ACCA advanced audit and assurance international practice and revision kit 2020

Computer-based฀exams฀ With฀ effect฀ from฀ the฀ March฀ 2020฀ sitting,฀ ACCA฀ have฀ commenced฀ the฀ launch฀ of฀ computer-based฀exams฀CBEs฀for฀this฀exam฀with฀the฀aim฀of฀rolling฀out฀into฀all

(AAA฀–฀INT) Practice฀&฀Revision฀Kit

For฀exams฀in฀September฀2019,฀December฀2019,

March฀2020฀and฀June฀2020

BPP฀ Learning฀ Media฀ is฀ an฀ ACCA฀ Approved฀ Content฀ Provider฀ for฀ the฀

ACCA฀ qualification.฀ This฀ means฀ we฀ work฀ closely฀ with฀ ACCA฀ to฀ ensure฀ our฀

Breach฀of฀copyright฀is฀a฀form฀of฀theft฀–฀as฀well฀as฀being฀a฀ criminal฀offence฀in฀some฀jurisdictions,฀it฀is฀potentially฀a฀ serious฀breach฀of฀professional฀ethics.฀

With฀current฀technology,฀things฀might฀seem฀a฀bit฀hazy฀ but,฀basically,฀without฀the฀express฀permission฀of฀BPP฀ Learning฀Media:฀

฀ Photocopying฀our฀materials฀is฀a฀breach฀of฀ copyright฀

฀ Scanning,฀ripcasting฀or฀conversion฀of฀our฀digital฀ materials฀into฀different฀file฀formats,฀uploading฀them฀ to฀Facebook฀or฀emailing฀them฀to฀your฀friends฀is฀a฀ breach฀of฀copyright฀

You฀can,฀of฀course,฀sell฀your฀books,฀in฀the฀form฀in฀which฀ you฀have฀bought฀them฀–฀once฀you฀have฀finished฀with฀ them.฀(Is฀this฀fair฀to฀your฀fellow฀students?฀We฀update฀for฀a฀ reason.)฀Please฀note฀the฀e-products฀are฀sold฀on฀a฀single฀ user฀licence฀basis:฀we฀do฀not฀supply฀'unlock'฀codes฀to฀ people฀who฀have฀bought฀them฀secondhand.฀

And฀what฀about฀outside฀the฀UK?฀BPP฀Learning฀Media฀ strives฀to฀make฀our฀materials฀available฀at฀prices฀students฀ can฀afford฀by฀local฀printing฀arrangements,฀pricing฀ policies฀and฀partnerships฀which฀are฀clearly฀listed฀on฀our฀ website.฀A฀tiny฀minority฀ignore฀this฀and฀indulge฀in฀ criminal฀activity฀by฀illegally฀photocopying฀our฀material฀or฀ supporting฀organisations฀that฀do.฀If฀they฀act฀illegally฀and฀ unethically฀in฀one฀area,฀can฀you฀really฀trust฀them?฀

Copyright฀©฀IFRS฀Foundation฀

All฀rights฀reserved.฀Reproduction฀and฀use฀rights฀are฀strictly฀ limited.฀No฀part฀of฀this฀publication฀may฀be฀translated,฀ reprinted฀or฀reproduced฀or฀utilised฀in฀any฀form฀either฀in฀ whole฀or฀in฀part฀or฀by฀any฀electronic,฀mechanical฀or฀other฀ means,฀now฀known฀or฀hereafter฀invented,฀including฀ photocopying฀and฀recording,฀or฀in฀any฀information฀ storage฀and฀retrieval฀system,฀without฀prior฀permission฀in฀ writing฀from฀the฀IFRS฀Foundation.฀Contact฀the฀IFRS฀ Foundation฀for฀further฀details.฀

The฀IFRS฀Foundation฀logo,฀the฀IASB฀logo,฀the฀IFRS฀for฀ SMEs฀logo,฀the฀"Hexagon฀Device",฀"IFRS฀Foundation",฀

฀

Question฀index฀

The฀headings฀in฀this฀checklist/index฀indicate฀the฀main฀topics฀of฀questions,฀but฀questions฀are฀expected฀to฀cover฀several฀different฀topics.฀

Questions฀set฀under฀the฀previous฀syllabus,฀P7,฀are฀included฀because฀their฀style฀and฀content฀are฀very฀similar฀ to฀ that฀ of฀ the฀ current฀ AAA฀ exam.฀ The฀ questions฀ have฀ been฀ amended฀ to฀ reflect฀ the฀ current฀exam.฀

allocation Page฀number฀ Parts฀A฀and฀B:฀Regulatory฀environment฀

฀ ฀ Time฀

allocation Page฀number฀ Part฀D:฀Planning฀and฀conducting฀an฀audit฀

of฀historical฀financial฀information฀ Marks Mins฀ Question฀ Answer

allocation Page฀number฀ Part฀E:฀Completion,฀review฀and฀reporting฀ Marks Mins฀ Question฀ Answer

Listed฀below฀are฀the฀key฀AAA฀syllabus฀topics฀and฀the฀numbers฀of฀the฀questions฀in฀this฀Kit฀covering฀those฀topics.฀We฀have฀also฀included฀a฀reference฀to฀the฀relevant฀Chapter฀of฀the฀BPP฀AAA฀Workbook,฀the฀companion฀to฀the฀BPP฀AAA฀Practice฀and฀Revision฀Kit,฀in฀case฀you฀wish฀to฀revise฀the฀information฀on฀the฀topic฀you฀have฀covered.฀

If฀you฀need฀to฀concentrate฀your฀practice฀and฀revision฀on฀certain฀topics฀or฀if฀you฀want฀to฀attempt฀all฀available฀questions฀that฀refer฀to฀a฀particular฀subject,฀you฀will฀find฀this฀index฀useful.฀

concern฀ 18(b),฀47(a)–(b),฀48(a),฀49,฀50(a),฀52(a),฀54,฀59,฀65(c)฀฀ 10฀E2:฀฀Completion฀and฀final฀review฀ 21(c),฀24(b),฀29(b),฀37,฀38(a),฀45,฀46(c),฀

50(b)–(c),฀53(a),฀58(b)–(c),฀61(c),฀70(b)฀฀

10฀

Syllabus฀topic฀ Question฀numbers฀ Workbook฀ chapter฀

Computer-based฀exams฀

With฀ effect฀ from฀ the฀ March฀ 2020฀ sitting,฀ ACCA฀ have฀ commenced฀ the฀ launch฀ of฀ computer-based฀exams฀(CBEs)฀for฀this฀exam฀with฀the฀aim฀of฀rolling฀out฀into฀all฀markets฀internationally฀over฀a฀short฀period.฀Paper-based฀examinations฀(PBE)฀will฀be฀run฀in฀parallel฀while฀the฀CBEs฀are฀phased฀in.฀BPP฀materials฀ have฀ been฀ designed฀ to฀ support฀ you,฀ whichever฀ exam฀ option฀ you฀ choose.฀ For฀ more฀information฀on฀these฀changes฀and฀when฀they฀will฀be฀implemented,฀please฀visit฀the฀ACCA฀website.฀

broader฀ knowledge฀ of฀ audit฀ services฀ and฀ practice฀ management.฀ Candidates฀ should฀ also฀

'AAA฀ also฀ tests฀ candidates'฀ ability฀ to฀ tailor฀ their฀ answer฀ to฀ the฀ context฀ in฀ which฀ the฀

that฀is฀set฀before฀they฀begin฀their฀answers.฀ It฀ would฀ be฀ useful฀ for฀ candidates฀ to฀ visualise฀

delivering฀the฀requirement฀verbally฀to฀the฀report฀recipient฀and฀therefore฀imagining฀ how฀ a฀ partner฀ in฀ a฀ firm,฀ already฀ qualified฀ and฀ experienced,฀ would฀ react฀ to฀ listening฀to฀the฀answer.'฀

฀

The฀format฀of฀questions฀in฀AAA฀is฀slightly฀different฀between฀Section฀A฀and฀Section฀B.฀Section฀A฀questions฀will฀feature฀scenarios,฀with฀simple฀requirements฀such฀as฀'Respond฀to฀the฀partner's฀request',฀or฀'Draft฀the฀briefing฀notes฀as฀requested'.฀You฀will฀have฀to฀work฀out฀for฀yourself฀what฀you฀need฀to฀include฀in฀your฀answer.฀Section฀B฀questions฀will฀feature฀requirements฀akin฀to฀those฀in฀your฀previous฀ACCA฀exams.฀For฀ sittings฀ from฀ September฀ 2019฀ onwards,฀ all฀ questions฀ are฀ set฀ as฀ at฀ the฀ fictitious฀ date฀ of฀1฀July฀20X5.฀

