Check out our blog to see what's new with the CFE/Modules/Challenge Exams and learn important helpful tips and hints as you work your way through the exam writing process.
Indian and Pakistan and Nigerian CAs - - What CFE Day 1 Case Should I Write?
Published August 7, 2025 by Michael Levi
A common question surrounding Day 1 1, is which Capstone 1 case to write for the June and September CFE. The answer will vary depending on whether you are a first time versus a repeat writer. Let's look at each of the CFEs June 2026 CFE For the June 2026 CFE, there are 2 Day 1...
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Repeat Writers: What Went Wrong During the CFE?
Published July 6, 2025 by Ira Walfish
There is no question it is disheartening to fail the CFE, but take solace in the fact that thousands of students over the years are now CPAs and they did not pass the first time around. This is a bit of a game, and playing it right makes all the difference. But before we focus on what to do next (See: Repeat Writers - How to Prepare for a 2nd Attempt), let's understand what went wrong this past September. CPA provides a one-pager that gives you a brief summary of how you did on the different...
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Repeat Writers: How to Prepare for a 2nd Attempt
Published July 6, 2025 by Michael Levi
Okay, now that we understand how to interpret the results (please read our blog Repeat Writers - What Went Wrong During the CFE? before you read this blog), let's figure out what to do to make sure you are successful on the next CFE. Obviously, the way forward will be a bit different for everyone, depending on where you were weak the first time around. So I'll try and make this general enough to capture all the weaknesses,...
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How is Day 1 of the CFE is evaluated?
Published June 4, 2025 by Kayla Levesque
How is Day 1 evaluated? Day 1 is marked independently from the other days (Day 2 and 3). It is marked holistically as a pass/fail. Below is an overview of how candidates are evaluated along with some important comments from the Board of Examiners (comments are addressed in italics)[1] 1. Situational Analysis- Candidates are expected to provide a highlight of the...
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Understanding How to Approach the Day 1 Case
Published June 3, 2025 by Kayla Levesque
How is Day 1 structured? Day 1 is a four-hour comprehensive case in which candidates are asked to advise on various strategic decisions and operational issues. The focus is on integration, problem solving, decision making and communication. Day 1 is unique as candidates have a large portion of the work completed for them (essentially the background work for all strategic decisions). This may include a financial analysis of each option, market analysis,...
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Musings on the First CFE Report – The Good, The Bad and The Ugly | Part 3: The Bad
Published April 1, 2016 by Michael Levi
Let's take a look at The Bad from the 2015 CFE, which is part three in our four-part series. For part one, click here. For part two, click here. For part four, click here. In the previous blog we looked at The Good from the 2015 CFE. And there was a significant amount of positives in the new system. However, as in any major change, not everything is good. So here is what we don't like: 1) Many Assessment Opportunities (AOs)As we noted in the previous blog, when discussing "good" points, having many Assessment Opportunities (AOs) can be...
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Musings on the First CFE Report – The Good, The Bad and The Ugly | Part 2: The Good
Published March 25, 2016 by Ira Walfish
Let's take a look at The Good from the 2015 CFE, which is part two in our four-part series. For part one, click here. For part three, click here. For part four, click here. In no particular order, we think the following points work to a candidate's advantage under the new system. After considerable confusion and uncertainty about what the first CFE would be like, we now our first CFE Report. Let's take a minute to appreciate some of the better changes. Here goes:1) Day 2: The Comp – Lack of Integration and Testing Fewer Competencies No question, the comp has less integration...
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Musings on the First CFE Report – The Good, The Bad and The Ugly | Part 1: Intro
Published March 18, 2016 by Michael Levi
It is finally here. The first published CFE report has recently been published and students across Canada have lots of fun reading ahead of them. We have spent a considerable time pouring over the CFE to make sure that our CFE preparatory courses really provide insight and guidance to CFE candidates. Along the way, we have gleaned some insights from the report that we think you might find interesting.Some of these insights we think you'll like. We are calling these insights The Good. Some are not so good, and these are The Bad. And a few are just The Ugly. Let's start...
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How to Navigate CFE Exam Rules on Challenge Exams
Published November 25, 2015 by Ira Walfish
The CFE has a new rule that you can only write one challenge exam per day. How will this affect you as a CPA accounting student preparing for this important final exam? Well, it definitely makes the planning of when you write your exams a bit more cumbersome. Firstly, the Tax Elective and Core 2 exams are always on the same day. So don't plan on writing them in the same sitting – can't be done.Secondly, the Assurance Elective and Core 1 also cannot be written in the same exam sitting, as they are either on the same...
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