ACCA - Recommendations

Ebbs_2 · 11-01-2018 3:55pm #1

I’m looking for to do my next set of exams in ACCA, although it’s a hard decision to decide between colleges and lecturers. I have F2, F3 and F4 done and I’m looking to do F7 and F8 next but trying to decide between Griffith and DBS.

I think the best way would be to pass forward the information I have and if anyone else has any reviews that might help others (or me!) that would be great.

Subject: F2
Source/Lecturer: Open Tuition
Materials Provided: Self Purchase of BPP book and free guide
Feedback: Excellent lecturers and very concise. They are very well structured and allow you to follow through BPP throughout. This is one main point I’d have that you really do need a revision kit throughout and should follow each lecture with completing the relevant questions in the revision kit. I didn’t buy any study books and instead downloaded their free book. All in all it cost €11.50 for the revision book and I got over 70% with only a month or two of lectures. I did have a bit of experience before with this but I think everything is clearly explained.
Recommend: Highly recommend, particularly if short on money or time!

Subject: F4
Source/Lecturer: Griffith College – Kevin White
Materials Provided: Own notes + exam kit he has done himself and Kaplan study guide
Feedback: Excellent lecturer as he covers everything in detail. I did not refer or read the Kaplan guide once as his notes, while concise, cover the entire topic. While one of the easier subjects, or so pass rates note, he was exceptional at explaining and keeping attention through high levels of interaction. Each class would begin with 10-30 short questions which allowed for constant revision. Majority of classes would also consist of group work which again helped with revision and made the day go quicker.
Recommend: Overall yes, easily passed but does require attendance and perhaps more cramming in the end to revise.

If anyone else had recommendations or reviews, I am sure it would help myself and others considering their options a lot. Very much welcome any other reviews on the above or alternatives!

ACCA1916 · 12-01-2018 1:43pm

Gerry Fahy (F7) Terry Lawless (F8) professional accountancy training are best combined option for both subjects IMO. I had both and they are excellent. I am sure you may have other options but you wont go wrong with them. Best of luck!

Ebbs · 13-01-2018 1:38am

ACCA1916 wrote: »

Gerry Fahy (F7) Terry Lawless (F8) professional accountancy training are best combined option for both subjects IMO. I had both and they are excellent. I am sure you may have other options but you wont go wrong with them. Best of luck!

Thank you very much for that. I have heard very good things about Gerry in a P2 thread but haven't heard much of the Professional Accountant Training (PAT) school he now teaches in since his move from DBS. Only thing I noted was PAT seem to be a bit more expensive with no advertised multiple discounts.

If anyone has any other suggestions or reviews, it would be very much appreciated, as it might pass some of the advice forward.!

Sariah · 15-01-2018 1:45pm

I would second PAT. They have set up a new ACCA college in partnership with Irish Times. I did very well under both of these lecturers. I just passed my final exam last night. P3 76% and had Terry as my lecturer for this subject. Best of luck

mooreman09 · 15-01-2018 2:00pm

Look at the following website

Acowtancy.com

It looks ridiculous but the detail is brilliant. The videos are perfect length and it forces you to think/work at exam questions which is the KEY to ACCA success.

I used it for my last three exams and I wish I'd known of it sooner. Its created by the former director of BPP books.

3 hour lectures are inefficient and a waste of time. They also prevent you from thinking about the EXAM. Which is what ACCA is all about.

Sariah · 15-01-2018 3:09pm

I would have to disagree mooreman09 I found the lectures invaluable and my results attest to that. I got a couple of firsts in my finals and really don't think I would have achieved that on my own especially as I do not work in a financial area.

Chasing Cars · 15-01-2018 3:14pm

Ebbs wrote: »

Thank you very much for that. I have heard very good things about Gerry in a P2 thread but haven't heard much of the Professional Accountant Training (PAT) school he now teaches in since his move from DBS. Only thing I noted was PAT seem to be a bit more expensive with no advertised multiple discounts.

If anyone has any other suggestions or reviews, it would be very much appreciated, as it might pass some of the advice forward.!

Gerry (F7 & P2) and Terry F8 (he does others but I have not been to them yet) are the best lecturers for these subjects.

They will support you through the whole thing more than any other lecturers I have had.

Gerry gives you great encouragement and structure for your exam at f7 and then you have a fantastic foundation for P2 when you get there (I know this because I just passed P2 last night - first time sitting). I am sad to say they I have no more subjects to cover with Gerry as I would love to sit in his lectures again.