As฀AAA฀is฀a฀Strategic฀Professional฀exam,฀4฀professional฀level฀marks฀will฀be฀awarded.฀Some฀of฀

these฀should฀be฀easy฀to฀obtain.฀The฀examining฀team฀has฀stated฀that฀some฀marks฀may฀be฀available฀for฀presenting฀your฀answer฀in฀the฀form฀of฀a฀letter,฀presentation,฀email,฀report฀or฀briefing฀notes.฀You฀may฀also฀be฀able฀to฀obtain฀marks฀for฀the฀style฀and฀layout฀of฀your฀answer.฀

Reports฀ should฀ always฀ have฀ an฀ appropriate฀ title.฀ They฀ should฀ be฀ formally฀ written,฀ with฀ an฀ introductory฀paragraph฀setting฀out฀the฀aims฀of฀the฀report.฀You฀should฀use฀short฀paragraphs฀

฀

The฀table฀below฀provides฀details฀of฀when฀each฀element฀of฀the฀syllabus฀has฀been฀examined฀in฀the฀ten฀most฀recent฀sittings฀and฀the฀question฀number฀and฀section฀in฀which฀each฀element฀was฀examined.฀฀

Since฀September฀2016,฀the฀ACCA฀has฀been฀issuing฀two฀exams฀each฀year,฀after฀the฀December฀and฀June฀ exam฀ sessions.฀ These฀ exams฀ are฀ compiled฀ from฀ questions฀ selected฀ from฀ the฀ two฀ preceding฀sessions฀ eg฀ in฀ December฀ 2017,฀ the฀ sample฀ questions฀ were฀ compiled฀ from฀ September฀ 2017฀ and฀December฀2017฀exams.฀

A฀specimen฀exam฀was฀also฀issued฀for฀the฀change฀in฀question฀format฀for฀2018/19,฀but฀this฀has฀not฀been฀included฀in฀the฀analysis฀below.฀

1,฀3,฀4

11฀ Auditor's฀reports฀ 2(c)฀ 2(a)฀ 5฀ 5(b)฀ 5(a)฀ 5(b)฀ 5(b)฀ 5(a)–

The฀complete฀AAA฀syllabus฀and฀study฀guide฀can฀be฀found฀by฀visiting฀the฀exam฀resource฀finder฀on฀the฀ACCA฀website.฀

Examinable฀documents฀

Knowledge฀of฀new฀examinable฀regulations฀issued฀by฀31฀August฀will฀be฀examinable฀in฀examination฀sessions฀being฀held฀in฀the฀following฀exam฀year.฀Documents฀may฀be฀examinable฀even฀if฀the฀effective฀date฀is฀in฀the฀future.฀This฀means฀that฀all฀regulations฀issued฀by฀31฀August฀2018฀will฀be฀examinable฀in฀the฀September฀2019฀to฀June฀2020฀examinations.฀฀

The฀ accounting฀ knowledge฀ that฀ is฀ assumed฀ for฀ AAA฀ is฀ the฀ same฀ as฀ that฀ examined฀ in฀ Strategic฀Business฀ Reporting฀ (SBR).฀ Therefore,฀ candidates฀ studying฀ for฀ AAA฀ should฀ refer฀ to฀ the฀ Accounting฀Standards฀listed฀under฀SBR.฀

Note.฀AAA฀will฀only฀expect฀knowledge฀of฀accounting฀standards฀and฀financial฀reporting฀standards฀from฀SBR.฀Knowledge฀of฀exposure฀drafts฀and฀discussion฀papers฀will฀not฀be฀expected.฀

AUDIT฀

International฀

Knowledge฀of฀new฀examinable฀regulations฀issued฀by฀31฀August฀will฀be฀examinable฀in฀examination฀sessions฀being฀held฀in฀the฀following฀exam฀year.฀Documents฀may฀be฀examinable฀even฀if฀the฀effective฀date฀is฀in฀the฀future.฀This฀means฀that฀all฀regulations฀issued฀by฀31฀August฀2018฀will฀be฀examinable฀in฀the฀September฀2019฀to฀June฀2020฀examinations.฀฀

The฀ study฀ guide฀ offers฀ more฀ detailed฀ guidance฀ on฀ the฀ depth฀ and฀ level฀ at฀ which฀ the฀ examinable฀documents฀ should฀ be฀ examined.฀ The฀ study฀ guide฀ should฀ therefore฀ be฀ read฀ in฀ conjunction฀ with฀ the฀examinable฀documents฀list.฀

Accounting฀Standards฀

Advanced฀Audit฀and฀Assurance฀(AAA)฀

The฀accounting฀knowledge฀that฀is฀assumed฀for฀Advanced฀Audit฀and฀Assurance฀is฀the฀same฀as฀that฀examined฀in฀Strategic฀Business฀Reporting฀(SBR).฀Therefore,฀candidates฀studying฀for฀AAA฀should฀refer฀to฀the฀IFRS฀Standards฀listed฀under฀SBR.฀฀

N.B.฀ AAA฀ will฀ only฀ expect฀ knowledge฀ of฀ accounting฀ standards฀ and฀ financial฀ reporting฀ standards฀from฀SBR.฀Knowledge฀of฀exposure฀drafts฀and฀discussion฀papers฀will฀not฀be฀expected.฀

(Revised฀2013)฀฀ Using฀the฀Work฀of฀Internal฀Auditors฀฀

ISA฀620฀฀ Using฀the฀Work฀of฀an฀Auditor's฀Expert฀฀

ISA฀700฀(Revised)฀฀ Forming฀an฀Opinion฀and฀Reporting฀on฀Financial฀Statements฀฀

฀ International฀Standards฀on฀Auditing฀(ISAs)฀

ISA฀701฀฀ Communicating฀Key฀Audit฀Matters฀in฀the฀Independent฀Auditor's฀Report฀฀ISA฀705฀(Revised)฀฀ Modifications฀to฀the฀Opinion฀in฀the฀Independent฀Auditor's฀Report฀฀

•฀ Our฀Top฀tips,฀included฀for฀certain฀questions,฀provide฀essential฀advice฀on฀tackling฀questions,฀

presenting฀answers฀and฀the฀key฀points฀that฀answers฀need฀to฀include.฀

•฀ We฀show฀you฀how฀you฀can฀pick฀up฀Easy฀marks฀on฀some฀questions,฀as฀we฀know฀that฀

picking฀up฀all฀readily฀available฀marks฀often฀can฀make฀the฀difference฀between฀passing฀and฀failing.฀

•฀ We฀include฀marking฀guides฀to฀show฀you฀what฀the฀examining฀team฀rewards

Attempting฀mock฀exams฀

This฀ Kit฀ has฀ four฀ mock฀ exams,฀ including฀ the฀ ACCA฀ Specimen฀ Exam,฀ which฀ provide฀ practice฀ at฀coping฀ with฀ the฀ pressures฀ of฀ the฀ exam฀ day.฀ We฀ strongly฀ recommend฀ that฀ you฀ attempt฀ them฀ under฀exam฀conditions.฀All฀the฀mock฀exams฀reflect฀the฀question฀styles฀and฀syllabus฀coverage฀of฀the฀exam.฀

Topics฀to฀revise฀

AAA฀is฀a฀challenging฀higher-level฀exam฀consisting฀of฀one฀compulsory฀question฀in฀Section฀A฀(worth฀50฀marks)฀and฀a฀further฀two฀compulsory฀questions฀in฀Section฀B฀(worth฀a฀total฀of฀50฀marks).฀฀

Section฀A฀will฀comprise฀a฀Case฀Study,฀worth฀50฀marks,฀set฀at฀the฀planning฀stage฀of฀the฀audit,฀for฀a฀

single฀ company,฀ a฀ group฀ of฀ companies฀ or฀ potentially฀ several฀ audit฀ clients.฀ Candidates฀ will฀ be฀

Candidates฀will฀be฀required฀to฀address฀a฀range฀of฀requirements,฀from฀syllabus฀Sections฀A,฀B,฀C฀and฀D,฀thereby฀tackling฀a฀real-world฀situation฀where฀candidates฀may฀have฀to฀address฀a฀range฀of฀issues฀simultaneously฀ in฀ relation฀ to฀ planning,฀ risk฀ assessment,฀ evidence฀ gathering฀ and฀ ethical฀ and฀professional฀considerations.฀฀

