Surgent CPA Reviews 2024 : User Reviews

I’ve been using Surgent for BEC prep. While it gets the job done overall, I do have some critiques.

The practice questions sometimes test material that isn’t covered in the textbooks or lectures. This has forced me to supplement with outside resources to fill gaps.The course seems to presume base knowledge rather than teaching concepts from scratch. I’ve had to put in extra work to learn foundational topics on my own.

Considering the cost, I expected Surgent’s BEC materials to be more comprehensive and self-contained. Relying on external platforms to fill in holes is not ideal.

In summary, Surgent’s BEC prep has some deficits that require supplementing from other sources. The materials could do a better job explicitly covering fundamentals and aligning lectures, texts, and practice.

But with some patching from outside resources, Surgent provides the tools to pass. I hope they enhance content completeness for the next BEC exam version.

Based on my experience using Surgent for BEC, their approach prioritizes passing over comprehensive learning. I’ll see if this holds when I get my AUD score back in a month.

I watched all the video lectures and took notes where needed. I also read the textbook, but in hindsight would skip this and only use it to reference struggling topics.

The majority of my time was spent on MCQs and simulations. I took around 4-5 practice exams as well.

Overall, Surgent seems geared more heavily toward targeted practice than complete content mastery. The video lectures and MCQ/SIM focus provide what you need to pass, without belaboring minor details.

We’ll see if this pass-centric approach works for AUD too. For BEC, prioritizing practice exams, questions, and simulations over textbook reading felt sufficient.

Surgent may not teach absolutely everything, but from my experience, it equips you with the key knowledge and techniques to pass. I would recommend it for efficient, strategic exam prep, not necessarily comprehensive subject matter mastery.

Going into the CPA exams, I had no prior tax experience. I recommend Surgent because the content is straightforward to follow.

The video lectures for FAR and REG are short, concise, and informative – perfect for learning new concepts efficiently. Though I’d suggest replacing the REG instructor Rachel – her videos fell flat.

Surgent’s ReadyScores also provide an accurate gauge of preparedness. My REG ReadyScore was 79, and I ended up scoring an 80 on the actual exam.

As someone without a tax background, I appreciated Surgent breaking down the concepts simply. Besides the REG instructor, the succinct videos gave me the core knowledge I needed in an approachable way.

The ReadyScores kept me motivated too by validating my progress. I could trust them to reflect my actual retention and likelihood of passing.

For any newcomers to accounting and tax topics like myself, Surgent provides focused, digestible information. Their materials and scoring help build confidence by teaching the fundamentals clearly and measuring your improvement. I’m glad I chose Surgent for my CPA exam prep.

I used Surgent for the CPA and passed all parts on the first try.

The initial adaptive assessment is challenging but helps identify weaknesses. I would drill each section until achieving an 80+ ReadyScore before moving on. My ReadyScores were within 2 points of my actual exam scores on all 4 CPA sections. Overall, Surgent’s adaptive approach and ReadyScore benchmarks prepared me well.

I originally used Becker but failed FAR and AUD twice with them. So I switched to Surgent for my retakes and passed everything after that change.

Here’s what I like about Surgent:

Shorter video lectures, around 10-30 mins, that summarize key exam-focused concepts

The ReadyScore feature accurately predicted if I was prepared to pass or not

Materials organized by exam section percentages, not modules, so I could track my progress in each weighted area

The assessment at the start identifies strengths/weaknesses so you can target weak spots

I passed all my retakes with Surgent after failing twice with Becker.

I used the Essentials package without textbooks and it worked great. The condensed lectures and exam-matching structure really clicked better for me than Becker’s approach.

I’m not bashing Becker, it works for many. But for those struggling to pass like me, switching programs and learning styles could make a difference. Surgent gave me what I needed to finally pass them all!

I used Surgent exclusively and passed all 4 CPA exam sections on my first tries.

