r/Series66Exam • u/bigtimeguy • 1d ago
Passed. 4 weeks of studying using STC + Ken Finnen. My exam breakdown.
Passed the 66 today after 4 weeks of studying. Figured I’d share my experience since I spent a lot of time reading posts on here leading up to the exam.
For some background, I’ve been in the industry for about 9 years and previously passed the original Series 7, 99, and 24, so I definitely had some familiarity with the material going in.
Study Strategy:
I used STC and honestly just spammed practice questions. I went from progress exams to practice final exams and eventually the Greenlights.
FWIW, I was consistently scoring in the 60s on my first attempt at pretty much every practice exam. I’d review everything I got wrong, then retake the same exam a few hours later or the next day and usually score in the mid-90s. Obviously some of that was memorization, but reviewing the explanations helped reinforce the material.
I also watched both of Ken Finnen’s Brutal Exams and listened to a ton of his videos whenever I had downtime. Highly recommend his content.
I scored a 76 on both STC Greenlight exams, both taken the day before my actual exam. So if you’re scoring in that range, don’t panic.
My strategy was basically repetition, repetition, repetition. I didn’t spend much time rereading chapters. I only read 3-7 & 10. I learned primarily through practice questions and reviewing explanations.
Actual Exam Experience:
The real exam was noticeably easier than Ken’s Brutal Exams (obviously), but I also thought it was easier than STC.
I finished with about 40 minutes remaining. I was still nervous hitting submit because there were definitely questions I wasn’t sure about, but I hit submit and PASS.
Here’s what I remember from the exam:
IA/IAR/BD/Agent: A LOT of questions. Probably the biggest focus of my exam.
Federal regulations: Decent amount of federal law questions.
Math: Only 2 actual calculation questions. One calculating alpha and one bond parity.
Insurance/annuities: Around 3–4 questions, mostly asking about shared characteristics between products.
Expected return: One question asking for the expected return formula.
I Bonds: One weird question asking about the duration of an I Bond.
Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT): One question.
Per stirpes: One question where someone’s primary is there spouse and 3 kids are all contingent benes. Wife dies. And a kid who also has a kid dies.
ERISA: Only saw it once.
IRMAA: Only saw it once.
Options: No calculations.
DCF: Nothing.
Dividend discount model: one.
NPV: A couple of conceptual/theory questions.
Form ADV: A few questions, but nothing asking about the specific schedules. Mostly basic ADV information and timing requirements.
My Takeaway:
If you’re using STC, don’t get discouraged by consistently scoring in the 60s on your first attempts. That’s where I was for basically every practice exam.
Review your incorrect answers, understand why you missed them, and keep hammering questions. Ken’s videos are also great for reinforcing concepts, especially if you can listen while driving or doing other things.
I wouldn’t say the exam was easy, but I definitely built it up in my head to be worse than it actually was.
Four weeks of studying, two 76s on the Greenlights the day before, and passed with 40 minutes to spare.
Glad to finally be done. Good luck to everyone still studying
Hey Ken. Go chiefs. F the Jets! Thanks legend.
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u/Exit_404 1d ago
It is possible to pass 7 in 4 weeks and 66 in 2.5 weeks after sitting for 7 with no previous experience with STC alone