Clarity EA Study Course · The Schedule
The 12-Week Fast Track
One exam part per month. Twelve weeks from your first lesson to all three parts passed — without cramming, because the review is built into the calendar instead of bolted on at the end.
Why this schedule works
Fast and retained are not opposites
Most people fail this exam one of two ways: they take nine months and forget Part 1 while studying Part 2, or they cram for three weeks and forget everything a day after the test. This plan avoids both by using the two findings that survive every serious study of how people learn hard material:
- Retrieval beats review. Pulling an answer out of your head builds far stronger memory than reading the same page again. So every single study day here ends with questions, never with "read the chapter."
- Spacing beats massing. The same hour of study is worth more split across three days than spent in one sitting. So each week re-tests the two weeks before it, on a 1–3–7 day rhythm.
That is why the calendar looks repetitive. The repetition is the method — you are meant to keep bumping into old material right as you are about to forget it.
⚠️ The one rule that makes or breaks the fast track
Never skip a Review day to get ahead on new material. It feels productive and it is the single most common way trainees end up re-taking a part. New content without review is how you arrive at week 4 having "covered" everything and retained half. If you fall behind, drop a new-material day, never a review day.
The weekly rhythm
What a normal week looks like
Every week of all twelve follows the same shape, so you never have to plan — you just show up and do that day's box. About 12 hours a week total.
Mon
New lesson
Read one lesson, then take its quiz. ~2 hrsTue
New lesson
Next lesson + quiz. ~2 hrsWed
Miss List — day 1
Re-answer yesterday's and Monday's misses from memory. ~1 hrThu
New lesson
Next lesson + quiz. ~2 hrsFri
Miss List — day 3
Re-answer Monday/Tuesday misses again, plus Thursday's. ~1 hrSat
Mixed drill
Redo every quiz from this week, all topics shuffled. ~2.5 hrsSun
Miss List — day 7
Last week's survivors, from memory. Then rest. ~1 hrThe Miss List is the engine. Every question you miss anywhere — a lesson quiz, a practice exam, a drill — gets written down with the rule in your own words and why you missed it. Re-answer it from memory on day 1, day 3, and day 7. Get it right from memory on two separate days and it retires. Full method in the training guide.
The full 12 weeks
Week by week
Tick each day as you finish it. Open any week to see its days.
Week 1 Part 1 — the individual return, front half New material
- MonLesson: Preliminary Work with Taxpayer DataFiling status, dependents, filing thresholds, prior-year data. Then the lesson quiz.
- TueLesson: Income and AssetsWages through capital gains, basis, retirement income. Then the quiz.
- WedMiss List — day 1Every miss from Mon and Tue, re-answered from memory before you look.
- ThuLesson: Deductions and CreditsStandard vs itemized, the 2025 SALT cap, the big credits. Then the quiz.
- FriMiss List — day 3Mon/Tue misses again, plus Thursday's.
- SatMixed drillRedo all three quizzes back to back, shuffled. Log new misses.
- SunMiss List — day 7 + book your examSurvivors from memory. Then book Part 1 for the end of week 4 — a booked date is what makes this real.
Week 2 Part 1 — the back half New material
- MonLesson: TaxationComputing the tax, self-employment tax, AMT, the net investment income tax. Then the quiz.
- TueLesson: Advising the Individual TaxpayerEstimated payments, withholding, carryovers, recordkeeping. Then the quiz.
- WedMiss List — day 1This week's misses, from memory.
- ThuLesson: Specialized Returns for IndividualsEstate and gift basics, amended returns, foreign topics. Then the quiz.
- FriMiss List — day 3 + week 1 sweepAlso re-answer any week 1 misses that have not retired yet.
- SatMixed drill — all six Part 1 topicsEvery Part 1 quiz, shuffled. This is your first honest read on where you stand.
- SunMiss List — day 7Survivors from memory. Rest after.
Week 3 Part 1 — first full-length exam Practice exam
- MonPractice Exam — Version A100 questions, 3.5 hours, one sitting, no notes. Do it at the time of day your real exam is booked.
- TueFull exam post-mortemEvery wrong answer AND every lucky guess onto the Miss List, with the rule in your own words. This day matters more than the exam itself.
- WedWeakest topic — reteachTake the bottom row of your score report and re-read that lesson properly. Redo its quiz.
- ThuSecond-weakest topic — reteachSame treatment for the next row up.
- FriMiss List — day 3 on the exam missesAll of Monday's misses, from memory.
- SatPractice Exam — Version BFresh fact patterns, same blueprint. Expect a jump; if not, the weak topics are still weak.
