Hi Caillech & Ks-fruit particularly and the rest of P3 fighters:

The followings are the useful information and guides for you to prepare for P3.

1. Steve Skidmore is a practical strategist who set the exam questions based on a real organization. (you can see these from his PYQs).

2. He and his marking teams are looking for practical solutions which must be justified by students in their answer scripts.

3. There is no absolute standard answer to the questions.

The above 3 points formed a basis for your answer script. Now I will share with you how to study and tackle P3:Read carefully:

Your time of study should be 30% Theory 70% Practice/Application.

A) How to study? (30%)

1.Understand all the business modals in the syllabus-Follow the sequence: PESTEL > SWOT/TOWS > Porter 5 FORCES > Porter's Diamond > Porter' Generic strategies > Porter Value chain > 7Ps >Mendelow >9Ms >BCG > Ashridge Portfoli Display >Strategic Clock > Ansoff Matrix >BPR> Gantt > Forcefield analysis. You must prepare to explain the models.

2. Ask yourself how to use those models and when to use.

3. Remember, when you study each chapter, focus on How and Why rather than just what is this and that. Because, Steve expects students to apply not knowing what.

Practice questions
1. Fast reading
2. Drawing a small mind map
3. Writing in time constraint.
4. Exchange marking the script with your friends
Examination
1. I always ask my students to begin section B first because they are shorter and able to gain confidence at the beginning stage. Then only move to section A-Question 1 (more than 3 pages)

2. Of cause you must always to stick to time allocation 1.8 minutes for 1 mark. Stop writing for that question if time allocation is up, just leave a few lines. You must attempt all the questions.

3.As usual, read the verb requirement first and allocation of marks and time accordingly  (I think you have done that)

4. Reading the long case study-Q1. A lot students do not have the technique. Follow this:-

-Use 1 page of your answer booklet for planning. On top, just write planning for Q1.
-Draw a simple mind map. The center word is the content of question. For example,DEC 2009 (a) Analyse the primary activities of the value chain for the product range at IL. (10 marks)

Center word is Primary Act

-Each sub-question has a small mind map.
-Next, read the case study and pick up words that can be used to link to your mind map.
-Use the content of case study to support and justify your answers.
-Ask yourself, how this information is here? and how can I use it?
-If figures are given to you, you should calculate the percentage and use it. Don't miss the opportunity to gain marks.
-Your consideration must be from quantitative to qualitative, from management, econ, finance to HR & IT. This is because business is about all factors.

5. When you start to write your answer script, relook at the verb again to ensure you present according to the verb requirement.

6. There is no standardized writing format for P3 but I always recommend to my students to follow this:
-State the theory or model first
-answer how this model used here
- implications/impacts of such practice
-business solutions and its pro and con.
7. Each part of your answer must be small paragraph with a sub-title. and towards the end a simple conclusion should be made to close the argument.

With the above tips of study and tackle the papers, I wish all the P3 candidates could benefits from my teaching experience on how to handle this paper.

bye.

Khor SC
P1, P3 & P7 Lecturer at TARC Penang Campus

---

Added on February 18, 2012, 1:36 pm

pls check the following thread...

Hi Caillech & Ks-fruit particularly and the rest of P3 fighters:

The followings are the useful information and guides for you to prepare for P3.

1. Steve Skidmore is a practical strategist who set the exam questions based on a real organization. (you can see these from his PYQs).

2. He and his marking teams are looking for practical solutions which must be justified by students in their answer scripts.

3. There is no absolute standard answer to the questions.

The above 3 points formed a basis for your answer script. Now I will share with you how to study and tackle P3:Read carefully:

Your time of study should be 30% Theory 70% Practice/Application.

A) How to study? (30%)

1.Understand all the business modals in the syllabus-Follow the sequence: PESTEL > SWOT/TOWS > Porter 5 FORCES > Porter's Diamond > Porter' Generic strategies > Porter Value chain > 7Ps >Mendelow >9Ms >BCG > Ashridge Portfoli Display >Strategic Clock > Ansoff Matrix >BPR> Gantt > Forcefield analysis. You must prepare to explain the models.

2. Ask yourself how to use those models and when to use.

3. Remember, when you study each chapter, focus on How and Why rather than just what is this and that. Because, Steve expects students to apply not knowing what.