Four฀professional฀marks฀will฀be฀available฀in฀Section฀A฀and฀will฀be฀awarded฀based฀on฀the฀level฀of฀professionalism฀with฀which฀a฀candidate's฀answer฀is฀presented,฀including฀the฀structure฀and฀clarity฀of฀the฀answer฀provided.฀

Section฀ B฀ will฀ contain฀ two฀ compulsory฀ 25-mark฀ questions,฀ with฀ each฀ being฀ predominately฀ based฀

around฀a฀short฀scenario.฀฀

One฀ question฀ will฀ always฀ come฀ from฀ syllabus฀ Section฀ E,฀ and฀ consequently฀ candidates฀ should฀ be฀prepared฀to฀answer฀a฀question฀relating฀to฀completion,฀review฀and฀reporting.฀There฀are฀a฀number฀of฀formats฀this฀question฀could฀adopt,฀including,฀but฀not฀limited฀to,฀requiring฀candidates฀to฀assess฀going฀concern,฀the฀impact฀of฀subsequent฀events,฀evaluating฀identified฀misstatements฀and฀the฀corresponding฀effect฀on฀the฀auditor's฀report.฀Candidates฀may฀also฀be฀asked฀to฀critique฀an฀auditor's฀report฀or฀report฀which฀is฀to฀be฀provided฀to฀management฀or฀those฀charged฀with฀governance.฀

The฀other฀Section฀B฀question฀can฀be฀drawn฀from฀any฀other฀syllabus฀section,฀including฀A,฀B,฀C,฀D฀and฀F.฀

Current฀ issues.฀ Syllabus฀ Section฀ G฀ on฀ current฀ issues฀ may฀ be฀ examined฀ in฀ Section฀ A฀ or฀ B฀ as฀

appropriate.฀Current฀issues฀is฀unlikely฀to฀form฀the฀basis฀of฀any฀question฀on฀its฀own฀but฀instead฀will฀be฀incorporated฀into฀the฀Case฀Study฀or฀either฀of฀the฀Section฀B฀questions฀dependent฀on฀question฀content฀and฀the฀topical฀issues฀affecting฀the฀profession฀at฀the฀time฀of฀writing.฀

We฀ strongly฀ advise฀ that฀ you฀ do฀ not฀ selectively฀ revise฀ certain฀ topics฀ –฀ there฀ are฀ no฀ optional฀

questions฀for฀AAA,฀so฀there฀is฀nowhere฀to฀hide฀if฀a฀difficult฀topic฀is฀examined.฀Selective฀revision฀will฀limit฀the฀number฀of฀questions฀you฀can฀answer฀and฀hence฀reduce฀your฀chances฀of฀passing.฀

฀

There฀are฀three฀areas฀you฀should฀develop฀in฀order฀to฀achieve฀exam฀success฀in฀Advanced฀Audit฀and฀Assurance฀(AAA).฀These฀are:฀

Skill฀1:฀Legal฀and฀ethical฀responsibilities฀

The฀AAA฀exam฀will฀always฀test฀the฀application฀of฀your฀knowledge฀of฀this฀area.฀Candidates฀tend฀to฀remember฀ enough฀ to฀ be฀ able฀ to฀ identify฀ when฀ something's฀ not฀ right฀ in฀ a฀ scenario฀ –฀ however,฀explaining฀ why฀ something฀ is฀ not฀ right฀ and฀ how฀ the฀ firm฀ should฀ respond฀ appears฀ to฀ be฀ more฀challenging.฀ You฀ therefore฀ need฀ to฀ be฀ able฀ to฀ develop฀ an฀ approach฀ that฀ will฀ assist฀ you,฀ both฀ in฀advance฀of฀the฀exam฀and฀on฀the฀day฀itself.฀

While฀ the฀ context฀ and฀ complexity฀ of฀ scenarios฀ testing฀ legal฀ and฀ ethical฀ responsibilities฀ may฀ be฀different฀to฀those฀you฀would฀have฀seen฀in฀the฀Audit฀and฀Assurance฀exam,฀the฀knowledge฀that฀you฀require฀for฀AAA฀should฀not฀be฀new฀to฀you฀–฀it฀is฀therefore฀important฀that฀you฀refresh฀your฀memory฀using฀the฀technical฀knowledge฀presented฀in฀this฀Workbook฀before฀you฀attempt฀more฀exam฀standard฀questions.฀

A฀step-by-step฀technique฀for฀applying฀these฀techniques฀is฀outlined฀below.฀

STEP 1฀ ฀ Think฀about฀the฀requirement฀and฀consider฀all฀the฀tasks฀that฀you฀are฀being฀asked฀to฀undertake.฀

Specific AAA skills Exam success skills

Planning the audit and gathering evidence

Legal and ethical

Efficient numericalanalysis

STEP 2฀ ฀ Read฀the฀scenario฀and฀identify฀all฀the฀areas฀of฀legal฀and/or฀ethical฀concern฀that฀you฀can.฀

STEP 3฀ ฀ For฀each฀of฀the฀areas฀that฀you฀have฀identified,฀list฀the฀reasons฀why฀you฀think฀they฀may฀be฀of฀concern฀to฀you.฀

Answering฀questions฀related฀to฀practice฀management฀do฀require฀some฀learned฀knowledge฀to฀inform฀your฀approach฀–฀this฀will฀also฀help฀you฀identify฀areas฀of฀the฀scenario฀that฀may฀not฀look฀quite฀right฀and฀ which฀ will฀ need฀ some฀ further฀ investigation.฀ The฀ AAA฀ skills฀ and฀ exam฀ success฀ skills฀ in฀ this฀checkpoint฀help฀you฀to฀develop฀an฀approach฀that฀you฀can฀apply฀throughout฀the฀rest฀of฀your฀studies.฀฀A฀step-by-step฀technique฀for฀applying฀these฀techniques฀is฀outlined฀below.฀

Questions฀on฀completion฀and฀reporting฀tend฀to฀go฀well฀together฀–฀when฀you฀consider฀issues฀such฀as฀going฀ concern,฀ subsequent฀ events฀ and฀ the฀ evaluation฀ of฀ the฀ auditor's฀ findings,฀ inevitably฀ they฀ will฀need฀to฀considered฀in฀the฀context฀of฀the฀auditor's฀report฀and฀any฀other฀communication฀that฀might฀be฀necessary ฀

STEP 5฀ ฀ Write฀your฀answer.฀

Skills฀Checkpoint฀4฀covers฀this฀technique฀in฀detail฀through฀application฀to฀an฀exam-standard฀question.฀฀

Skill฀5:฀Non-audit฀engagements฀and฀current฀issues฀

Remember฀that฀although฀this฀is฀an฀audit฀exam,฀the฀words฀'…and฀Assurance'฀are฀also฀in฀the฀title.฀The฀syllabus฀contains฀a฀number฀of฀non-audit฀elements฀that฀you฀could฀be฀tested฀on,฀so฀this฀checkpoint฀will฀consider฀how฀you฀can฀prepare฀for฀these฀if฀required.฀Part฀F฀of฀the฀syllabus฀covers฀these฀subjects.฀The฀AAA฀examining฀team฀also฀periodically฀publishes฀technical฀articles฀on฀subjects฀deemed฀to฀be฀of฀interest฀to฀candidates:฀in฀some฀cases,฀they฀may฀recommend฀exam฀techniques฀for฀syllabus฀topics฀that฀

have฀ been฀ poorly฀ answered฀ in฀ previous฀ exam฀ sittings;฀ in฀ others,฀ they฀ may฀ relate฀ to฀ current฀ issues฀which฀the฀examining฀team฀want฀candidates฀to฀be฀aware฀of.฀

Traditionally,฀whenever฀a฀technical฀article฀is฀published,฀the฀content฀is฀often฀examined฀within฀the฀next฀couple฀ of฀ sittings,฀ so฀ keeping฀ up฀ to฀ date฀ with฀ these฀ technical฀ articles฀ is฀ essential.฀ You฀ will฀ find฀references฀to฀relevant฀technical฀articles฀with฀the฀'Further฀reading'฀sections฀of฀the฀workbook.฀

