60 Day CPA Exam Study Plan

One section. A clear schedule. A checkpoint every week.

By CPAPass Team ·

Lire en français

Use this 60-day CPA Exam study plan for one section. Start with the topics you need most, practice MCQs and simulations each week, and protect the final days for review. The schedule below is a CPAPass planning template, not an AICPA requirement or a promise that you will be ready.

Your 60-day study calendar

  1. Days 1-7

    Map your starting point

    Sort your course units against the blueprint. Try unfamiliar questions across the section and start an error log.

    Checkpoint: Leave the week with a priority list and a calendar that fits your actual availability.

  2. Days 8-14

    Repair the first priority

    Study the highest-priority weak topic. Pair MCQs with a related simulation and review every miss before adding more questions.

    Checkpoint: Explain the rule and solve a fresh example without following your notes.

  3. Days 15-21

    Add the next topic

    Move to the next weak topic. Keep earlier material in short review sets and complete another related simulation.

    Checkpoint: Check whether earlier errors return when the topics are mixed.

  4. Days 22-28

    Finish the first pass

    Cover the remaining untouched areas. Keep a visible list of gaps instead of treating watched lessons as completed learning.

    Checkpoint: Every blueprint area has been attempted; unresolved topics have a named next action.

  5. Days 29-35

    Mix topics deliberately

    Use unfamiliar mixed MCQs and simulations. Separate wrong answers caused by knowledge gaps from those caused by reading or calculation.

    Checkpoint: Choose the recurring error that deserves the next long study session.

  6. Days 36-42

    Practice under time limits

    Use timed sets and longer simulation sessions. Record where you hesitate, lose your place in exhibits, or rush a calculation.

    Checkpoint: Finish a set, review the method, and identify a specific pacing change to try.

  7. Days 43-49

    Rehearse, then repair

    Attempt a longer rehearsal with your course materials. Use the next sessions to repair errors rather than immediately repeating the same test.

    Checkpoint: Retest the weak points with unfamiliar questions and explain the corrections.

  8. Days 50-56

    Consolidate the difficult parts

    Work from your error log. Revisit the topics you still cannot explain and practice the simulation steps that remain slow.

    Checkpoint: Decide whether the remaining gaps fit the time left; review appointment options if they do not.

  9. Days 57-60

    Review and prepare

    Keep practice light and targeted. Try the official sample-test interface, confirm your appointment details, and prepare what you need.

    Checkpoint: Finish with a short review list and clear exam-day arrangements.

Choose what goes into your calendar

FAR: start with a financial reporting topic you struggle with. Pair concept review with journal entries, calculations, and explaining how an adjustment changes the statements. Then bring related topics into mixed sets.

AUD: pair each concept with a decision. For example, identify an assertion, choose a procedure, and explain what evidence would support the conclusion. Review why a plausible alternative fails.

REG: alternate rule recall with short calculations and fact-pattern questions. In your error log, name the fact that changes the treatment. Check the material against the blueprint that applies to your exam date.

BAR: work through the calculation, then explain what the result means. Keep analysis and written reasoning in your practice sessions so that recognizing a formula does not become your only check.

ISC: use scenarios to connect a risk, a control, and the evidence that the control worked. Change one detail in the scenario and explain whether your conclusion still holds.

TCP: write down the taxpayer, transaction, and relevant assumptions before calculating. Compare similar scenarios to identify which fact changes the answer. These are suggested practice approaches, not an exhaustive topic syllabus.

