Becker Review, Reviewed!
October 30, 2008So I started Becker classes last Monday. I have some great things to say, and I have some bad things to say. So here it is, Becker Review reviewed. By the way…If you navigated here via the CSCPA website, I need to put in some fine print:
“The opinions of this blog represent the opinions of the author and are not subject to review prior to posting by the CSCPA or any of its affinity partners. The blog is one of several forums facilitated by the CSCPA to increase networking and sharing of information among young and new accounting professionals.”
I’ll put everything on a scale of 1-10. 1 being lousy, 10 being great.
1.) Cost - 1
If you can convince someone else to pay for it, through a firm, company, or by committing credit-card fraud, GREAT! Otherwise, its terrible. Yes, I paid for it myself. It was $2765. I paid extra for the flash cards.
Also, they constantly try to sell you extra stuff. Flashcards, a ‘final review’ online classes. On and on.
There should be 1 price. Everything should come with it.
But here is the big surprise. The piece of information that I would have skipped Becker entirely. All of their software expires after 1 year on your computer. Since the testing window is 1.5 years, and it takes a while to get the NTS going, its possible to lose access to the software that you paid a **** load of money for right when you need it the most.
They should extend the life of their program to two years, or, quite frankly, indefinitely. This is why I am down on Becker.
2.) Live Classes – 5
So, you sit in a room and watch a video. Actually, the video materials pretty good (described more below). The instructor, who is pretty knowledgeable, stops the video from time to time, and talks for 5 min. But somehow, with the classes being 4 hours long, I don’t feel that I can get much out of it for the last hour. I like having a scheduled time and place to take classes
3.) Software, and testing materials provided – 10
I have taken a lot of standardized training in my life. I was in the Air Force, after all. Becker sets the standard of how to teach a mountain of relatively dry material on your computer. The video shows you what to highlight; it shows you what to underline. The video instructor brings a lot of energy to the lecture. The tests are even sort of fun. Most importantly, I’m understanding the material.
Its easy to put in a lot of quality study time with this material. Its not a typo to say I’ve put 26 hours of studying so far THIS WEEK. I can see why Becker is so successful.
So there it is, a slightly bi-polar review. I feel there s a lot of room for competition. I’m suddenly very interested in what Becker’s competitors are doing.
If it was the only product out there, I would say you must get it. However, its not.
I hope people out there in cyber-land send in reviews of the other CPA Exam review software.
Money Spent -$3,546 (I had to buy windows for my Mac to run the Becker software)
Time – 55 hours
I wanted to take the opportunity to address some of the concerns presented by James. Ultimately, the choice of a review course should be made with as much information as possible. Before you make a decision, you should take every opportunity to learn about your options, find out what your firm recommends, and talk to current students like James to find out what they think. I sincerely hope you decide that Becker is the right option, but more important to me is that you find the review course that you believe will work for you and will give you the best chance for success on the exam.
James makes some very valid points regarding the cost of the Becker program. I wanted to start by explaining Becker’s logic in offering the products as we do. He mentioned the two supplemental products – flashcards and final review – all other components are part of the inclusive price you pay when you register. The reason we offer those two as supplements are:
Flashcards – As an instructor, I believe that the BEST method is to make your own flashcards. We wanted this to be an add-on as some students probably would prefer not to use flashcards and some would prefer to make their own. Since we had other students asking for us to make flashcards for their use, that’s why we offer them as an add-on product.
Final Review – Becker believes that our “core” package gives you all the tools you need to be successful on the exam. Nonetheless, we had students coming to us asking for MORE questions, MORE simulations, and MORE practice exams. We created this product to address that need with the knowledge that not everyone would want it. Moreover, it is available on a per part basis so if you are only concerned about one particular part of the exam where you’d like some extra ammunition, you could just purchase that one part of the Final Review. The other group that often uses the Final Review are those that score in the low 70s on a given part and feel that they just need a refresher. If they haven’t earned TFCH, purchasing the final review can be a more cost effective option than using the 50% discount to retake the full part of the course.
Finally, I know that Becker can be expensive. If your firm doesn’t have a discount arrangement, you are always welcome to contact us. We’ll be happy to at least make your company aware of the discount options which can lead to a lower price for you. At a minimum, take advantage of the discount available through the CSCPA as a student member. We also do have financing options available. The bottom line is this: I only want you to pay for a review course and exam fees ONCE. The mistake many students make is purchasing a low-cost provider but as you point out in one of your other reviews, you get what you pay for. It can end up being MORE expensive if you have to retake the exam since you’ll have to pay the exam fees twice and may have to invest in a different review course the second time around.
I’ll agree 100% with your review of the classroom experience. Not to be cryptic, but there are some exciting changes in the works to “update” the classroom experience. Hopefully you’ll be willing to do a follow up review when we transition Hartford!
I’m truly sorry that the 12 month policy on our software wasn’t made clear when you registered. This policy is designed to defend against the procrastination which often happens with folks pursuing the exam. By setting a 12 month deadline, we are trying to ensure that you will take all four parts in the first twelve months, leaving at least a six month “margin of error” should you be unsuccessful on any given part. Secondly, this is why I tell all students to take advantage of TFCH. By completing the attendance requirements and homework requirements, you are not only doing what’s needed to earn a free repeat of the course (which includes extending your software) but your doing the baseline minimum that we expect to successfully prepare for the exam. Bear in mind that if you don’t earn TFCH, you still are eligible for a 50% discount to retake the course and again extend your software.
Finally, excellent question about our competition. Interestingly enough, if you define us as a nation-wide review course provider providing both classroom and self-study, then we don’t have any competitors. There are several providers who don’t provide classroom instruction, only self-study books and/or CD materials like Bisk and Gleim. There are also regional or local providers that you find scattered across the country. I’m based in Philadelphia and we have a fierce live competitor here, but he only offers classes in greater Philadelphia. It makes for a unique competitive environment!
I hope these comments are helpful and I appreciate having the chance to respond!
Michael Brown
Regional Manager
Becker Professional Review
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I’m currently in the Becker Review courses, which are also a required part of my program as a Keller Graduate School student. I am EXTREMELY dissatisfied with both Keller and Becker, both of which are owned by DeVry.
I started the course with a PC, which inevitably and finally died in the middle of the course. I made the switch to MAC for numerous reasons – mainly they are a much superior computer over PCs. I went to load my Becker software only to discover that I have to spend additional money on Windows in order to complete my courses and graduate (as well as study for the exams). This is completely ridiculous! Becker needs to update their software to be compatible with MACs as well!