Principles of Finance feedback

[hsing]

Thanks to all the helpful posts here and the IC cards, I just scored a 58 on the DSST Principles of Finance, an A, according to the exam cut score chart.

https://www.excelsior.edu/portal/page?_p...ema=PORTAL

Comments:
Study was definitely needed, but it wasn’t as bad as I had allowed the posts to somewhat paralyze me. I put if off for a long time, but should have taken the plunge sooner.

My test seemed to be approx. 85% basic knowledge questions which required knowing the cause and effect of various business decisions. (A general grasp of the big picture was the main focus.)

I had about 20-25 math problems, but only about 10 were related to Time/Value of Money.

Disclaimers:
According to DSST, a financial calculator, e.g. like the BA 2 Plus is not allowed. It really was not necessary. The 4 Financial Tables and a standard calculator is all I was given and that was fine.

I took the computerized version. I DID have to ask for the 4 tables before I went in for the test. Thankfully, Dwight, my College Plus mentor, called DSST ahead of time and found out they have to be requested by the testing center.

I called my center in advance and was assured they would be there. Upon arrival, I had a bit of a fiasco as they didn’t believe I would need them and said they would be provided on screen. I didn’t want to take that chance and asked them to call DSST. DSST confirmed they would NOT be on the computerized version and they should supply me with a paper version (which DSST was to have previously emailed, but did not.) Thankfully, they had a set lying around from the old paper/pencil version. I also had to request to take in the calculator. They gave me a basic 4 function.

The chart in the last section of the InstantCert flashcards with the sample problems for Future Value of an Annuity has completely different values than what was provided at the testing center. Frankly, I was so surprised that I didn't even use it at all since the calculations didn't seem to line up. I can’t explain the difference. Has anyone else found this to be true?

Study Tips:

1. For me, it was sufficient to study the InstantCert flashcards and the PowerPoint slides at Chairman's Greeting

(The slides give a good overview and seem to fill in a lot of the gaps. Since most of the test is a working knowledge of cause and effect, I found this to be a critical tool.) I also got a broad overview by reading the Chapter Summaries in the Foundations of Financial Management textbook.

2. While it's good to understand the reasoning behind the formulas and ratios, it didn't seem necessary for me to memorize them. I understood the ratios from accounting. If you know what they do and what they are used for, you will be fine. IC flashcards explain this. There were only a handful of actual calculations using them. So, don't stress out. Focus on a good understanding of the basics!


Testing Tips:

1) It was critical for me to not get bogged down with the math questions. Many of the more simple problems required some basic calculations, which I could do quickly with the standard calculator provided. For the more challenging problems, I did some basic reasoning and just took an educated guess.

Because the "Future Value of an Annuity of One Dollar for N Years" table that was provided was so different from InstantCert's [I was tempted several times to get up in the middle of my test and ask the proctor to check the chart since it was taking me like five minutes to figure out one problem], and because I was having a great deal of difficulty in getting an answer close to those provided, I just took an educated guess on the problems that required calculating future values with annuity. Maybe I was using the provided table wrong, but I did get 35 out of 35 correct with the last set of InstantCert flashcard problems the night before taking the test, so I’m not sure why there was such a discrepancy – be forewarned.

2) I discovered that there were several blocks of more basic knowledge questions scattered throughout the test, so it was imperative for me to keep moving!

This test was challenging, but not as hard as I had thought, based on my interpretation of some of the posts. My advice is to do your best to study the main topics until you have a basic working knowledge, and then go for it!

Enjoy!
Dan

--OK moderators--- eliminate the 'fluff' and move to exam specific thread, please.

[studyingcindy]

I can't believe how disorganized DSST is when it comes to their test. For instance, the whole calculator thing. Some people can bring them, some can't. Some only 4 function. They need to make it more black and white. And the tables thing in inexcusable. Had you not asked, you wouldn't of gotten them. Yet for written test, it sounds like they are standard. The whole 2 hour generic for the test is crazy too. It shouldn't be 2 hours for something like Principles of Supervision and 2 hours for something like Stats or the Finance test. They are hardly the same difficulty level. Well, I'm really happy for you that you passed! I have this monster coming up too. (next month). I bought the Barrons Finance book.