Memorization is not learning.
To guarantee success, avoid studying multiple-choice questions merely to learn the correct answers. Begin studying each new topic by taking a multiple-choice quiz to practice answering questions you feel less confident about. Use these pre-test sessions to practice both your question-answering technique and your educated-guessing skills. A good educated guesser will outperform the inexperienced exam taker. Our most successful candidates expect the unexpected and are prepared to deal with it.
Memorizing the outlines or concepts is another common mistake when preparing for this type of exam. While memorization may have been useful on some of your past undergraduate exams, a deeper understanding of the topics is required to pass the CIA exam. The Gleim CIA Review System is designed to help candidates fully comprehend the concepts rather than merely memorize the relevant material. For this reason, we do not employ flash cards or other methods of rote memorization. These merely provide a false sense of accomplishment and usually a disappointing outcome on the actual exam. Instead, you must learn the concepts so that you can answer even the most contorted of questions, including those you have never seen before.