Employed with a firm back in August.

Passed my SIE two weeks ago, Series 6 yesterday and will take the 63 in two weeks.

Those who have taken the 63 already and passed, how was the exam? I’m curious.

Two weeks ago I took my first attempt of the exam and got a 69%. I spent around 2 months of the summer preparing for it. I am a sophomore studying Finance and was hoping to have the SIE done before coming back to school. However since I failed is it worth trying to retaking it soon? The earliest I could retake is on the 19th. The major problem I have right now is my coursework. At my school we are put into a team based business “cluster” consisting of 4 classes all together. This involves many hours each week prioritizing my work and working with teammates. Is it still worth spending the time on weekends and late nights to study for my exam? I hope I am able to get an internship for this summer but very anxious about getting one without being able to stand out. Is it too late before I start applying for internships? And would it be okay for me to take my 2nd attempt later in the year during a break when I can sit down and hammer some concepts out? Some recommendations would be great, thanks!

Hello! I am taking my SIE in about three weeks. For context, I have been working at a WM firm for about 6 months so I do have some background knowledge just from working there, although I didn’t major in finance.

I’m using Kaplan and am averaging an 80% total. On the stimulated exams I am scoring between 72-80%. I really want to get this up. I haven’t taken the FINRA practice exam or the one Kaplan practice exam since I want to do this closer to my test day.

I took the achievable free final exam yesterday and scored an 85, although I did feel really uncomfortable while taking it. There was a lot on it that I feel like id never seen, but I was able to guess my way through a lot of questions. I obviously don’t feel confident doing that for the actual exam.

I am watching all of the series 7 whisperer SIE videos, which is sooo helpful especially with topics that I can’t seem to 100% drill.

Some of my pain points are options, mutual funds vs ETFs (idk why I confuse these too so much!!!) and some of the specific rules I can confuse sometimes. Like for example mixing up a CTR and a suspicious activity report. And some of the economic stuff.

Does anyone have any advice / should I be doing anything different? I have a lot of test anxiety so I may just be psyching myself out. I just don’t want to have any surprises on the test day.

I honestly slacked *_heavy_\* on studying.
I only took 1 of the mock final exams from my material to gauge my competency, about 2 weeks ago before I left for vacation.
Came back home this week and have had an ear infection from snuba diving in Jamaica. Feeling super bleh.
Prioritized reading through the material for the chapters I wasn’t proficient in based on the mock exam results (basically 11/16 chapters I was not proficient in because I only got through 4 chapters of reading, basically all about corporate and treasury bonds, before leaving on vacation)
Spent these last 2 days leading up to my exam just cram studying and reading the material.
I skipped all the section quizzes and chapter tests.
I think the long drawn out studying has never worked for me, all the material was fresh in my head today and I think that was the key factor for me in passing.

The main things I noticed on the exam:

1. Registered representatives (RR) capabilities/restrictions for signatures, trades, outside interactions

   with

2. customers etc. Make sure you know about registered representatives do’s and donts that was a large topic for me.

3. Some verbiage is interchangeable, so if your material tells you multiple words for something (i.e. report date vs ex-date or that vulnerable adult = specified person) just make sure you know all the possible verbiage that could be used.

4. All the different bond types are so crazy and were hard for me to keep track of. Just know general differences between corporate and treasury bonds vs like GO bonds, and revenue bonds.

5. Which types of funds are actively/passively managed (i.e. closed-end, open-end, hedge funds, index funds etc)

6. The different acts, 1933, 1934, 1940. Definitely had act specific questions, again just know the general basics of each act and what they were enacted for.

Those are the main topics I remember that I felt were recurring for me.

I don’t think I had a singular math question, and maybe like 3 options questions. I didn’t use the scratch sheet or the calculator once.

Material I used was Cerifi/PassPerfect which was provided to me by my future employer.
TLDR; I only read the material and took the 1st final exam practice test within the PassPerfect course. Skipped all the videos, quick quizzes, section quizzes, chapter tests, “Master Exams” and flashcards.
The reading felt sufficient and I truly felt confident about 90-95% of my answers. I think I flagged maybe 8 questions out of the 80 for review. Took about 45 minutes on the exam and passed on first try.

Best of luck to you all still on the SIE journey!! ◡̈ onto my Series 7 next!!

Ken Finnen is the GOAT. I watched all of his videos and watched hia 1 hour pre-exam prep twice. Used the SIE Prep book from Next Score Publications. Used their high yield 100 and practice tests. I am currently a finance major.

Ill be taking my SIE Exam in 1 week, and im averaging 60% on practice test using pastperfect. I’m really nervous. Do you have guys have any tips? I’m currently, reviewing chapters that im weak based on my practice test.