Practice questions
1. Fast reading
2. Drawing a small mind map
3. Writing in time constraint.
4. Exchange marking the script with your friends
Examination
1. I always ask my students to begin section B first because they are shorter and able to gain confidence at the beginning stage. Then only move to section A-Question 1 (more than 3 pages)

2. Of cause you must always to stick to time allocation 1.8 minutes for 1 mark. Stop writing for that question if time allocation is up, just leave a few lines. You must attempt all the questions.

3.As usual, read the verb requirement first and allocation of marks and time accordingly  (I think you have done that)

4. Reading the long case study-Q1. A lot students do not have the technique. Follow this:-

-Use 1 page of your answer booklet for planning. On top, just write planning for Q1.
-Draw a simple mind map. The center word is the content of question. For example,DEC 2009 (a) Analyse the primary activities of the value chain for the product range at IL. (10 marks)

Center word is Primary Act

-Each sub-question has a small mind map.
-Next, read the case study and pick up words that can be used to link to your mind map.
-Use the content of case study to support and justify your answers.
-Ask yourself, how this information is here? and how can I use it?
-If figures are given to you, you should calculate the percentage and use it. Don't miss the opportunity to gain marks.
-Your consideration must be from quantitative to qualitative, from management, econ, finance to HR & IT. This is because business is about all factors.

5. When you start to write your answer script, relook at the verb again to ensure you present according to the verb requirement.

6. There is no standardized writing format for P3 but I always recommend to my students to follow this:
-State the theory or model first
-answer how this model used here
- implications/impacts of such practice
-business solutions and its pro and con.
7. Each part of your answer must be small paragraph with a sub-title. and towards the end a simple conclusion should be made to close the argument.

With the above tips of study and tackle the papers, I wish all the P3 candidates could benefits from my teaching experience on how to handle this paper.

bye.

Khor SC
P1, P3 & P7 Lecturer at TARC Penang Campus

---

Added on February 18, 2012, 1:36 pm

pls check the following thread...

can anyone tell me about how many things learned in f6 will be examined in p6?

well...cos I'm taking p6 without f6 knowledge

im now try to catch up on f6 by self study while attending p6 class

so i need to noe where I need to read more

cos I felt awkward in class when lecturer is teaching but I duno a single thing 

eg. IBA, CA, RPGT and even computation on statutory income --> tax liability

certain additional stuff in P6 that i noticed were Investment Holding Company computation, mining & petroleum tax, real property company (RPC), different types of tax incentive (pioneer status, investment tax allowance, export allowance etc).  all these did not appear in F6

however things like dividend income deemed total income... interest income exempt and etc seem appear alot in many places even in estate administration, trust, unit trust/ property trust, IHC (these are the one taught in class recently)

guess I should slowly cover it

p/s: i actually took p3 p5 p7 last sitting

but then i failed p7 ultimately

in other words, must know everything from F6 and bring forward to P6. at P6 level, you are a tax consultant, you have to know Malaysia Taxation from top to toe.

At ACCA P6 paper, you are mainly examined on Income Tax Act 1967. my friend who studied CTIM, they even have exam on income tax case law

that's why i wonder why you dump P7 and go for P6? somemore you don't have the basic for P6 aka F6.  it is double the difficulty.  If i have a choice, i will still choose P7 over P6

Guys, i'm not sure whether i should take P6 in June sitting or not.

If i take it in December, will the Income Tax standards change? Actually i'm currently attending P6 classes. I'm afraid those tax standards will be very much different with what i'm studying now... Any opinions?

from my personal experience

p7 not hard to study

exam questions look not hard

but freaking damn hard to earn marks

for me...now it is utmost important to pass

rather than choosing which is my interest

to be honest...tax used to be more preferable choice comparing to audit for me

however as I'm taking 3 papers at one go every time

i cant take p6 as I dun have f6 knowledge

but now I'm left with only 1 paper

so not that hard to do p6 ...

Thank you for the reply.

However, if the person owns a company, what are the items that he needs to indicate in the business column?

Say, the business year end is 31 December, but the person (as an individual needs to submit individual tax return by 30-Apr-2012.

Does the needs to apportion the director's remuneration?

And in the case of dividends payout, does he needs to indicate that in the personal tax return, as have not know whether the company is going to give out dividends? Or does the dividends be declared in the following year's tax return?

Kindly advice, thanks.