Blog

A Lesson In Persistence From MDS Founder Steve Martin

“The pass rate on the exam is roughly – for all four parts – in the range of 20%, which means most people fail a part or two the first try,” says Steve Martin, MDS CPA Review founder. “Indeed, even for single parts, the pass rate is under 50%.”

There Is No Shame In Failing – There Is Only Shame In Quitting

“You have to resist becoming discouraged because most of you will not get all four the first try. There is no shame in failing a part or two or three of the exam. I had a very successful career in law. I had a successful career in accounting. I failed all four parts twice before I finally passed.”

Don’t Worry About What You Get Or How Many Times It Takes To Pass

“The minimum passing grade is a 75. All you have to do is get a C. I have students that get 99s, 98s, 95s, 94s – but their CPA is no more of a CPA than my CPA and my top score was an 83. The key is to keep your nose to the grindstone and pass the stupid exam.”

The Exam Is Incredibly Hard – By Design

“It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Bar exam – didn’t break a sweat. I went to military boot camp – I’d rather go back to boot camp than take the CPA exam again; that’s how hard it is. You will look for every single excuse not to work on the exam because, once you get into it, you’ll find out how hard it is.”

Don’t Procrastinate – & Don’t Give Up

Remember – we don’t know when you take the exam or when you fail.

“We know when you pass it because you will tell us! But because of that, you don’t have the pressure I had, so you have the tendency to put things off and procrastinate. You must resist the urge to procrastinate. This has to be your primary focus until it is done.”