I started Section 2 – Corporate Governance, Internal Control & Enterprise Risk Management this week. I found that the first part of this section was a review of areas that I already studied in other sections of the exam along with some new concepts. In Corporate Governance, Roger lists several devices used as a means of monitoring management. One of these devices is a Board of Directors. Each section of the CPA exam at least touches on the Board of Directors so learning the typical duties of the board will help you every step of the way. We’ve all heard about the audit committee that is established by the board but did you know that publicly-held companies are actually required to maintain two additional committees? I was surprised to learn that the nominating and corporate governance committee and the compensation committee are also required for publicly held companies. Of course these committees are a minimum and some companies have many more than three.
After studying for REG I was glad to see the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank) and the JOBS (Jumpstart Our Business Startups) Act are also covered in BEC. I studied these Acts extensively in preparation for REG and they are still fresh in my mind. Corporate Governance also covers some relatively new topics such as the different types of compensation for management, internal auditing and ISPPIA. There are long lists of principles, rules, and standards covering internal auditing and ISPPIA. Ill rewrite lists like these over and over again like I used to rewrite my spelling words as a child since these lists are a little too long for the use of flashcards. I used to despise rewriting my spelling words as a child but it sure did make the correct spelling stick in my head.
I am becoming increasingly worried about the written communication in BEC. Normally when I am studying for an exam I rely on the fact that the answers are multiple choice. It seems much harder to have to fill in the blank and start from scratch for the written communication versus selecting the answer from a list. This is one area that I need to start studying for. Although the topics for written communications could be anything, it will be important for me to read as many good examples as I can get my hands on. Luckily, Roger provides many examples for me to read and rewrite.
I plan on focusing on the next two parts of Section 2 (Internal Control & Enterprise Risk Management) and practicing written communications in the next week. I will also continue to count the days until my score release. My recommendation to anyone who is not under a time restraint like I am, is to schedule your exam towards the end of the scoring section in each window so you do not have to wait a month for your results like I do. Trust me, the waiting is pure torture!
Fingers crossed and good luck to everyone who is awaiting scores next week!
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