For f8 Terry gives you exactly what you need for this subject - No matter what comes up you will have seen at least 60% of the answer already as a template from Terry. He also makes a boring subject more palatable.

Contact Rasitta their course coordinator for the discount as I would be surprised of they don't offer something.

Also PAT is a new Accountancy school that Gerry and Terry set up with the backing of the Irish Times Training. That is why your haven't heard much. They were sorting out there stuff before they hit the ground running this year. I can not recommend them highly enough.

silent_spark · 16-01-2018 1:41pm

Sariah wrote: »

I would second PAT. They have set up a new ACCA college in partnership with Irish Times. I did very well under both of these lecturers. I just passed my final exam last night. P3 76% and had Terry as my lecturer for this subject. Best of luck

Sorry to hijack your thread OP. Sariah, may I ask how you managed or plan to manage your PER as you're not working in a financial area?

mooreman09 · 16-01-2018 1:55pm

Sariah wrote: »

I would have to disagree mooreman09 I found the lectures invaluable and my results attest to that. I got a couple of firsts in my finals and really don't think I would have achieved that on my own especially as I do not work in a financial area.

I'd have to respectfully disagree too. Personally, I found self study using online tools and more concise lecturers put the onus on me to work harder and gain a better understanding of the exams and subjects.

I feel that going into town for 3/6 hours per week and then another 6/7 at weekends is no more than a security blanket and unless you have a lot of time - its hard to fit in effective study and exam practice.

Your brain is only efficiently learning for 40mins to an hour. You need to break it up and study/learn smarter.

It was the turning point in my qualification and learning.

ACCA1916 · 16-01-2018 3:04pm

I would agree more with Sariah but respect the point that mooreman9 is making.

However on the complicated F's, F6-F9 and the P's, I feel you need a good lecturer to point out how you apply your knowledge. Although the classes are 3 hours plus, I found going to classes gave me the discipline of a) getting the knowledge into me and b) applying it to gain max. efficiency. This is particularly true for F7 and P2 with Gerry Fahy

Whilst mooreman9 in theory could be right, in that up to 1 hours regularly is more effective learning - it may be difficult to get uninterrupted time at home especially if you have children.

The last point is the exam itself is 3 hours plus - so having the discipline to concentrate for this time does you no harm for the exam itself.

Ebbs_2 · 17-01-2018 1:05pm

Thank you for all the replies, the insights are invaluable for selecting.

One other query, I was considering pairing F6 with F7 rather than F8/F7 as some of the stats seem to suggest F6/F9 pairing is tough. This would leave me doing F6/F7 in June and F8/F9 in December. PAT's lecturer for F6 is Stephen Fennel, he seems new to lecturering but was a prizewinner himself. Has anyone any experience with Stephen?

With regards to the online vs classroom debate, I agree with both points of view. I did F2 online and will be doing F5 online with Open Tuition and find it time saving and easy. The distinction in choosing between the two for myself is my own experience. My role in work focuses around Management Accounting and hence I'd be more accustomed to this type of accounting. I chose classroom for F3 and will for F7 is down to a lack of experience, I find the ability to interact and ask questions invaluable. Simple things like getting work corrected when you can't understand your mistake really helps the learning process. F2/F5 are more maths driven where as I feel F3/F7 are more process/rule based, although that is just my opinion.

I'd definitely recommend online if you feel you have a good grasp of the subject. I also feel trying both methods is key as it will allow you to find which suits best.

Chasing Cars · 17-01-2018 1:25pm

Hi

I did F7 & F9 together and it Killed me! Do not go to Marcus in DBS for F9 he is dreadful and gives you no help if you are struggling.

F8 can pair with either F7 or F9 so it is really up to you.

I would say F6 & F7 is good as they are similar as in you need to be able to report and then there is loads of learning too.

TBH I think it is different for everyone depending on how your mind works.

Sariah · 17-01-2018 2:06pm

mooreman09 wrote: »

I'd have to respectfully disagree too. Personally, I found self study using online tools and more concise lecturers put the onus on me to work harder and gain a better understanding of the exams and subjects.

I feel that going into town for 3/6 hours per week and then another 6/7 at weekends is no more than a security blanket and unless you have a lot of time - its hard to fit in effective study and exam practice.