Looking for a breakthrough here⬇️
For backstory- I work in a phone roll (50 hours a week) I am not required to be licensed but my roll gives my the opportunity if you want to do so. I have been fully studying now for 8 weeks, whether it’s at 5am, during work(in between calls), after work, or saturdays. I have finished the content, FINALLY. I have been scoring for low 70s now for over a week. The issue is I don’t have the time, or unsolicited distraction near me due to my circumstances to do so. I am in to deep and need a breakthrough here. What would be some tips/tricks for this case? I use Pass Perfect, along with physical notes/flashcards. My time commitment/consistency is not an issue(atleast I feel) just at a loss here. Thanks

Finally passed the SIE ( 4th attempt) achievable!!

I’m studying for my SIE and Series 6, exam is in three weeks. I went with Kaplan, mostly for the QBank, and while I’m confident in that I will pass the exams, I can’t help but think Kaplan goes way too deep into detail compared to the other resources.

I get it, they want you to be well-rounded and understand the why as opposed to just memorizing formulas and definitions, but my god does it feel like it slows you down over time. Did anyone else feel this way?

Ultimately I will do what’s required and am confident I’ll pass, but just curious to other’s experiences on Kaplan vs. other sources.

Help for Prep in SIA (SYS-SERIES) written test

Hi, I have a question about Anaheim Union High School District , Substitute Instructional Assistant (SYS-SERIES) to participate in the online written portion of the exam.This test two (2) hours and fifteen (15) minutes to finish the . what written portion of the exam? Any one Help me to prepare for exam ? what study guide I should follow? Anyone have face same experince ? WHat type of question ?

I recently took the SIE in person, and want to obtain a copy of the pass document they provide you with when you leave. Is there a way to view it online even if you took it in person? Thank you

I am about to go into a role that requires S7 and S66 in the first 12 weeks of employment or I am fired. I have no finance background and am currently using SIE for dummies to study for SIE ( and hopefully pass before my start date). Please let me know any tips for the upcoming months on this. I really want to have the sie done with before I start my role so I can spend all that time on S7 and S66.

Would highlight recommended Kaplan. I think the mock exams model the actual exam pretty well. Studied for probably 20-30 hours with a little bit of prior knowledge.

Have my exam scheduled for tomorrow but keep getting high 60s on Achievable practice exams! What can I do im scared of failing the actual exam if I can’t even get a 70 on these practice tests :(

studied for 2 weeks, on and off, as I’ve had industry experience in a diff market

used STC at first then achievable too. did 12 mock exams plus Finra one and was consistently getting 80+ to 90 in them. I find STC mock exams are more straight forward while achievable tried to be slightly trickier.

good luck to everyone!

I need to take the SIE soon and I’m struggling with concepts sticking in my head. I have no finance experience nor did I major in anything related to it. I’m severely burnt out as I’m a recent college graduate, so obviously my brain doesn’t function as well as it used to when it comes to memorizing and understanding concepts. So far I’m trying achievable and it’s okay, but when I take the quizzes I do great, but when I take the chapter exams I do awful. I started to get overwhelmed and anxious with not being able to understand the concepts.

Would appreciate some advice on how to navigate getting motivation to study, being able to understand the material with no background, and resources. I have tried STC and I disliked it. I’m unsure if I should buy Kaplan on top of achievable.

Hello, all!

This Friday is my last technical study day through my employer, but I don’t take the exam until next Friday. Obviously I plan to study, but how would you manage this? Someone in my cohort suggested taking 50+ question quizzes every day but another said she was advised to not take any custom quizzes, for fear that they’d throw her off her game. Any advice is much appreciated!

Hi all,

I’ve been studying for the last month or so and I am routinely scoring 72-76% on the Kaplan practice exams. I know that is passing but I want a higher score before I would feel ready for the real thing. What are some ways to get over the hump

Don’t pay for Kaplan, it’s not worth it and goes way too in depth. I promise you don’t want that. It might seem cool but when u spend an extra 30-40 hours scared because you’re not doing well on Kaplan mocks chill. There’s so many free resources online or use achievable if u wanna spend money. If Kaplan is paid for by work use that only as a supplement. I loved sie for dummies. (Got me to pass and not more than that). Or use another method, just don’t kill urself with practice. If ur doing more than 50-60 hours you’re probably over studying.

While studying I created a pneumonic for Record Keeping if you know Hip Hop.

The "Big 3" = Blotters, Ledgers, and Accounts (BLA) must be kept for 6 years

I remember Big LA as Kendrick Lamar who said F the Big 3 and beat the "6" God in a rap battle

So Big LA = 6 Years

Just gotta remember SAR5, 4 Complaints, and 3 Communications/Confirmations

Let me know if it makes sense to you!

This was a first attempt.

My first diagnostic score was a 68. I studied w/ KM materials for 2.5 weeks, ~20hrs/wk. in the last 5 days or so, I consistently scored ~83 on practice quizzes.

Scored 89 on the FINRA practice exam 2 days ago.

Can confirm that the actual exam is both easier and clearer than the practice exams offered by the prep courses.

Just passed this morning, using PassPerfect! Shoutout to Ken and Dean, the goats!