Joan is our blogger from the Philippines currently living in Dubai.
Firstly, I apologized if I have been quite over the passed weeks and didn’t even get the chance to update everyone on my review progress. It has been a roller coaster couple of weeks for me. I must say that this preparation for this exam part was the toughest to handle, not just about the material content but with all the life changes and challenges that had happened during this review period.
I just recently quit my job and I spent two months making sure that the transition and hand-over was efficient and everything was in order at work.
A few days after I completed my hand-over my beloved grandma passed away. I was emotionally unstable and the recent events in my life made the CMA preparation process even tougher. It was very difficult to concentrate, there were moments that I was just lost.
As they say, the show must go on. I had to move on with life. With barely two weeks left before my exam date (exam date was 24th of October), I spent my days and nights reviewing. I stayed late in the evening until 2AM and start reviewing again the following day around 10AM. I pushed myself to the limit to make sure I catch up with my review schedule. I focused on the topics I felt I was weak. Since I did not have much time left, I spent a lot of time just answering questions in the test bank. I used the test prep of Gleim and picked up questions where I was particularly weak at. I felt the pressure, anxiety and fatigue all together and this made retention very difficult. There were just so much in my mind and focusing was the greatest challenge.
On day of the exam, I felt that I wasn’t ready. I felt tired as I have not been sleeping well over the past days. This is something that I want to remind you about, in as much as you want to do a complete touch up of the materials, you cannot sacrifice a good night sleep all together. DO TAKE BREAKS and GET SOME SLEEP.
I wasn’t expecting I would move on to the essay part, but I did, so I guess I got at least 50% on the multiple choice part. On the essay, I may have not sufficiently answered all the questions but it was fairly okay. I know that if I would have been given just a week more to review, I could have done better. I would have re-scheduled but October is the last testing window for this year, thus there was no chance but to close my eyes and jump!
Note from Stephanie
Dear Joan, first of all, our condolences to your grandmother. I can see that you were very close, and of course, this is have a big impact on studying. As you said, we have to move on with our lives, and I am glad you tried your very best despite of what’s happening around you.
You bring up a good point of not able to reschedule. It’s a good reminder to those who aren’t sure even at the beginning — if candidates know they are stretching themselves because of busy work / busy lives, it is better to schedule at the beginning of the testing window, so you have a chance to reschedule at a later date within the same window.
Anyway, Joan, let’s keep our fingers crossed!
Kumusta kayong lahat (it means “how are you all” in Filipino)? I am Joan from the Philippines and I will be sharing with you my experiences, challenges and stories all throughout my CMA journey.