We฀consider฀the฀following฀six฀skills฀to฀be฀vital฀for฀exam฀success.฀These฀skills฀were฀introduced฀in฀the฀BPP฀Workbook฀and฀you฀can฀revisit฀the฀Skills฀Checkpoints฀in฀the฀BPP฀Workbook฀for฀tutorial฀guidance฀of฀how฀to฀apply฀each฀of฀the฀six฀Exam฀success฀skills฀in฀your฀question฀practice฀and฀in฀the฀exam.฀Aim฀to฀consider฀your฀performance฀in฀all฀six฀Exam฀success฀skills฀during฀your฀revision฀stage฀question฀practice฀and฀reflect฀on฀your฀particular฀strengths฀and฀weaker฀areas฀which฀you฀can฀then฀work฀on.฀฀

Exam฀success฀skill฀1฀

Managing฀information฀

Questions฀in฀the฀exam฀will฀present฀you฀with฀a฀lot฀of฀information.฀The฀skill฀is฀how฀you฀handle฀this฀information฀to฀make฀the฀best฀use฀of฀your฀time.฀The฀key฀is฀determining฀how฀you฀will฀approach฀the฀exam฀and฀then฀actively฀reading฀the฀questions.฀฀

Advice฀on฀developing฀managing฀information฀฀

Approach฀

The฀exam฀is฀3฀hours฀15฀minutes฀long.฀There฀is฀no฀designated฀'reading'฀time฀at฀the฀start฀of฀the฀exam,฀however,฀one฀approach฀that฀can฀work฀well฀is฀to฀start฀the฀exam฀by฀spending฀10–15฀minutes฀carefully฀reading฀through฀all฀of฀the฀questions฀to฀familiarise฀yourself฀with฀the฀exam฀paper.฀฀

Once฀ you฀ feel฀ familiar฀ with฀ the฀ exam฀ paper฀ consider฀ the฀ order฀ in฀ which฀ you฀ will฀ attempt฀ the฀questions;฀always฀attempt฀them฀in฀your฀order฀of฀preference.฀For฀example,฀you฀may฀want฀to฀leave฀to฀last฀the฀question฀you฀consider฀to฀be฀the฀most฀difficult.฀

If฀you฀do฀take฀this฀approach,฀remember฀to฀adjust฀the฀time฀available฀for฀each฀question฀appropriately฀–฀see฀Exam฀success฀skill฀6:฀Good฀time฀management.฀

If฀ you฀ find฀ that฀ this฀ approach฀ doesn't฀ work฀ for฀ you,฀ don't฀ worry฀ –฀ you฀ can฀ develop฀ your฀ own฀technique.฀฀

Active฀reading฀

You฀ must฀ take฀ an฀ active฀ approach฀ to฀ reading฀ each฀ question.฀ Focus฀ on฀ the฀ requirement฀ first,฀underlining฀ key฀ verbs฀ such฀ as฀ 'prepare',฀ 'comment',฀ 'explain',฀ 'discuss',฀ to฀ ensure฀ you฀ answer฀ the฀question฀ properly.฀ Then฀ read฀ the฀ rest฀ of฀ the฀ question,฀ underlining฀ and฀ annotating฀ important฀ and฀relevant฀information,฀and฀making฀notes฀of฀any฀relevant฀technical฀information฀you฀think฀you฀will฀need.฀

Exam฀success฀skill฀2฀

Correct฀interpretation฀of฀the฀requirements฀฀฀฀

The฀active฀verb฀used฀often฀dictates฀the฀approach฀that฀written฀answers฀should฀take฀(eg฀'explain',฀'discuss',฀'evaluate').฀It฀is฀important฀you฀identify฀and฀use฀the฀verb฀to฀define฀your฀approach.฀The฀correct฀interpretation฀of฀the฀requirements฀skill฀means฀correctly฀producing฀only฀what฀is฀being฀asked฀for฀by฀a฀requirement.฀Anything฀not฀required฀will฀not฀earn฀marks.฀

Advice฀on฀developing฀correct฀interpretation฀of฀the฀requirements฀฀฀฀

This฀skill฀can฀be฀developed฀by฀analysing฀question฀requirements฀and฀applying฀this฀process:฀

Step฀1฀ Read฀the฀requirement฀

Firstly,฀read฀the฀requirement฀a฀couple฀of฀times฀slowly฀and฀carefully฀and฀highlight฀the฀active฀verbs.฀Use฀the฀active฀verbs฀to฀define฀what฀you฀plan฀to฀do.฀Make฀sure฀you฀identify฀any฀sub-requirements.฀฀

Step฀2฀ Read฀the฀rest฀of฀the฀question฀

By฀reading฀the฀requirement฀first,฀you฀will฀have฀an฀idea฀of฀what฀you฀are฀looking฀out฀for฀as฀you฀read฀through฀the฀case฀overview฀and฀exhibits.฀This฀is฀a฀great฀time฀saver฀and฀means฀you฀don't฀end฀up฀having฀to฀read฀the฀whole฀question฀in฀full฀twice.฀You฀should฀do฀this฀in฀an฀active฀way฀–฀see฀Exam฀success฀skill฀1:฀Managing฀Information.฀

Step฀3฀ Read฀the฀requirement฀again฀

Read฀the฀requirement฀again฀to฀remind฀yourself฀of฀the฀exact฀wording฀before฀starting฀your฀written฀answer.฀This฀will฀capture฀any฀misinterpretation฀of฀the฀requirements฀or฀any฀missed฀requirements฀entirely.฀This฀should฀become฀a฀habit฀in฀your฀approach฀and,฀with฀repeated฀practice,฀you฀will฀find฀the฀focus,฀relevance฀and฀depth฀of฀your฀answer฀plan฀will฀improve.฀

Exam฀success฀skill฀3฀

Answer฀planning:฀Priorities,฀structure฀and฀logic฀฀฀฀

This฀skill฀requires฀the฀planning฀of฀the฀key฀aspects฀of฀an฀answer฀which฀accurately฀and฀completely฀responds฀to฀the฀requirement.฀

Advice฀on฀developing฀Answer฀planning:฀Priorities,฀structure฀and฀logic฀฀฀฀

pointed฀ lists฀ or฀ simply฀ annotating฀ the฀ question฀ paper.฀ Choose฀ the฀ approach฀ that฀ you฀ feel฀ most฀comfortable฀with,฀or,฀if฀you฀are฀not฀sure,฀try฀out฀different฀approaches฀for฀different฀questions฀until฀you฀have฀found฀your฀preferred฀style.฀฀

Everyone฀will฀have฀a฀preferred฀style฀for฀an฀answer฀plan.฀For฀example,฀it฀may฀be฀a฀mind฀map,฀bullet-For฀a฀discussion฀question,฀annotating฀the฀question฀paper฀is฀likely฀to฀be฀insufficient.฀It฀would฀be฀better฀to฀draw฀up฀a฀separate฀answer฀plan฀in฀the฀format฀of฀your฀choosing฀(eg฀a฀mind฀map฀or฀bullet-pointed฀lists).฀For฀a฀risk฀question,฀you฀should฀annotate฀the฀scenario฀noting฀which฀areas฀present฀the฀type฀of฀

risk฀being฀examined฀and฀explain฀why.฀

Exam฀success฀skill฀4฀ ฀

Efficient฀numerical฀analysis฀฀฀฀

This฀skill฀aims฀to฀maximise฀the฀marks฀awarded฀by฀making฀clear฀to฀the฀marker฀the฀process฀of฀arriving฀

at฀your฀answer.฀This฀is฀achieved฀by฀laying฀out฀an฀answer฀such฀that,฀even฀if฀you฀make฀a฀few฀errors,฀you฀can฀still฀get฀some฀credit฀for฀your฀calculations.฀It฀is฀vital฀that฀you฀do฀not฀lose฀marks฀purely฀because฀the฀marker฀cannot฀follow฀what฀you฀have฀done.฀

Advice฀on฀developing฀efficient฀numerical฀analysis฀

This฀skill฀can฀be฀developed฀by฀applying฀the฀following฀process:฀

Step฀1฀ Explain฀your฀workings฀where฀relevant฀

Materiality฀calculations฀or฀other฀forms฀of฀analytical฀procedure฀should฀have฀a฀brief฀explanation฀ of฀ their฀ purpose฀ so฀ the฀ examining฀ team฀ can฀ understand฀ what฀ your฀calculations฀are฀trying฀to฀tell฀them.฀

