Introduction

Passing the SAICA ITC Exam is the last hurdle in your studies on the way to becoming a CA. This is the last theory based exam you’ll write as the APC Exam which you’ll write almost 2 years later is less technical.

I had success in the ITC Exam following the approach below. I’ve kept it short and very simplistic focusing only on what I consider to be the 4 most important study tips.

1) Tackle Each Subject One at a Time

The big four chartered accounting subjects, namely Accounting, Auditing, Taxation and Management Accounting feel like intimidating mountains to climb during this stressful time. It feels like any one of these could cost you your qualification. This makes it difficult to know how to go about starting with your preparation.

What worked for me was to divide my time up and allocate a few days to each subject. I found it easiest to stick to one subject at a time until I had 100% completed the preparation for it before moving onto the next subject. This worked for me because I would get into the “accounting mode” or the “auditing mode” for example and I didn’t feel like I would easily be able to switch modes.

I also found that this method helped me to focus hard and to set goals and make sure that I was achieving them. It gave me the peace of mind that I was on track throughout. I always made sure that there was a lot of extra time as experience told me that things don’t normally go according to plan. So having a buffer is really important. You don’t need to follow my exact approach as if it’s the standard, but the most important thing is that you have a goal that you stick to.

2) Practice SAICA Past Papers

I’m a tennis player and I’ve learnt that the main way to get better at playing tennis is by playing matches. Yes, there are benefits to practicing serving and focusing on specific shots, but there is no substitute for playing actual games. An experienced tennis player instinctively knows which shot to play in any given moment and can often win a game even when he’s not playing well. I’m sure you can see where I’m going with this. In tennis, all that counts is the scoreboard. Similarly in the ITC exam, all that’s going to count is marks. There’s no use in having the knowledge and core technical competence if it doesn’t show in your results.

I can’t stress the importance of practicing past papers enough. This is the main thing Paul Maughan recommended to us in the UCT ITC Board Course and he couldn’t have been more spot on. I know how it goes. There’s so much content to get through that it feels almost impossible to have the time for practicing exam writing. The volume is insane. But trust me – this is probably the most important part of your preparation for this exam. Time pressure and poor exam technique are the two biggest stumbling blocks for students. Many competent students have failed solely because of this. And the only way to develop the skills required to handle exams is by practicing SAICA past exams. And I’m not just talking about reading them. Do them under exam conditions and get used to using your reading time efficiently and dealing with time pressure.

You have to see this part of your preparation as non-negotiable. Remember that because you’ve recently passed your CTA/honours, you probably know the work better than you think already. So climbing into practicing past papers or questions that you get from your board course is critical. This will also expose you to different styles of questions which you might not have seen depending on the university you attended.

3) Get Good Sleep

I know it sounds obvious that you should get good sleep, but I was one of those students who used to mess around with this until I got to my honours year. I used to sometimes leave things until the last minute and then try to cram leading up to the exam. Trust me – with such a high volume of work and with so much complexity, you just can’t afford to deprive yourself of sleep as you’ll hit a wall and you won’t be able to function. I’m sure you might have already learnt this by now though, but if you’re anything like me, don’t be tempted to fall back into bad habits. You won’t be able to cope with the task at hand with little sleep.

4) Don’t Mess Around

I know you already understand the seriousness of this exam, but it can still be tempting to take it easy. You’ve just been through the toughest year of your studies and it can really feel like a bummer that you have to write an exam like this still. But keep the bigger picture in mind. Although you have more than one attempt to write this exam, it becomes harder and harder to pass. I know someone who passed on her sixth attempt, so it is possible to go that route. But it becomes almost impossible to pass as your knowledge of the work becomes dimmer and dimmer as you enter the working world.

I know that there are more important things in life than this. There really are. You and I could list a few. But there aren’t many. This will affect the rest of your professional career and you won’t get to go back in time if you waste the best opportunity you have of passing the ITC by getting through the first time you have the chance. So sacrifice what you need to sacrifice and put in the hard work in this short season of your life if you ever want to become a chartered accountant.