Guidance for Nov-26 Students

Now that May-26 CA Final exams are over, a guidance for Nov-26 students.

There is a lot of focus and discussion on how out of box (i would not use out of syllabus) and difficult to attempt AFM paper was. Frankly speaking, when I reviewed the paper with Sriram Somayajula, we concluded that in exam conditions, it would be very difficult for any student to attend all questions. Of course, we will have students passing but fancy marks are now a thing of past.

In my opinion, this is a paradigm shift and can happen in any other paper of CA final or CA Inter. AFM has got all the attention but lets not forget other subjects. It should not happen that we have a great strategy for Nov-26 and another subject comes as a surprise. The exams will tend to be more and more unpredictable.

So then what is the way out?
1. Focus on Conceptual clarity & 100% syllabus coverage. One thing is clear that selective study of topics is not going to help. Exam oriented classes should be considered only after a full fledged coverage of syllabus.

2. Have a strategy for papers which could be lengthy or completely unknown. If we relook at the paper post exams, we can see that some part of it was attemptable. Now how do we implement this in real exam will be a differentiator.

3. Dont get into extreme preparation zone considering only tough questions. There will be no end to such an effort. For reference a guidance on leases itself is about 1000 pages. Such an exercise is futile and will not add much value. I did this mistake by refering to three books on taxation for CA Final. Incremental benefit was hardly 5%.

4. Ensure that you have covered all questions from study material including the ones which appear to be irrelevant. There might be a consolidated PL question instead of a consolidated balance sheet- we never know.

5. Look for additional resources for study. I used to rely on reputed author books for all subjects - Like Shukla & Grewal for Adv Accounting, Singhania, Girish Ahuja for DT, Contemporary Audit by Kamal Gupta etc. For subjects like FR - reference to IFRS Guidance Material/ Ind AS Educational material definitely helps. I do pick some questions from these in my classes. All of us may not have sufficient time to complete additional books.

6. Practice writing under time pressure, not just solving. Speed up MCQ workings. Practice timed mock tests regularly and simulate actual exam conditions - no breaks, no phone, strict time limits.

7. Read English a lot- As papers are getting lengthy, fast reading will help you save time in exams.

8. Build your mental stamina alongside technical preparation. A 3-hour exam under pressure is as much a mental challenge as an academic one. Students who panic mid-paper and abandon questions they could have attempted lose marks not due to lack of knowledge but due to shock. Meditation, deep breathing, mock test discipline, and stress management are important.