Step฀2฀ ฀ Show฀your฀workings฀

Keep฀ your฀ workings฀ as฀ clear฀ and฀ simple฀ as฀ possible฀ and฀ ensure฀ they฀ are฀ referenced฀to฀the฀main฀part฀of฀your฀answer.฀Where฀it฀helps,฀provide฀brief฀narrative฀explanations฀to฀help฀the฀marker฀understand฀the฀steps฀in฀the฀calculation.฀This฀means฀that฀if฀a฀mistake฀is฀made฀you฀should฀not฀lose฀any฀subsequent฀marks฀for฀follow-on฀calculations.฀

cross-Step฀3฀฀ Keep฀moving!฀

It฀ is฀ important฀ to฀ remember฀ that,฀ in฀ an฀ exam฀ situation,฀ it฀ is฀ difficult฀ to฀ get฀ every฀number฀100%฀correct.฀The฀key฀is฀therefore฀ensuring฀you฀do฀not฀spend฀too฀long฀on฀any฀single฀calculation.฀If฀you฀are฀struggling฀with฀a฀solution฀then฀make฀a฀sensible฀assumption,฀state฀it฀and฀move฀on.฀฀

Exam฀success฀skill฀5฀

Effective฀writing฀and฀presentation฀฀฀฀

Written฀answers฀should฀be฀presented฀so฀that฀the฀marker฀can฀clearly฀see฀the฀points฀you฀are฀making,฀presented฀in฀the฀format฀specified฀in฀the฀question.฀The฀skill฀is฀to฀provide฀efficient฀written฀answers฀with฀sufficient฀breadth฀of฀points฀that฀answer฀the฀question,฀in฀the฀right฀depth,฀in฀the฀time฀available

Advice฀on฀developing฀Effective฀writing฀and฀presentation฀฀฀฀

Step฀1฀ Use฀headings฀

Using฀the฀headings฀and฀sub-headings฀from฀your฀answer฀plan฀will฀give฀your฀answer฀structure,฀order฀and฀logic.฀This฀will฀ensure฀your฀answer฀links฀back฀to฀the฀requirement฀and฀is฀clearly฀signposted,฀making฀it฀easier฀for฀the฀marker฀to฀understand฀the฀different฀points฀you฀are฀making.฀Underlining฀your฀headings฀will฀also฀help฀the฀marker.฀฀

Step฀2฀ ฀ Write฀your฀answer฀in฀short,฀but฀full,฀sentences฀

Use฀short,฀punchy฀sentences฀with฀the฀aim฀that฀every฀sentence฀should฀say฀something฀different฀ and฀ generate฀ marks.฀ Write฀ in฀ full฀ sentences,฀ ensuring฀ your฀ style฀ is฀professional.฀

Step฀3฀ ฀฀ Do฀your฀calculations฀first฀and฀explanation฀second฀฀

Questions฀often฀ask฀for฀an฀explanation฀with฀suitable฀calculations,฀such฀as฀materiality.฀The฀best฀approach฀is฀to฀prepare฀the฀calculation฀first฀but฀present฀it฀on฀the฀bottom฀half฀of฀the฀page฀of฀your฀answer,฀or฀on฀the฀next฀page.฀Then฀add฀the฀explanation฀before฀the฀ calculation.฀ Performing฀ the฀ calculation฀ first฀ should฀ enable฀ you฀ to฀ explain฀ what฀you฀have฀done.฀

Good฀time฀management฀฀฀฀

This฀skill฀means฀planning฀your฀time฀across฀all฀the฀requirements฀so฀that฀all฀tasks฀have฀been฀attempted฀

at฀the฀end฀of฀the฀3฀hours฀15฀minutes฀available฀and฀actively฀checking฀on฀time฀during฀your฀exam.฀This฀is฀so฀that฀you฀can฀flex฀your฀approach฀and฀prioritise฀requirements฀which,฀in฀your฀judgment,฀will฀generate฀the฀maximum฀marks฀in฀the฀available฀time฀remaining

Advice฀on฀developing฀Good฀time฀management฀

The฀ exam฀ is฀ 3฀ hours฀ 15฀ minutes฀ long,฀ which฀ translates฀ to฀ 1.95฀ minutes฀ per฀ mark.฀ Therefore฀ a฀฀10-mark฀requirement฀should฀be฀allocated฀a฀maximum฀of฀20฀minutes฀to฀complete฀your฀answer฀before฀you฀move฀on฀to฀the฀next฀task.฀At฀the฀beginning฀of฀a฀question,฀work฀out฀the฀amount฀of฀time฀you฀should฀be฀ spending฀ on฀ each฀ requirement฀ and฀ write฀ the฀ finishing฀ time฀ next฀ to฀ each฀ requirement฀ on฀ your฀exam฀paper.฀If฀you฀take฀the฀approach฀of฀spending฀10–15฀minutes฀reading฀and฀planning฀at฀the฀start฀of฀the฀exam,฀adjust฀the฀time฀allocated฀to฀each฀question฀accordingly;฀eg฀if฀you฀allocate฀15฀minutes฀to฀reading,฀then฀you฀will฀have฀3฀hours฀remaining,฀which฀is฀1.8฀minutes฀per฀mark.฀

Keep฀an฀eye฀on฀the฀clock฀

Aim฀to฀attempt฀all฀requirements,฀but฀be฀ready฀to฀be฀ruthless฀and฀move฀on฀if฀your฀answer฀is฀not฀going฀as฀ planned.฀ The฀ challenge฀ for฀ many฀ is฀ sticking฀ to฀ planned฀ timings.฀ Be฀ aware฀ this฀ is฀ difficult฀ to฀achieve฀in฀the฀early฀stages฀of฀your฀studies฀and฀be฀ready฀to฀let฀this฀skill฀develop฀over฀time.฀

If฀you฀find฀yourself฀running฀short฀on฀time฀and฀know฀that฀a฀full฀answer฀is฀not฀possible฀in฀the฀time฀you฀have,฀consider฀recreating฀your฀plan฀in฀overview฀form฀and฀then฀add฀key฀terms฀and฀details฀as฀time฀allows.฀Remember,฀some฀marks฀may฀be฀available,฀for฀example,฀simply฀stating฀a฀conclusion฀which฀you฀don't฀have฀time฀to฀justify฀in฀full.฀

฀

฀

Topics฀to฀revise฀

AAA฀is฀a฀challenging฀higher-level฀exam฀consisting฀of฀one฀compulsory฀question฀in฀Section฀A฀(worth฀50฀marks)฀and฀a฀further฀two฀compulsory฀questions฀in฀Section฀B฀(worth฀a฀total฀of฀50฀marks).฀฀

Section฀A฀will฀comprise฀a฀Case฀Study,฀worth฀50฀marks,฀set฀at฀the฀planning฀stage฀of฀the฀audit,฀for฀a฀

single฀ company,฀ a฀ group฀ of฀ companies฀ or฀ potentially฀ several฀ audit฀ clients.฀ Candidates฀ will฀ be฀provided฀with฀exhibits฀which฀include฀detailed฀information.฀This฀will฀vary฀between฀examinations,฀but฀is฀likely฀to฀include฀extracts฀of฀financial฀information,฀strategic,฀operational฀and฀other฀relevant฀financial฀information฀for฀a฀client฀business,฀as฀well฀as฀extracts฀from฀audit฀working฀papers,฀including฀results฀of฀analytical฀procedures.฀฀

Candidates฀will฀be฀required฀to฀address฀a฀range฀of฀requirements,฀from฀syllabus฀Sections฀A,฀B,฀C฀and฀D,฀thereby฀tackling฀a฀real-world฀situation฀where฀candidates฀may฀have฀to฀address฀a฀range฀of฀issues฀simultaneously฀ in฀ relation฀ to฀ planning,฀ risk฀ assessment,฀ evidence฀ gathering฀ and฀ ethical฀ and฀professional฀considerations.฀฀

Four฀professional฀marks฀will฀be฀available฀in฀Section฀A฀and฀will฀be฀awarded฀based฀on฀the฀level฀of฀professionalism฀with฀which฀a฀candidate's฀answer฀is฀presented,฀including฀the฀structure฀and฀clarity฀of฀the฀answer฀provided.฀