My biggest tip – start with the 350-question Adaptive assessment for each section. But switch to linear mode if it gets too demoralizing by only asking questions from weak areas. I tried sticking with Adaptive for FAR and it crushed my ReadyScore by focusing only on hard topics. Switching to linear let me answer broader content and boosted my confidence.

Also, understand your personal learning style. I have poor auditory processing so I skipped most lectures and relied on notes and MCQs. Don’t waste time on what doesn’t work for you just because it’s included.

Focus on the ReadyScores for each module to track progress. Mouseover shows questions answered per section too. Jumping around in Adaptive mode lacked context for me, so the module scores were better gauges.

Overall, be flexible with Surgent’s study approaches based on what works for you. I passed by ditching lectures and toggling Adaptive off when needed. Know your needs and use Surgent’s tools efficiently. With self-awareness, Surgent can prepare you for CPA exam success.

I failed FAR the first time with Becker. Not gonna lie, I thought I’d never pass these tricky exams.

But then I randomly found Surgent and tried that free 30-day trial. Game changer! Their stuff just clicked way better for me. Two months later I crushed FAR with an 85!

I rolled with Surgent for AUD and passed that bad boy on the first try, scoring an 88. Surgent became my go-to study tool after bombing with Becker.

Their adaptive MCQs are clutch for learning concepts, and the mad detailed explanations for SIMs and questions help it all stick. Makes digesting the material a breeze compared to Becker.

Now the lectures are pretty solid for FAR, but honestly they’re kinda meh for the other sections. I’d say supplement those with outside sources if you need to.

Anyway, here’s my advice: forget the textbooks, they’re a waste of time. Watch the good lectures, take killer notes, and drill the MCQs and SIMs relentlessly. That’s the key.

Once you’ve crushed like 700 adaptive MCQs, switch over to the new questions to mix it up. Gotta keep your skills sharp in different ways, ya know?

I’m telling you, finish all 2,000+ questions they give you. Same with the SIMs. By then, you’ll smoke those practice exams!

And you gotta study every single day – keep that Surgent app open on your phone! Sneak in some MCQs before bed to drive it home.

Throw in some Roger lectures too if you need extra practice. Bottom line – maximize your time with Surgent and Roger MCQs, focus on simulations, and you’ve so got this!!

I have been using Surgent to prepare for the CPA exams and find it provides comprehensive study materials on par with more popular courses. The textbooks, video lectures, MCQ bank, simulations, and explanations are all robust.

Surgent seems less known likely because it is newer and hasn’t been advertised as widely compared to long-standing brands.

I first took AUD after achieving a 62% ReadySCORE and ended up with a 60% on the actual exam.

Now, with an 85% ReadySCORE, I recently retook AUD and am awaiting my results. This score seems to better reflect my improved preparation.

My advice is to meticulously review each MCQ topic, understand why you answered incorrectly, take notes, and repeatedly practice missed questions. Success is more about diligent practice and memorization than the specific study materials used.

Overall, I have found Surgent to provide a comprehensive CPA prep program. While not as recognized as some competitors, its materials are robust if you put in the work. Success comes down to practice and retention. But Surgent has the tools to equip you, if you use them diligently.

I’m thrilled to have cleared all my CPA exams using Surgent for prep! I chose Surgent mainly due to the affordable $999 price tag. Some classmates were using it with decent results, so I decided to give it a shot.

The Surgent software itself is solid overall. I didn’t have any major technical issues. The materials and tutorials served their purpose, and I did pass all 4 sections, though one took 2 attempts.

However, Surgent’s claims about getting you to pass more quickly didn’t match my experience. They provide “ReadyScores” estimating your prep time needed based on a 250-question assessment. But my actual study hours far exceeded their estimates:

FAR: They estimated 70 hours, I did 150

BEC: They said 60 hours, I needed 100

REG: 55 hours estimated, took me 120

AUD: 45 hours estimated, 120 actual

With a background in accounting, I expected to study less than average, not way more. A classmate felt similarly about the inaccurate time estimates.