- SunVersion B post-mortemSame drill: every miss and guess onto the list.
Week 4 Part 1 — sharpen and sit it Review + exam
- MonMiss List — everything still openEvery unretired miss from three weeks, from memory.
- TueFigures and deadlines drillEvery dollar threshold, percentage and due date on one page. Cover and recite.
- WedPractice Exam — Version CYour dress rehearsal. Aim 80%+. Under 70% means move the exam date, not the standard.
- ThuVersion C post-mortemOnly the misses. Nothing new from here on.
- FriLight review onlyOne hour on your Miss List. Then stop. Confirm your ID and test-centre details.
- Sat🎯 Sit Part 1Arrive early. Answer every question — blanks and wrong answers cost the same.
- SunRest, then book Part 3Take the day. Book Part 3 for the end of week 8.
Weeks 5–8 Part 3 — Representation (the lightest part, taken second on purpose) New + exam
Same four-week shape as Part 1, with Part 3's four topics. Part 3 goes second because it is the smallest content load and it keeps your momentum while Part 2 — the big one — waits for a full month of its own.
- Week 5Practices and Procedures + Representation before the IRSTwo lessons and quizzes, with the same Wed/Fri/Sun Miss List rhythm. Keep sweeping Part 1 misses on Fridays — you want Part 1 still warm when all three scores are being carried.
- Week 6Specific Areas of Representation + Filing ProcessFinal two lessons and quizzes, then Saturday's mixed drill across all four Part 3 topics.
- Week 7Practice Exams A and B + post-mortemsMonday A, Saturday B, with the two weakest topics reteached midweek.
- Week 8Version C, then 🎯 sit Part 3Dress rehearsal Wednesday, exam Saturday. Book Part 2 for the end of week 12.
Weeks 9–12 Part 2 — Businesses (the heavyweight, saved for last) New + exam
Part 2 carries the most material of the three, so it gets the densest month — three lessons but far more ground inside each. Expect this month to feel harder than the first two. That is the design, not a sign you are behind.
- Week 9Business Entities and ConsiderationsSole proprietors, partnerships, C and S corporations, LLCs, exempt entities. Split across Mon/Tue/Thu because this one lesson is the size of two.
- Week 10Business Tax PreparationIncome, expenses, basis, depreciation, credits — the single biggest topic on any of the three exams. Same treatment: split across three new-material days.
- Week 11Specialized Returns and Taxpayers + Practice Exams A and BFarms, trusts, estates, exempt organizations early in the week, then both practice exams with post-mortems.
- Week 12Version C, then 🎯 sit Part 2Dress rehearsal Wednesday, exam Saturday. Then file Form 23 the same week — do not let it sit.
The time budget
Where the twelve hours a week go
| Activity | Per week | What it buys you |
|---|---|---|
| New lessons + their quizzes | 6 hrs | Coverage of every topic the IRS lists |
| Miss List review (Wed/Fri/Sun) | 3 hrs | Retention — this is the part people cut, and the reason they retake |
| Saturday mixed drill | 2.5 hrs | Recall when topics are shuffled, which is how the real exam asks |
| Total | ≈ 11.5 hrs | ≈ 46 hours per part, ≈ 138 hours overall |
That total sits deliberately at the lower end of the 150–270 hours the big review courses recommend, and it gets there by cutting re-reading rather than cutting coverage. If you have no tax background, add a fourth new-material day each week and stretch to 16 weeks — the rhythm does not change, only the pace.
Two scheduling constraints that are not yours to move
- The exam closes every March and April. If your twelve weeks would run into that window, start after it or plan the gap in.
- Four attempts per part per testing window. Plenty for anyone following this plan, but it is why the dress rehearsal exists — you sit the real exam when Version C says you are ready, not when the calendar says week 4.
The go / no-go call
How you know you are actually ready
Not a feeling. Four checks, all of which have to be true before you sit a part:
- 80% or better on a practice version you had not seen before. A repeat score on a version you have already worked measures memory of that test, not knowledge of the material.
- No topic under 70% on your latest score report. One weak domain can sink an otherwise good result.
- Your Miss List is short — the open items are new ones from this week, not the same rules you have missed since week 1.
- You finished inside the time with a few minutes spare. Running out at question 80 is a pacing problem and it shows up on the real thing too.
If any of the four is false, move the date. Rescheduling at least 48 hours ahead costs nothing; sitting unprepared costs the full fee and a month.
Ready to start? Open Part 1, Lesson 1 and do Monday of Week 1 today. Then book your Part 1 exam by the end of this week — everything above works because there is a date at the end of it.