (30 marks)
Students are advised to cover the syllabus as follows:-
§ Read OR in following sequence
ü Linear Programming including simplex methods
ü Transportation and Assignment
ü PERT
ü Simulation
ü Learning Curve
§ Read Costing in following Sequence
ü Standard Costing
ü ABC Costing
ü Transfer Pricing
ü Relevant Costing
ü Service Costing
ü Target Costing, Throughput Accounting etc.
Students are also advised to cover theory portion as generally theory covers 20-24 marks weight age in the examination.
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§ Information System Control and Audit (ISCA): ISCA is one of the subjects in CA final course in which students are not interested at all. My Opinion on this subject is to prepare your hand written short notes on each chapter. Cover the syllabus in following sequence:-
ü Risk Assessment Methodologies and Applications
ü Business Continuity Planning and Disaster Recovery Planning
ü Enterprise Resource Planning
ü Drafting of IS Security Policy, Audit Policy, IS Audit Reporting
ü Information Systems Auditing Standards, Guidelines, Best Practices
ü Information Systems Concept
ü Testing- General and Automated Controls
ü Control Objectives
ü Information Technology (Amendment) Act 2008
ü Software Development Life Cycle Methodology
I am writing a handbook on ISCA also. This book will contain the important topics and contents as per the ICAI syllabus. Hopefully this book will be available for May’2013 attempts students.
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§ Direct Tax Laws: One of the main problems that students faced at the time of examination is that they are not able to revise their syllabus as course is very vast. So students are advised to make a summary on each topic keeping in view that they are to revise their course in one day only. Further case laws are frequently asking in the examination which covers 20 marks paper. So students are required to study case study also. Amendments are also very important for examination point of view. All the topics of Direct Tax Laws are important from examination point of view so students are advised to cover the whole syllabus with their handwritten quick time revision notes also.
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§ Indirect Tax Laws: Indirect tax Laws can be divided into three parts:-
1. Service Tax and Vat (40Marks)
2. Excise (40Marks)
3. Custom Duty (20Marks)
As per my personal opinion first of all students should cover Service Tax and Vat Portion which cover 40 marks weightage.
ü VAT Portion covers 10-15 marks. One Practical question of 5 Marks is asked every time in the examination. So students are advised to cover all types of Practical question on VAT. Apart from that 2 or 3 theoretical questions being asked in the examination.
ü Service Tax: Generally two practical questions based on taxable services and penalty is asked in the examination. Apart from that case study based question are also asked in the examination. Generally Service Tax covers 24 to 28marks.
ü Excise: One practical question on SSI is always asked in the examination. Further one practical question on Input credit, valuation rule or calculation of transaction value is also comes in the examination. 2 or 3 Question on case study is also comes.
ü Custom Duty: One Practical question on valuation is always comes. So students are advised to cover all types of valuation questions. Further my personal opinion is that students should read only selected topics from custom as course of custom is very vast and its weightage is only 20marks.
Like in Direct Tax Law case study and amendments are also equally important in Indirect Tax Laws also.
Further i would like to suggest you to take the compiler of practical subjects as it will be very helpful for you to score good marks and see the variety of question being asked in the CA Examination.
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THANKS FOR READING MY ARTICLE.
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Regards,
RAJESH CHOUDHARY
CAclubindia