Section฀ B฀ will฀ contain฀ two฀ compulsory฀ 25-mark฀ questions,฀ with฀ each฀ being฀ predominately฀ based฀

around฀a฀short฀scenario.฀฀

One฀ question฀ will฀ always฀ come฀ from฀ syllabus฀ Section฀ E,฀ and฀ consequently฀ candidates฀ should฀ be฀prepared฀to฀answer฀a฀question฀relating฀to฀completion,฀review฀and฀reporting.฀There฀are฀a฀number฀of฀formats฀this฀question฀could฀adopt,฀including,฀but฀not฀limited฀to,฀requiring฀candidates฀to฀assess฀going฀concern,฀the฀impact฀of฀subsequent฀events,฀evaluating฀identified฀misstatements฀and฀the฀corresponding฀effect฀on฀the฀auditor's฀report.฀Candidates฀may฀also฀be฀asked฀to฀critique฀an฀auditor's฀report฀or฀report฀which฀is฀to฀be฀provided฀to฀management฀or฀those฀charged฀with฀governance.฀

The฀other฀Section฀B฀question฀can฀be฀drawn฀from฀any฀other฀syllabus฀section,฀including฀A,฀B,฀C,฀D฀and฀F.฀

Current฀ issues.฀ Syllabus฀ Section฀ G฀ on฀ current฀ issues฀ may฀ be฀ examined฀ in฀ Section฀ A฀ or฀ B฀ as฀

appropriate.฀Current฀issues฀is฀unlikely฀to฀form฀the฀basis฀of฀any฀question฀on฀its฀own฀but฀instead฀will฀be฀incorporated฀into฀the฀Case฀Study฀or฀either฀of฀the฀Section฀B฀questions฀dependent฀on฀question฀content฀and฀the฀topical฀issues฀affecting฀the฀profession฀at฀the฀time฀of฀writing.฀

We฀ strongly฀ advise฀ that฀ you฀ do฀ not฀ selectively฀ revise฀ certain฀ topics฀ –฀ there฀ are฀ no฀ optional฀

questions฀for฀AAA,฀so฀there฀is฀nowhere฀to฀hide฀if฀a฀difficult฀topic฀is฀examined.฀Selective฀revision฀will฀limit฀the฀number฀of฀questions฀you฀can฀answer฀and฀hence฀reduce฀your฀chances฀of฀passing.฀

Question฀practice฀

You฀should฀use฀the฀Passcards฀and฀any฀brief฀notes฀you฀have฀to฀revise฀the฀syllabus,฀but฀you฀mustn't฀

spend฀ all฀ your฀ revision฀ time฀ passively฀ reading.฀ Question฀ practice฀ is฀ vital;฀ doing฀ as฀ many฀

questions฀as฀you฀can฀in฀full฀will฀help฀develop฀your฀ability฀to฀analyse฀scenarios฀and฀produce฀relevant฀discussion฀and฀recommendations.฀฀

Make฀sure฀you฀leave฀enough฀time฀in฀your฀revision฀schedule฀to฀practise฀Section฀A฀questions,฀as฀these฀questions฀are฀compulsory฀in฀the฀exam.฀The฀scenarios฀and฀requirements฀of฀Section฀A฀questions฀are฀more฀complex฀and฀will฀integrate฀several฀parts฀of฀the฀syllabus,฀so฀practice฀is฀essential.฀Also฀ensure฀that฀you฀attempt฀all฀four฀mock฀exams฀under฀exam฀conditions.฀

Displaying฀the฀right฀qualities฀and฀avoiding฀weaknesses฀

The฀following฀are฀examples฀of฀things฀to฀avoid฀–฀and฀note฀our฀comments฀about฀action฀to฀take฀in฀each฀case.฀

Failure฀to฀complete฀

the฀exam฀ This฀problem฀can฀be฀avoided฀by฀ensuring฀that฀you฀have฀a฀very฀disciplined฀exam฀technique฀and฀that฀you฀set฀times฀in฀which฀to฀answer฀questions฀and,฀

when฀that฀time฀is฀over,฀you฀move฀on฀to฀the฀next฀question.฀Lots฀of฀practice฀at฀answering฀questions฀in฀timed฀conditions฀will฀help฀you฀to฀discipline฀yourself฀in฀this฀way.฀Remember,฀it฀is฀easier฀to฀get฀marks฀at฀the฀outset฀of฀answering฀a฀question฀(when฀all฀the฀marks฀are฀still฀available)฀than฀to฀get฀the฀last฀few฀remaining฀marks฀for฀a฀question฀(when฀you฀have฀made฀all฀the฀easy฀points฀and฀are฀struggling฀with฀the฀most฀difficult฀aspects฀of฀the฀question).฀

addition,฀once฀you฀have฀completed฀your฀own฀answer,฀you฀should฀always฀work฀through฀the฀suggested฀answer฀referring฀back฀to฀the฀question฀so฀that฀you฀can฀see฀the฀links฀that฀have฀been฀made.฀

Lack฀of฀lower-level฀

assumed฀

knowledge฀

You฀should฀endeavour฀not฀to฀commence฀your฀AAA฀studies฀until฀you฀have฀completed฀your฀AA฀studies.฀It฀is฀not฀possible฀to฀pass฀AAA฀unless฀you฀have฀a฀very฀firm฀understanding฀of฀basic฀auditing฀theory.฀The฀same฀goes฀for฀SBR;฀it฀is฀important฀that฀you฀retain฀your฀knowledge฀of฀corporate฀reporting฀from฀SBR,฀and฀that฀you฀are฀up฀to฀date฀with฀the฀latest฀standards฀and฀developments.฀

Lack฀of฀awareness฀

of฀current฀issues฀

You฀should฀ensure฀that฀you฀keep฀up฀to฀date฀with฀current฀issues฀in฀the฀auditing฀and฀business฀world,฀by฀reading฀examining฀team฀articles฀as฀a฀minimum,฀but฀preferably฀by฀keeping฀an฀eye฀on฀the฀accountancy฀press฀throughout฀your฀studies.฀

Failure฀to฀respond฀

in฀a฀practical/฀

commercial฀way฀

The฀answer฀to฀this฀problem฀is฀to฀practise฀lots฀of฀questions,฀read฀other฀people's฀answers฀to฀questions฀in฀this฀Kit฀and฀on฀the฀ACCA฀website฀and฀to฀try฀and฀think฀about฀how฀you฀would฀respond฀in฀practice฀if฀it฀were฀one฀of฀your฀clients.฀

Lack฀of฀relevant฀

practical฀experience฀

You฀may฀not฀be฀able฀to฀do฀anything฀about฀this฀if฀you฀are฀not฀employed฀in฀a฀relevant฀field.฀However,฀if฀you฀can,฀do.฀For฀example,฀if฀you฀can฀discuss฀with฀your฀managers฀the฀necessity฀of฀getting฀relevant฀experience฀and฀they฀are฀able฀to฀meet฀that฀need,฀try฀and฀obtain฀as฀much฀relevant฀experience฀as฀you฀can.฀If฀not,฀the฀best฀you฀can฀do฀is฀follow฀the฀advice฀for฀the฀previous฀point,฀which฀should฀stand฀you฀in฀good฀stead.฀

Inability฀to฀reach฀a฀

conclusion/make฀a฀

decision฀

You฀must฀get฀into฀the฀habit฀of฀drawing฀conclusions฀where฀the฀requirement฀is฀to฀do฀so.฀Again,฀practise฀questions฀where฀this฀is฀required,฀and,฀when฀reading฀questions฀note฀whether฀you฀are฀required฀to฀draw฀a฀conclusion฀or฀make฀a฀decision.฀

We฀recommend฀that฀you฀spend฀time฀at฀the฀beginning฀of฀your฀exam฀carefully฀reading฀through฀all฀of฀the฀questions฀in฀the฀exam,฀and฀each฀of฀their฀requirements.฀Once฀you฀feel฀familiar฀with฀your฀exam฀we฀then฀recommend฀that฀you฀attempt฀the฀Section฀A฀question฀first,฀ensuring฀that฀you฀spend฀adequate฀time฀reading฀and฀planning฀before฀you฀begin฀to฀write฀up฀your฀answer.฀Comments฀from฀examining฀teams฀of฀other฀syllabuses฀that฀have฀similar฀exam฀formats฀suggest฀that฀students฀appear฀less฀time-pressured฀if฀they฀do฀the฀big฀question฀first.฀

During฀the฀second฀half฀of฀the฀exam,฀you฀should฀then฀put฀Section฀A฀aside฀and฀concentrate฀on฀the฀two฀Section฀B฀questions.฀

