A 
system and method is provided that searches for the frequency and phase of a CDMA transmission in an iterative manner. With its 
automatic frequency control (AFC) disabled, the receiving 
system performs a coarse search for the 
transmitter's CDMA phase at a nominal receiving frequency. When the coarse phase is obtained, the AFC is invoked with a large-range pull-in, to obtain an initial, coarse frequency that is likely to be closer to the 
transmitter's frequency than the initial 
nominal frequency. At this coarse frequency, the receiving 
system repeats its search for the 
transmitter's CDMA phase, starting at the previously determined coarse phase. Because this second phase determination is conducted in the presence of less frequency error, it provides for a more accurate phase determination. The AFC is again invoked, but with a small-range pull-in, to obtain a finer 
frequency determination. Because the finer 
frequency determination is conducted in the presence of less 
phase error, a substantial improvement in the 
accuracy and precision of the 
frequency determination can be achieved. To achieve this more accurate phase and frequency determination within the same 
time duration as a conventional acquisition process, the initial coarse phase determination is conducted using a rapid, albeit less accurate, process than the conventional phase determination.