Detailed guidance on scoring exemption in CA Final Audit !

Audit… bas naam hi kaafi hai… to give you Goosebumps and sleepless nights both in Intermediate and Final level. Audit is the reason why many students never feel confident about CA Final Group 1.

But today we are going to discuss a detailed strategy on how with proper planning and execution you can chase away your audit-phobia and even stand a chance to score exemption in this majestic paper called ‘Advanced Auditing and Professional Ethics’.

The only condition we have is for you to read this blog till the end and actually incorporate these proven techniques and tips in your study. The whole process here is divided into 5 phases which will make it easier for you to read and understand in a better way!

Fasten your seatbelt amigo! This is gonna be a wild ride!

Phase	Talks about
1	Classes: The infamous question – Should you take classes for CA final Audit?
2	How to do First time Self Study after classes (30 days)
3	1st Revision (10 days)
4	Penultimate revision (5 days)
5	The Ultimate Revision (1.5 days strategy)

Phase 1: Classes: The infamous question, should you take classes for CA final Audit?

We are going to help you break down this evergreen question that has troubled all CA students at some point or the other so that you can decide for yourself whether you are in need of classes or are you really self-reliant!

But before that, you must keep the following 2 points in mind.

1. Recognizing your strength and evaluating your confidence is the key to this decision!
   1. The decision to take the classes or not is completely based on your strength and confidence. A lot of students struggle with the concepts of theory subjects and find it hard to retain. If you are enrolled with a good faculty that not only provides you with lectures but also post lecture support, mock tests, timely revisions and a continuous evaluation of your performance, then it is definitely worth it.
   2. Your confidence comes from your past experiences with theory subjects. If you have scored well in past without the help of any class, then you already have what it takes to crack this subject without any external help
   3. Audit is not a very difficult subject to understand but it requires multiple thorough readings. While you can self-prepare but for scoring an exemption, we recommend you to take classes!

• Need of Conceptual understanding. Audit can’t be taken lightly at any CA level!
• CA Final Audit is not very difficult to understand, but still students are not able to score much. The reason behind that is that ICAI is now asking very conceptual case scenarios and descriptive questions, even going to the extent of asking questions from Audit pronouncements.

• • Further, recent attempts have proved that ICAI is giving out the exams in such a way that a student who had relied on a mere superficial understanding of the chapters will be at a disadvantage. Therefore, one needs to be well practiced and in-depth knowledge of the subject in order to score decent marks.

So, what’s the answer? Should you take classes?

Well, let me first enumerate the benefits of taking classes:

• Discipline to finish the course timely
• Sequence of how to go about chapters
• Highlight the areas which require more focus as compared to others
• Relevant questions that can be solved after each concept
• Helps you understand how to retain keywords 

Figuring out the above-mentioned things on your own will prove to be a very draining task, both in terms of energy and time. Nevertheless, you can still do it if you start your Audit prep well in advance (say a year before your exams)

PRO TIPS TO YOUR RESCUE!

• If you find yourself short on time and still want to take classes – go for a fast track batch if not a regular batch, as fast track batches’ main aim is to provide the students with overall conceptual clarity and makes it then very easy for you to finish the course.
• Try to finish up as much as you can along with the classes. For every 3 hours spent on class, spend 1.5 hours for self-study of the same topic.
• Decide wisely which faculty to go for. Talk to your trusted seniors, ask on telegram CA support groups and watch a few demo lectures of the faculty on Youtube and then decide for yourself.

Phase 2: First time Self Study after classes

Now, how to move ahead once the classes are over? Netflix and chill? No bruh, such things don’t suit a CA student. The next step to follow after you are done with your classes is to start self – study. This is super sensitive phase for a student.

What self-study requires? A lot of patience and discipline.

What self-study gives you in return? Sets the tone for the future revisions and make your subject ‘smooth like butter’!

Unpopular opinion!

In the words of ICAI, Audit is one of the most practical oriented subjects in the Chartered Accountancy curriculum. However most of the students fail to see past its vast theory and fail to understand it’s practical application.

Fresh and hot! Preparation techniques from the Ranker’s way by Shubham Singhal!

• Sequence – Start your journey with the most important chapters (For e.g. Standards on Auditing, Professional Ethics or Company Audit) and follow the sequence of the sections.

• Question Bank – Make sure you are crystal clear on your concepts. Go through the Question Bank for each chapter simultaneously and keep marking important questions for future revisions.
• Understanding the Question – While trying to solve the question, first read the requirement of the question. For e.g. While solving a question on SAs – Does the Question ask you to provide the objective of the SA, the requirement of the SA, or the content of the SA? Only if you understand the requirement of the Question, will you be able to answer correctly!

• Handwritten Notes – Try to make your own summary notes for the following chapters:
  • Chapter 3 – Risk assessment and Internal control
  • Chapter 4 – Special Aspects of Auditing in an Automated Environment
  • Chapter 7 – Audit Committee and Corporate Governance
  • Chapter 8 – Audit of Consolidated Financial Statements
  • Chapter 9 – Audit of Banks
  • Chapter 13 – Audit of Public Sector Undertakings
  • Chapter 15 – Internal Audit, management and Operational Audit
  • Chapter 16 – Due Diligence, Investigation and Forensic Audit
  • Chapter 17 – Peer review and Quality review
• Own hand written summary notes will help you revise these chapters very comfortably in the last 1.5 days. (This is definitely a to-do along with your classes).
• Stay tuned! – If you have not taken any recent classes, then catch up with the recent amendments. Lately, Institute seems to be keeping up with the trend aka the amendments. It has been asking MCQs and descriptive questions from the recent amendments.

• Focus on MCQ prone areas – The Institute has  been asking a lot of questions from Special audit area, like NBFC, Bank audit etc. Students tend to leave these topic, when in fact they are the most scoring chapters.