Your brain is only efficiently learning for 40mins to an hour. You need to break it up and study/learn smarter.

It was the turning point in my qualification and learning.

Probably down to personal circumstances and preferences. I work full time and have 5 children so not much time available for study so I really made the lectures count. While I was there I made sure I was switched on for the full time. It was much easier for me to set aside a fixed night with a fixed time for study than it would be for me to try and find that time when I got home. I guess it's good to have the option of both so people can do what suits their circumstances better.

TitianGerm · 17-01-2018 4:48pm

I swapped over from ACA to ACCA last year after failing FR at CAP2 in the high forties a few times, I just couldn't get over the line.

Sat F7 in December and passed first time. I registered with Accountancy School and did lectures online which were live streamed with Dave O'Donoghue.

I honestly can't recommend both Dave and Accountancy School enough. Lectures were good, and you are given Beker books along with Accountancy School own manual.

I was considering packing in the exams altogether but decided to give them one more try. Dave is great at giving you both the confidence and tools to pass.

Sariah · 18-01-2018 10:06am

Terry just emailed me the pass rates for his P3 class which I sat in December. 96% pass rate for his class. Just a reminder to anyone who has P1 or P3 left to sit. The final sitting for these papers is June 2018. After this there will be a new paper, which to be honest, looks horrific. It combines both P1 and P3 and I think it is 4.5 hours long. There is a huge case study and the exam paper itself is around 14 pages long. So if anyone has got P1 or P3 but not both of them they will lose the one they have and have to sit this new paper if they don't have both of them passed by June. You are probably all aware of this but just putting it out there in case you didn't realise. Also ACCA did very good webinars for both of these subjects which I think you can sign up to.

CassieManson · 18-01-2018 7:52pm

Sariah wrote: »

Terry just emailed me the pass rates for his P3 class which I sat in December. 96% pass rate for his class. Just a reminder to anyone who has P1 or P3 left to sit. The final sitting for these papers is June 2018. After this there will be a new paper, which to be honest, looks horrific. It combines both P1 and P3 and I think it is 4.5 hours long. There is a huge case study and the exam paper itself is around 14 pages long. So if anyone has got P1 or P3 but not both of them they will lose the one they have and have to sit this new paper if they don't have both of them passed by June. You are probably all aware of this but just putting it out there in case you didn't realise. Also ACCA did very good webinars for both of these subjects which I think you can sign up to.

Thats a very high pass rate - how many were in the class?

Sariah · 19-01-2018 9:20am

CassieManson wrote: »

Thats a very high pass rate - how many were in the class?

22 out of 23 people passed. Think the highest mark was 85%. Think his P7 class got a pretty high pass rate also. Probably have the results up on their website.

ACCA1916 · 19-01-2018 11:52am

I found it better when the class size was relatively small 20-30 meant that you could have good interaction with the lecturer than in class / online with 75 plus students. Fair play to Terry Lawless and all those in his class, that's phenomenal results. For P subjects you would expect 25% not to pass even with an excellent lecturer. Global pass rates hover around 48-52% mark.

Chasing Cars · 24-01-2018 3:49pm

Yeh Terry got 82% pass rate for P7 and the global was only 35%

Loughc · 24-01-2018 6:02pm

MOD NOTE: Hey guys this thread got reported recently implying there is some veiled shills going on. With all these pass rates being thrown around, going forward ye will need to show proof showing where these pass rates have come from.

Anyone can post up high pass rates with little or no proof just to champion a lecture for themselves or a friend/family member.

Ebbs_2 · 24-01-2018 6:16pm

Thanks for all the advice above, PAT seem recommended, or atleast the lecturers do. Has anyone done F6 with Stephen Fennell. The most I can see is that he was a Prize Winner with City Colleges for coming 2nd in Ireland. No reference to his teaching.

Regarding the Mod post.

PAT do have roughly the same statistics on the landing page of their website. Obviously the stats could be made up there too but considering it's affiliated with the Irish Times I'd say that might mean they're a bit more reliable. (Views on the Irish Times journalism aside).

Stats on the website say the following;

F8 - PAT pass rate 75% vs Global Average 40%
P1 - PAT pass rate 90% vs Global Average 51%
P3 - PAT pass rate 96% vs Global Average 56%

Interestingly enough nothing on F7 which seems to be one of their most recommended courses.

