Finally passed CCRS after two attempts — here's what actually helped

by Kevin O. 487 views3 replies
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Kevin O.OP
May 27, 2026

Okay so I want to share my experience because I couldn't find much out there when I was studying. I failed my first attempt back in February by 4 points — which is honestly the worst feeling. I'd been using a random CCRS study guide I found online but it barely covered the reconciliation and cash management sections, which ended up being a big chunk of the exam.

Second time around I completely changed my approach. I spent about 6 weeks this time, maybe 8-10 hours a week, and I focused heavily on CCRS practice test questions to get used to how they phrase things. The wording on the actual exam is pretty specific and if you're not used to it you'll second-guess yourself constantly. I also made flashcards for all the regulatory compliance stuff because that tripped me up the first time.

Anyone else here studying for this right now? Happy to share more exam tips if it helps — I know how stressful this one is, especially if your employer is waiting on the certification.

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Mike_T
May 27, 2026
Congrats on passing! I took mine last fall and honestly the cash management piece caught me off guard too. One thing that helped me was timing myself on practice sets — the real exam moves faster than you expect and I almost didn't finish the last section. Also review anything related to internal controls pretty thoroughly, there were more questions on that than I expected.
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Ravi S.
May 28, 2026
This is so helpful, thank you. I'm about three weeks out from my test date and the reconciliation section is killing me too. Can I ask — did you find the practice tests you were using pretty close to the actual difficulty level? I've been doing some that feel way too easy and I'm worried I'm not actually preparing well.
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Kevin O.
May 28, 2026
Four points is brutal, I feel that. Glad you pushed through and came back. The people who pass on a second attempt usually do way better because they actually know where their gaps are. Good luck to everyone else grinding through this one.

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