A daily session you can repeat

  1. 1Recall - five minutes: for an example hour-long session, start by explaining a rule you missed previously without opening your notes. If you cannot explain it, read only the part needed to repair that gap, then close the notes and try again.
  2. 2Practice - twenty minutes: answer unfamiliar MCQs on your scheduled topic. Commit to an answer before reading the explanation. Stop when the practice time ends, even if that means answering fewer questions. Try the CPA practice questions for a short starting session without an account.
  3. 3Review - twenty-five minutes: label each miss as a knowledge gap, misread fact, calculation error, or time problem. Write a specific correction. For example: “I used the beginning balance, but the question asked for the ending balance.” Work the calculation again before moving on.
  4. 4Retest - ten minutes: attempt a fresh question on an earlier weak point and explain why the closest distractor fails. Put unresolved mistakes into your next session. These time allocations are a suggested routine; shorten the question set if correcting it needs longer.

Make room for simulations and catch-up

  1. 1Long session: reserve uninterrupted time for task-based simulations (TBSs). Read the requirement, identify relevant exhibits, attempt the response, and review your method. Use CPA task-based simulations to see the workflow before tackling a longer case.
  2. 2Weekly review: revisit the errors that keep recurring across topics. Keep unfinished work visible and choose what to carry forward. Do not use a high score on a familiar set as a reason to skip an untouched area.
  3. 3Example week for a working candidate: reserve an hour after work Monday through Thursday, three hours on Saturday for a simulation and corrections, and two hours on Sunday for mixed practice and the weekly review. That is nine planned hours, with Friday free or available for catch-up. This illustrates how to allocate a limited week, not a claim that nine hours is enough to prepare. If new topics do not fit, extend the plan using CPA study planner.

When the week does not go to plan

Work-crunch example: at the end of days 22-28, a deadline has cost you the weekday sessions and two course units remain untouched. Put the first unit into Friday’s catch-up slot and the second into the weekend’s new-topic slot. Keep corrections and a short mixed set; postpone a repeat read-through. On Sunday, attempt unfamiliar questions on both units. If you still need the lesson open, carry those units into the next week and lengthen the calendar instead of pretending the first pass is complete.

FAR simulation example: on day 29, your MCQs improve but you cannot complete a related simulation without opening its solution. In the next long session, cover the answer and write the requirement in your own words. List the exhibits you need, attempt the response, then compare your method with the explanation. If you chose the wrong exhibits, repeat only that selection step on a fresh case. If you cannot identify the rule, return to that course topic before attempting another timed simulation.

The same error comes back: write a new example with different facts and solve it without notes. If it still fails, return to the underlying concept before adding more mixed questions.

Running out of time: record where the time goes during an unfamiliar set. Rehearse moving on from a stuck question and returning later. If accuracy also falls, work on the underlying topic before simply increasing speed.

Use the final days deliberately

  • Keep review small: use your error log to choose the remaining weak points. Rework missed reasoning, revisit key procedures, and avoid starting a new course or switching question banks at the last minute.
  • Check the interface: use the official AICPA sample test to become familiar with the software. It is not scored and does not determine exam readiness. Treat it as interface practice, not a forecast of your result.
  • Confirm the practical details: check your appointment confirmation and current candidate instructions for identification, arrival, and permitted items. Keep the evening before manageable. Completing the calendar is a progress marker, not proof of readiness.

Questions about the plan

Can I prepare for all CPA Exam sections in sixty days?

This template covers one section. Choose a section before filling in the calendar. Trying to fit every section into the same schedule would leave a different amount of work and require a separate plan.

How many hours should I study each day?

Start with the sessions you can keep, then test the pace during the first week. Include time to correct answers and work simulations. If unfinished topics accumulate, add realistic study time or extend the calendar. There is no universal daily target in this template.

Can I follow this while working full time?

Yes, as a template to adapt. Put short recall and question sessions on busy days, protect longer sessions for simulations, and keep a catch-up slot. If even that does not fit, choose a longer timeline.

Does finishing the plan mean I am ready?

No. Use unfamiliar questions, explain your reasoning, and check whether recurring errors have improved. A completed calendar, a short quiz, or the official sample test cannot guarantee your exam result.

Sources and method

Schedule and study advice by CPAPass. Refer to AICPA for the exam blueprint and the limits of its official sample test.