Chasing Cars · 25-01-2018 11:06am

Loughc wrote: »

MOD NOTE: Hey guys this thread got reported recently implying there is some veiled shills going on. With all these pass rates being thrown around, going forward ye will need to show proof showing where these pass rates have come from.

Anyone can post up high pass rates with little or no proof just to champion a lecture for themselves or a friend/family member.

Hi
I can only speak for myself, however the ONLY reason I know Gerry and Terry is because I went to DBS I had not even heard of them before I started F7.

As soon as I heard they had left I contacted Gerry and asked could I attend the college he was going to for P2 assuming he was going to a competitor. When he said they were going out on their own I followed because of the support I received.

The only reason I go to the effort to promote them is that I want to give something back to them AND IT IS ALL TRUE

However I see your point Moderator

ACCA2018 · 25-01-2018 6:15pm

Griffith College have pass rates of
F7 98%
F9 96%
P3 99%
P5 94%

all the other subjects are over 100%.

The OP original question was if he/she should go to Griffith or DBS. Both of these colleges are Platinum approved by ACCA the new college is not. The only other platinum approved college is The Accountancy School

This self promotion and promoting of friends with unsubstantiated pass rates diminishes the benefits of an independent forum

CassieManson · 25-01-2018 6:29pm

ACCA2018 wrote:

all the other subjects are over 100%.

Over 100%??

TitianGerm · 25-01-2018 6:47pm

ACCA2018 wrote: »

all the other subjects are over 100%.

Accounting might not be for you

backtothebooks · 25-01-2018 6:57pm

emmetkenny wrote: »

Accounting might not be for you

I heard that DBS had 118.5% pass rate in P8.

ACCA2018 · 26-01-2018 9:52am

emmetkenny wrote: »

Accounting might not be for you

I need to start with the basics.
I’m just starting my ACCA studies, what stage are you at and have you attended courses?

TitianGerm · 26-01-2018 9:56am

ACCA2018 wrote: »

I need to start with the basics.
I’m just starting my ACCA studies, what stage are you at and have you attended courses?

F6 left that I'm sitting in June. Last exam was F7 and did it through Accountancy School.

Chasing Cars · 26-01-2018 10:29am

ACCA2018 wrote: »

Griffith College have pass rates of
F7 98%
F9 96%
P3 99%
P5 94%

all the other subjects are over 100%.

The OP original question was if he/she should go to Griffith or DBS. Both of these colleges are Platinum approved by ACCA the new college is not. The only other platinum approved college is The Accountancy School

This self promotion and promoting of friends with unsubstantiated pass rates diminishes the benefits of an independent forum

I am not sure how the other subject's can be offer 100%?

I attended Griffith for F4, F5 & F6 and got them all. However I don't know if it is still the same lecturers.

However PAT can not be Platinum approved yet as they are not in existence long enough.
See below taken from ACCA website
PLATINUM

This is the highest and most prestigious level of the programme. Platinum approved ALPs adhere to the highest standards to provide students with the best possible chance of success.
To be considered for Platinum approval, learning providers must already be Gold approved (see below) and, in addition to the performance targets that have been demonstrated to attain Gold approval, the learning provider must also meet ACCA's Platinum performance targets and pass-rate targets over two consecutive sets of results. Platinum ALP have to provide evidence of continual improvement and innovation.

Chasing Cars · 26-01-2018 10:37am

ACCA2018 wrote: »

I need to start with the basics.
I’m just starting my ACCA studies, what stage are you at and have you attended courses?

I started from the beginning too.

I did eLearning for F2-F5 with Griffith. I got them all first time. I think it depends on how disciplined you are. These subjects are not hard if you have business experience or have done other studies.

I think the main learning curve at this level is Studying and exam technique and learning how the ACCA works and what the examiners want.

Personally I believe I would have been more prepared for the harder subjects had I attended college all the way through.

if you somehow manage to not consider the cost (ie if you employer is paying) attending classes is better IMHO

Accountancy School apparently lets you live chat the lecture too.

TitianGerm · 26-01-2018 10:47am

Chasing Cars wrote: »

Accountancy School apparently lets you live chat the lecture too.

They use a Adobe to stream live lectures (I can't remember the exact name of the program but can check later) but they are recorded so you can rewatch them at a later date.

I did the distance option and it was very good, one night a week with prep work for the following class.

Dave O'Donoghue came highly recommended from other staff in work who did Chartered Grind School with him for CAP 2 and FAE.

ACCA - Recommendations

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