Our฀recommendations฀are฀not฀inflexible฀though.฀If฀you฀really฀think฀the฀Section฀A฀question฀looks฀a฀lot฀

harder฀than฀the฀Section฀B฀questions,฀then฀do฀those฀first,฀but฀DON'T฀run฀over฀time฀on฀them.฀You฀

must฀leave฀yourself฀plenty฀of฀time฀to฀tackle฀the฀Section฀A฀question.฀When฀you฀come฀back฀to฀it,฀once฀you฀ have฀ had฀ time฀ to฀ reflect,฀ you฀ should฀ be฀ able฀ to฀ generate฀ more฀ ideas฀ and฀ might฀ find฀ that฀ the฀question฀is฀not฀as฀bad฀as฀it฀looks.฀

Remember฀also฀that฀small฀overruns฀of฀time฀during฀the฀first฀half฀of฀the฀exam฀can฀add฀up฀to฀you฀being฀very฀short฀of฀time฀towards฀the฀end.฀

Tackling฀questions฀

You'll฀improve฀your฀chances฀by฀following฀a฀step-by-step฀approach฀to฀Section฀A฀scenarios฀along฀the฀following฀lines.฀

Step฀1฀ Read฀the฀background฀

Usually฀the฀first฀couple฀of฀paragraphs฀will฀give฀some฀background฀on฀the฀company฀and฀ what฀ it฀ is฀ aiming฀ to฀ achieve.฀ By฀ reading฀ this฀ carefully฀ you฀ will฀ be฀ better฀equipped฀to฀relate฀your฀answers฀to฀the฀organisation฀as฀much฀as฀possible.฀

Step฀2฀ Read฀the฀requirements฀

There฀ is฀ no฀ point฀ reading฀ the฀ detailed฀ information฀ in฀ the฀ question฀ until฀ you฀ know฀what฀ it฀ is฀ going฀ to฀ be฀ used฀ for.฀ Don't฀ panic฀ if฀ some฀ of฀ the฀ requirements฀ look฀challenging฀ –฀ identify฀ the฀ elements฀ you฀ are฀ able฀ to฀ do฀ and฀ look฀ for฀ links฀ between฀requirements,฀ as฀ well฀ as฀ possible฀ indications฀ of฀ the฀ syllabus฀ areas฀ the฀ question฀ is฀

covering.฀

Step฀3฀ Identify฀the฀action฀verbs฀

These฀convey฀the฀level฀of฀skill฀you฀need฀to฀exhibit฀and฀also฀the฀structure฀your฀answer฀should฀ have.฀ A฀ lower-level฀ verb฀ such฀ as฀ define฀ will฀ require฀ a฀ more฀ descriptive฀answer;฀ a฀ higher-level฀ verb฀ such฀ as฀ evaluate฀ will฀ require฀ a฀ more฀ applied,฀ critical฀answer.฀It฀should฀be฀stressed฀that฀higher-level฀requirements฀and฀verbs฀are฀likely฀to฀be฀most฀significant฀in฀this฀exam.฀

Action฀ verbs฀ that฀ are฀ likely฀ to฀ be฀ frequently฀ used฀ in฀ this฀ exam฀ are฀ listed฀ below,฀

together฀with฀their฀intellectual฀levels฀and฀guidance฀on฀their฀meaning.฀

1฀ Identify฀ Recognise฀or฀select฀฀

1฀ Describe฀ Give฀a฀detailed฀account฀or฀key฀

features.฀List฀characteristics,฀qualities฀and฀parts฀

3฀ Discuss฀ Consider฀and฀debate/argue฀about฀the฀

pros฀and฀cons฀of฀an฀issue.฀Examine฀in฀detail฀by฀using฀arguments฀in฀favour฀or฀against฀

3฀ Criticise฀฀ Present฀the฀weaknesses/problems;฀

evaluate฀comparative฀worth.฀Don't฀explain฀the฀situation.฀Instead,฀analyse฀it฀3฀ Recommend฀ Advise฀the฀appropriate฀actions฀to฀

pursue฀in฀terms฀the฀recipient฀will฀understand฀฀

฀

฀ Also฀make฀sure฀you฀identify฀all฀the฀action฀verbs;฀some฀question฀parts฀may฀have฀more฀

than฀one.฀

Step฀8฀ Write฀a฀brief฀plan฀

Your฀plans฀should฀be฀produced฀within฀your฀answer฀book.฀฀฀

Make฀ sure฀ you฀ identify฀ all฀ the฀ requirements฀ of฀ the฀ question฀ in฀ your฀ plan฀ –฀ each฀requirement฀ may฀ have฀ sub-requirements฀ that฀ must฀ also฀ be฀ addressed.฀ If฀ there฀ are฀professional฀ marks฀ available,฀ highlight฀ in฀ your฀ plan฀ where฀ these฀ may฀ be฀ gained฀

(such฀as฀preparing฀a฀report).฀

Step฀9฀ Write฀the฀answer฀

Make฀every฀effort฀to฀present฀your฀answer฀clearly.฀The฀Specimen฀exam฀and฀exams฀set฀so฀far฀indicate฀that฀the฀examining฀team฀will฀be฀looking฀for฀you฀to฀make฀a฀number฀of฀clear฀ points.฀ The฀ best฀ way฀ to฀ demonstrate฀ what฀ you're฀ doing฀ is฀ to฀ put฀ points฀ into฀separate฀paragraphs฀with฀clear฀headers.฀

฀ What฀ the฀ question฀ wants.฀ For฀ instance,฀ if฀ you฀ are฀ asked฀ to฀ criticise฀ something,฀ don't฀

spend฀time฀discussing฀its฀advantages.฀In฀addition฀if฀a฀scenario฀provides฀a฀lot฀of฀information฀about฀a฀situation,฀and฀you฀are฀(say)฀asked฀to฀assess฀that฀situation฀in฀the฀light฀of฀good฀practice,฀your฀assessment฀is฀unlikely฀to฀be฀favourable.฀

฀ Evidence฀ from฀theory฀or฀the฀scenario฀–฀again฀we฀stress฀that฀the฀majority฀of฀marks฀in฀most฀

questions฀will฀be฀given฀for฀applying฀your฀knowledge฀to฀the฀scenario.฀

Gaining฀the฀easy฀marks฀

Knowledge฀of฀the฀core฀topics฀that฀we฀list฀under฀topics฀to฀revise฀should฀present฀you฀with฀some฀easy฀marks.฀ The฀ Specimen฀ exam฀ suggests฀ that฀ there฀ will฀ be฀ some฀ marks฀ available฀ on฀ certain฀ part฀questions฀for฀definitions,฀explanations฀or฀descriptions฀that฀don't฀have฀to฀be฀related฀to฀the฀scenario.฀

However฀don't฀assume฀that฀you฀can฀ignore฀all฀the฀scenarios฀and฀still฀pass!฀

As฀AAA฀is฀a฀Strategic฀Professional฀exam,฀four฀professional฀ marks฀will฀be฀awarded.฀Some฀of฀

these฀should฀be฀easy฀to฀obtain.฀The฀examining฀team฀has฀stated฀that฀some฀marks฀may฀be฀available฀for฀presenting฀your฀answer฀in฀the฀form฀of฀a฀letter,฀presentation,฀email,฀report฀or฀briefing฀notes.฀You฀may฀also฀be฀able฀to฀obtain฀marks฀for฀the฀style฀and฀layout฀of฀your฀answer.฀

Reports฀ should฀ always฀ have฀ an฀ appropriate฀ title.฀ They฀ should฀ be฀ formally฀ written,฀ with฀ an฀ introductory฀paragraph฀setting฀out฀the฀aims฀of฀the฀report.฀You฀should฀use฀short฀paragraphs฀

and฀appropriate฀headings,฀with฀a฀summary฀of฀findings฀as฀a฀conclusion.฀

Memoranda฀and฀briefing฀notes฀should฀have฀the฀following฀information฀at฀the฀beginning:฀ From:฀฀ Name฀of฀author฀

To:฀฀ ฀ Name฀of฀recipient฀

Date:฀฀ 1฀July฀20X5฀

Subject:฀ Subject฀

The฀language฀can฀be฀less฀formal฀than฀a฀report฀but฀the฀content฀should฀still฀have฀an฀introduction฀ and฀conclusion,฀and฀be฀divided฀into฀small฀paragraphs฀with฀appropriate฀headings.฀

Letters฀should฀be฀addressed฀appropriately฀to฀the฀correct฀person฀and฀be฀dated.฀They฀should฀have฀a฀short฀ introductory฀ paragraph,฀ a฀ conclusion฀ and฀ should฀ be฀ in฀ a฀ formally฀ writing฀ style.฀ Letters฀beginning฀with฀'Dear฀Sir/Madam'฀should฀end฀with฀'Yours฀faithfully'.฀

