ACCA Advanced Audit and Assurance (AAA): Top Tips from the September/December 2024 Examiner’s Report

Posted on 23 February 2025 by Richard Clarke

This post is based on the September/December 2024 Examiner’s Report, available at ACCA’s site

Get to Know the AAA Exam

AAA’s a three-hour, 15-minute slog: one 50-mark case study (Section A) and two 25-mark questions (Section B). You’re juggling 80 technical marks and 20 for professional skills—communication, scepticism, analysis, evaluation, and commercial acumen. The 2024 session included planning, sustainability assurance, and reporting, so expect real-world curveballs rooted in ISAs and IFRS.

Actionable Tips to Pass

1. Tailor Every Answer to the Scenario

• Why It Matters: Generic answers score badly across all questions. The examiner’s fed up with textbook regurgitations—think Hart Group’s cash flow woes or Fizzizoda’s recycling stats.
• How to Do It: Use the exhibits fully and link your points to specifics. E.g., for Hart’s unpermitted refurbishments, tie regulatory risks to fines, not just “check compliance.”
• Pro Move: Plan your answer to connect the dots—like how Hart’s borrowing limits amplify other risks—showing the partner you get the big picture.

2. Master Materiality Like Your Life Depends On It

• Why It Matters: Messing up materiality cost candidates big in Q1(b). The report screams frustration at wrong benchmarks or no justification.
• How to Do It: Follow the partner’s lead (e.g., Hart used revenue, 0.5-2%). Calculate it, pick a threshold, and justify it with risk context—higher risk, lower materiality. Then use it in your RoMMs.
• Pro Move: Grasp the inverse risk-materiality link from AA level. Hart’s first-time consolidation? That’s high risk, so materiality drops, not rises.

3. Get a Scepticism Attitude

• Why It Matters: Don't blindly trust management. AAA demands you challenge the numbers and the management.
• How to Do It: Question all assumptions. (Eg here - question the deferred consideration discount rate).
• Pro Move: Your scepticism should make you worry about potential management bias (EG. Here Hart’s covenant pressure). Suggest alternative evidence (e.g., third-party data).

4. Know the Basics: Standards and Procedures

• Why It Matters: Weak IFRS/IAS knowledge. This leads to no scoring vague procedures—like “check board minutes”.
• How to Do It: Revise SBR-level standards— know the basics. (Eg here Goodwill - design specific procedures: test fair value adjustments with expert input, not just “recalculate.”

5. Practise Past Paper Questions (using ULTRA Marking hub on aCOWtancy)

• Why It Matters: The report almost begs candidates to practice proper past questions.
• How to Do It: Time yourself on past questions. Use ULTRA marking hub for specific guidance on whats going well and where you need to improve
• Pro Move: Mimic exam conditions.

6. Stay Ahead of Trends

• Why It Matters: Q2’s sustainability focus (ED 5000) and Q3’s data analytics caught candidates off-guard. Topical ignorance = lost marks.
• How to Do It: Read ACCA’s technical articles—sustainability assurance and analytics are hot.
• Pro Move: Skim real auditor’s reports for KAMs to see how real auditors handle risks like Hart’s covenants or Bodeen’s quality lapses.

7. Write Like a Partner’s Reading It

• Why It Matters: Sloppy structure lost communication marks in Q1. Brief, tailored notes win over waffly essays.
• How to Do It: Use headers, intros, and clear points—no need to define “risk” for the partner.
• Pro Move: Prioritise top RoMMs with “why” (e.g., grant repayment risk > theatre costs due to materiality).

8. Depth Beats Breadth

• Why It Matters: Thin answers plagued Q2(c) and Q3(c). Two-line responses won’t cut it for 8-mark questions.
• How to Do It: Use mark allocation as a guide—8 marks = 8 solid points.

Your AAA Action Plan

• Brush Up: Learn SBR-level IFRS/IAS— see aCOWtancy classroom's "all the IFRS basics in 72 mins".
• Mock It: Run timed past papers questions weekly using ULTRA; Let the feedback show you where you're doing well and where you need to improve
• Stay Sharp: Read ACCA articles monthly—sustainability and tech aren’t going away.
• Scepticism Bootcamp: Practise challenging management in every scenario—why’s that figure there?

Final Pep Talk

The 2024 report’s clear: AAA rewards pros who apply, question, and justify—not parrots of theory. Use these tips, and you’re on your way to passing.

Source: ACCA Advanced Audit and Assurance Examiner’s Report, September/December 2024.