The takeaway – take those advertised “quick pass” times with a grain of salt. It’s more about your effort than the review materials. With hard work and dedication, any quality prep course can get you through the exams successfully.

While price was a factor in choosing Surgent, their time estimates were off. But their materials did give me what I needed to pass, even if it required way more hours than they projected. Your drive matters more than the brand.

I used Surgent to prepare for the CPA exams. Passed FAR and AUD first try with 80s, so it gets the job done. Still waiting on my REG score.

But for real, their video lectures are just okay. Don’t get me started on those video lengths either. We’re talking a few minutes max, and their app sucks so it takes forever to get to the next one.

Haven’t tried other review courses, so can’t really compare Surgent to the competition. But based on my experience so far, if you’ve got time, I’d say sample some other ones.

Surgent is affordable, no doubt. But the quality of the lectures and prep is straight up lackin’. Having to constantly supplement with the book because the vids are useless has not been a great time.

The bottom line – Surgent will get you across the finish line for a reasonable price. But be prepared to put in extra work to fill in the massive gaps from their barebones video lectures. More robust courses may be worth the money if you want complete prep in one package. Either way, passin’ these exams ain’t easy!

Becker is overrated in my opinion, mainly due to its close relationships and marketing partnerships with the largest accounting firms.

While Becker certainly covers the content, it receives excessive hype compared to newer, more affordable options like Surgent that take a more customized and targeted learning approach.

Surgent is relatively new but it’s substantially cheaper than Becker, and uses algo to identify and focus your studying on weak areas that need improvement. From what I can tell, Surgent’s smart study platform and granular feedback help optimize and streamline exam prep. You spend time on what you truly need rather than one-size-fits-all videos.

Given Surgent’s lower cost and adaptive learning features, I think it provides better overall value than the inflated reputation of Becker.

Becker clearly invests heavily in brand marketing, merchandising, and firm partnerships. But from a pure content and technology perspective, Surgent seems to innovate more on truly personalized prep.

For cost-effective, customized exam study, Surgent deserves more attention relative to the prestige Becker has accumulated. Cutting through the hype, Surgent appears to offer the better exam investment.

I used Surgent to study for the CPA exam after failing with Becker years earlier. Surgent felt more like an interactive online class than just a cram course. I went through the materials multiple times for each section. I’d watch the boring lectures at accelerated speed and take notes just like in a real class. Then I would drill the MCQ bank relentlessly.

Studying full-time while working, it took me about a year to get through everything with Surgent. In my experience, Becker’s learning style just didn’t work for me. Their lectures mostly involved reading and highlighting the book, but the info just wasn’t sticking.

Becker’s MCQs also seemed much harder than the actual exam questions, which just left me frustrated and confused rather than prepared. Surgent took a simpler, more straightforward approach that clicked better for me.

The key for me was watching lectures at fast speed while taking notes as if in class, then practicing MCQs extensively. This active learning style allowed me to truly absorb the concepts.

While Becker covered the content, Surgent’s classroom-like structure kept me engaged. The focused lectures and repetitive practice questions allowed me to pass where Becker had failed.

I’ve been using Surgent for BEC prep. While it gets the job done overall, I do have some critiques.

The practice questions sometimes test material that isn’t covered in the textbooks or lectures. This has forced me to supplement with outside resources to fill gaps. The course seems to presume base knowledge rather than teaching concepts from scratch. I’ve had to put in extra work to learn foundational topics on my own.

Considering the cost, I expected Surgent’s BEC materials to be more comprehensive and self-contained. Relying on external platforms to fill in holes is not ideal.

In summary, Surgent’s BEC prep has some deficits that require supplementing from other sources. The materials could do a better job explicitly covering fundamentals and aligning lectures, texts, and practice.

But with some patching from outside resources, Surgent provides the tools to pass. I hope they enhance content completeness for the next version.