Pro tips coming to your rescue once again!

• Understand the concept of the SA and flow of the procedure followed by the SA rather than memorizing it.

• Try to write 1 answer each day. After writing, evaluate your own answer and note down the mistake that you did, or the areas of improvement on a separate piece of paper.

• What most students find difficult is to finish the huge syllabus on time. Keep a check on your time and ensure that daily targets are achieved.

Phase 3: 1^st Revision (10 days)

After all the hurdles of taking classes, warming up with self-study and whatnot, the time has finally come for our very first revision! Obviously, first revision is no child’s play, and what you study here will go a long way!

Therefore, here are some things to be kept in mind while starting the First Revision:

1. Eat less but eat healthy! No no, I am not talking about food. I mean, focus on quality over quantity:
   1. The focus should be on learning and memorizing the standards, the clauses, and the section numbers.
   2. Focus on quality of study rather than number of hours of study. This is the only time when you can invest in thoroughly going through the syllabus
2. Because naturally we remember the movie more than the book! Note taking and picturization!
   1. During the first Revision, take notes of the points that seem a little tricky and mark them separately so that you can work on those areas in your second revision
   2. During this revision, try to picturize a flow of the chapter in your mind, linking the concepts that were taught in the class, this adds context to the whole topic, making it easier to remember.
   3. Make sure you also write/ scribble key points of difficult sections. This will prepare you for writing answers in the exam and help you avoid exam anxiety
3. We are always dreaming of future, so why not here? Plan for the future!
   1. Keep a note of the time you have spent on each chapter which will help you plan your 2^nd and subsequent revisions.
   2. Try to recall as many clauses, sections and SAs as you can and revise them weekly/ daily.
   3. Try to cover up any topic that you skipped in the first read. The more topics you study, the more are your chances of getting an exemption
   4. Not absolutely mandatory but you can attempt a mock test paper after completing the 1^st Revision. Don’t expect to recollect everything in this paper. Just appear for the mock to realise your weakness.
   5. The Institute also expects you to have a fair understanding on how to write and present answers. Especially for theory papers they also consider the language, the key words and the clause numbers, section numbers and SAs written by students.

Phase 4: 2^nd Revision (4-5 days)

Now comes the time for the 2^nd revision, the upgraded brother of the 1^st revision.

Upgraded how? We’ll tell you don’t worry!

Firstly, the things to be kept in mind while starting the Second Revision:

1. Confidence is the name of this game!
   1. Be confident about the subject.
   2. After the first mock test, if you feel there is a lack of understanding in any concept then you must focus on those concepts while you are on your 2^nd revision.
2. Don’t be a ghajini, try active recalling!
   1. Try to actively recall provisions rather than just going through your summary notes. This gives you a fair idea about how well you are able to retain the sections and the provisions and gives you an insight in areas which you need to improve.

Won’t let you leave without our much beloved pro tips and tricks!

• Get into a group of 3-4 students to help each other with doubts and also to motivate each other to adhere to the revision timeline.
• Refer to your summary notes, and any markings that you might have done in the Module along with the marked questions of the Question bank.
• Write down, all those “very important points” that you already marked or those points that seem tricky to you on a separate sheet of paper so that you can refer all such points at a glance a day before exam and avoid the frenzy.
• Attempt the latest mock test for the upcoming attempt under timed conditions, this will help you rehearse for the actual exam.

Phase 5: Last Day Revision – 1.5 days

Ye nhi kiya to kya kiya?

This is not only the final revision but also the most important one!

You must have heard – “Anything that you are not able to revise on the day before exam, you will not be able to write it in the exam”. Nahin suna kya? Oops! It’s high time for you to start watching my YT Videos. Search for Shubham Singhal.

Coming back – People who revise the entire syllabus in 1.5 days are able to score better than the ones who do selective studying.

Pro tips coming to your rescue yet again!

• An hour by hour study schedule should be prepared at least a month before the start of the exams (Can also be done along with the 2^nd revision).
• All resources for the revision must be ready –  Summary notes and LDR questions
• Target to finish at least 20-25 marks of chapters (we suggest Professional ethics and bank audit) after coming back from the SFM paper. You can either do this on your own or watch revision videos. Wherever possible, it is highly advisable to revise yourself because self-revision is the best revision. But then, revision videos are better than not doing anything. So chose for yourself.
• Focus on revising the concepts from Summary Notes first and if time permits, go through LDR Questions
• Don’t skip the miscellaneous, small chapters or any category B or C chapter. They are equally important from MCQ perspective. Institute has increased the focus on these chapters.
• Get a good night’s sleep on both days. You will recall better with a fresh mind than an exhausted mind.

Resources:

• ICAI Material (only for your first study along with class)
• Faculty summary notes/ Own hand written summary notes
• Question Bank
• Your attempt RTP/MTP (released around 2 months before the exam)

Key Takeaways!

• Practice makes a man perfect. The more you practice, the more confident you will feel.
• Take mock tests and get them evaluated by an experienced source.
• Make sure you revise the entire syllabus in 1.5 days. Anything that you don’t revise in those 1.5 days, you won’t remember in the exam.
• Say optimistic affirmations every day before and after studying and practice gratitude. It helps us to stay focused and away from the “Exam Anxiety”
• Keep yourself hydrated and eat light meals till the paper. Health should be taken very seriously throughout your preparation leave.
• Do regular stretching/ warm-up or meditation or yoga can help avoid fatigue.

Thank you, Sumedha Bhat and Aishwarya Garg for helping me present this blog in such formal way.

We hope this blog was helpful. Do let us know your feedback below so that we stay motivated to bring many more such blogs your way!

Let’s ace it The Ranker’s Way!