Computer-based฀exams฀

With฀ effect฀ from฀ the฀ March฀ 2020฀ sitting,฀ ACCA฀ have฀ commenced฀ the฀ launch฀ of฀ computer-based฀exams฀(CBEs)฀for฀this฀exam฀with฀the฀aim฀of฀rolling฀out฀into฀all฀markets฀internationally฀over฀a฀short฀period.฀Paper-based฀examinations฀(PBE)฀will฀be฀run฀in฀parallel฀while฀the฀CBEs฀are฀phased฀in.฀BPP฀materials฀ have฀ been฀ designed฀ to฀ support฀ you,฀ whichever฀ exam฀ option฀ you฀ choose.฀ For฀ more฀information฀on฀these฀changes฀and฀when฀they฀will฀be฀implemented,฀please฀visit฀the฀ACCA฀website.฀

Question฀format฀

The฀format฀of฀questions฀in฀AAA฀differs฀slightly฀between฀Section฀A฀and฀Section฀B.฀Section฀A฀questions฀will฀feature฀scenarios,฀with฀simple฀requirements฀such฀as฀'Respond฀to฀the฀partner's฀request',฀or฀'Draft฀the฀briefing฀notes฀as฀requested'.฀You฀will฀have฀to฀work฀out฀for฀yourself฀what฀you฀need฀to฀include฀in฀your฀answer,฀using฀the฀breakdown฀of฀the฀mark฀allocation฀which฀will฀be฀included฀within฀the฀scenario.฀Section฀B฀questions฀will฀feature฀requirements฀akin฀to฀those฀in฀your฀previous฀ACCA฀exams.฀For฀sittings฀from฀September฀2019฀onwards,฀all฀questions฀are฀set฀as฀at฀the฀fictitious฀date฀of฀1฀July฀20X5.฀

Examining฀team's฀general฀comments฀

If฀ you฀ are฀ preparing฀ to฀ sit฀ AAA฀ you฀ should฀ pay฀ particular฀ attention฀ to฀ the฀ following฀ in฀ order฀ to฀maximise฀your฀chances฀of฀success.฀The฀following฀is฀taken฀from฀a฀recent฀AAA฀report฀by฀the฀examining฀team.฀

‘In฀order฀to฀pass฀this฀exam,฀candidates฀are฀required฀to฀apply฀the฀principles฀and฀rules฀from฀their฀

earlier฀studies฀to฀more฀complex฀scenarios฀and฀demonstrate฀their฀ability฀to฀handle฀different฀situations฀which฀ may฀ arise฀ in฀ audit฀ and฀ related฀ services.฀ In฀ addition,฀ candidates฀ are฀ expected฀ to฀ develop฀ a฀

broader฀ knowledge฀ of฀ audit฀ services฀ and฀ practice฀ management.฀ Candidates฀ should฀ also฀

‘AAA฀ also฀ tests฀ candidates'฀ ability฀ to฀ tailor฀ their฀ answer฀ to฀ the฀ context฀ in฀ which฀ the฀

requirement฀is฀written.฀Often฀the฀audience฀of฀the฀requirement฀will฀dictate฀the฀pitch฀and฀depth฀of฀

the฀ answer฀ along฀ with฀ its฀ focus.฀ Failure฀ to฀ take฀ into฀ account฀ such฀ matters฀ will฀ often฀ lead฀ to฀ time฀

pressures฀in฀the฀exam฀as฀candidates฀lose฀time฀by฀detailing฀knowledge฀that฀is฀not฀relevant฀to฀the฀

requirement.฀ This฀ is฀ particularly฀ noticeable฀ in฀ Question฀ 1฀ which฀ is฀ set฀ at฀ the฀ planning฀ stage฀ of฀ an฀audit฀and฀is฀addressed฀to฀the฀senior฀members฀of฀the฀audit฀team,฀meaning฀an฀explanation฀of฀the฀audit฀risk฀model฀is฀not฀appropriate.฀Candidates฀should฀allow฀themselves฀time฀to฀focus฀on฀the฀requirement฀

that฀is฀set฀before฀they฀begin฀their฀answers.฀It฀ would฀ be฀ useful฀ for฀ candidates฀ to฀ visualise฀

delivering฀the฀requirement฀verbally฀to฀the฀report฀recipient฀and฀therefore฀imagining฀ how฀ a฀ partner฀ in฀ a฀ firm,฀ already฀ qualified฀ and฀ experienced,฀ would฀ react฀ to฀ listening฀to฀the฀answer.'฀

AUDIT฀

International฀

Knowledge฀of฀new฀examinable฀regulations฀issued฀by฀31฀August฀will฀be฀examinable฀in฀examination฀sessions฀being฀held฀in฀the฀following฀exam฀year.฀Documents฀may฀be฀examinable฀even฀if฀the฀effective฀date฀is฀in฀the฀future.฀This฀means฀that฀all฀regulations฀issued฀by฀31฀August฀2018฀will฀be฀examinable฀in฀the฀September฀2019฀to฀June฀2020฀examinations.฀฀

The฀ study฀ guide฀ offers฀ more฀ detailed฀ guidance฀ on฀ the฀ depth฀ and฀ level฀ at฀ which฀ the฀ examinable฀documents฀ should฀ be฀ examined.฀ The฀ study฀ guide฀ should฀ therefore฀ be฀ read฀ in฀ conjunction฀ with฀ the฀examinable฀documents฀list.฀

Accounting฀Standards฀

Audit฀and฀Assurance฀(AA)฀

The฀accounting฀knowledge฀that฀is฀assumed฀for฀Audit฀and฀Assurance฀is฀the฀same฀as฀that฀examined฀in฀Fundamentals฀ in฀ Financial฀ Accounting฀ (FFA).฀ Therefore,฀ candidates฀ studying฀ for฀ this฀ exam฀ should฀refer฀to฀the฀IFRS฀Standards฀listed฀under฀FFA.฀

Advanced฀Audit฀and฀Assurance฀(AAA)฀

The฀accounting฀knowledge฀that฀is฀assumed฀for฀Advanced฀Audit฀and฀Assurance฀is฀the฀same฀as฀that฀examined฀in฀Strategic฀Business฀Reporting฀(SBR).฀Therefore,฀candidates฀studying฀for฀AAA฀should฀refer฀to฀the฀IFRS฀Standards฀listed฀under฀SBR.฀฀

N.B.฀ AAA฀ will฀ only฀ expect฀ knowledge฀ of฀ accounting฀ standards฀ and฀ financial฀ reporting฀ standards฀from฀SBR.฀Knowledge฀of฀exposure฀drafts฀and฀discussion฀papers฀will฀not฀be฀expected.฀

ISA฀265฀ Communicating฀Deficiencies฀in฀Internal฀Control฀to฀Those฀Charged฀with฀

Governance฀and฀Management฀

ISA฀300฀ Planning฀an฀Audit฀of฀Financial฀Statements฀

The฀table฀below฀provides฀details฀of฀when฀each฀element฀of฀the฀syllabus฀has฀been฀examined฀in฀the฀ten฀most฀recent฀sittings฀and฀the฀question฀number฀and฀section฀in฀which฀each฀element฀was฀examined.฀฀Since฀September฀2016,฀the฀ACCA฀has฀been฀issuing฀two฀exams฀each฀year,฀after฀the฀December฀and฀June฀ exam฀ sessions.฀ These฀ exams฀ are฀ compiled฀ from฀ questions฀ selected฀ from฀ the฀ two฀ preceding฀sessions฀ eg฀ in฀ December฀ 2017,฀ the฀ sample฀ questions฀ were฀ compiled฀ from฀ September฀ 2017฀ and฀December฀2017฀exams.฀

A฀specimen฀exam฀was฀also฀issued฀for฀the฀change฀in฀question฀format฀for฀2018/19,฀but฀this฀has฀not฀been฀included฀in฀the฀analysis฀below.฀

2015฀

(P7)฀

฀ Dec฀ 2014฀ (P7)฀

4฀ 3(a)฀ 5(a)฀4,฀ 1(c),฀4(b)฀ 4฀ 3(a),฀4฀ 1(d),฀4(b)฀

(P7)฀

฀ Dec฀ 2014฀ (P7)฀

11฀ Auditor's฀reports฀ 2(c)฀ 2(a)฀ 5฀ 5(b)฀ 5(a)฀ 5(b)฀ 5(b)฀ 5(a)–