Securities Representative Licenses
SIE
Securities Industry Essentials (SIE) Exam
Open to anyone 18 or older; also a co-requisite for the Series 7.
- Level
- Entry-level / introductory
- Format
- 80 total multiple-choice items (75 scored + 5 unidentified, unscored pretest items randomly distributed throughout), 4 answer choices each, 1 hour 45 minutes (105 minutes), computer-administered, no penalty for guessing
- Passing score
- 70 (scaled score on a 0-100 scale, equated across exam forms)
- Number of questions
- 80 items presented (75 scored, 5 unscored pretest); only the 75 scored items count toward the candidate's result
- Prerequisites
- None. Open to anyone age 18 or older; no association or sponsorship with a FINRA member firm is required to sit for the exam
- Who it's for
- Anyone 18 or older, including students and career-changers, who wants to demonstrate baseline securities-industry knowledge to prospective employers. It is also a co-requisite for industry professionals: passing the SIE alone does not qualify someone for registration, but it must be paired with a specialized representative-level exam (e.g., Series 6, 7, 63) once sponsored by a member firm to become fully registered.
Series 7
General Securities Representative Qualification Examination (Series 7)
Entry-level representative registration. Requires the SIE as a co-requisite and sponsorship by a FINRA member firm.
- Level
- Registered representative (entry-level)
- Format
- 125 scored multiple-choice questions (4 answer choices each), delivered by computer with 10 additional unscored pretest items randomly distributed (135 items total); 3 hours 45 minutes
- Passing score
- 72%
- Number of questions
- 125 scored questions (135 delivered, including 10 unscored pretest items)
- Prerequisites
- Must pass the Securities Industry Essentials (SIE) exam as a co-requisite, and be sponsored by a FINRA member firm (or other applicable SRO member firm) to sit for the Series 7 ("Top-Off") exam
- Who it's for
- Entry-level candidates seeking registration as general securities representatives who will sell corporate securities, municipal securities, investment company products, variable annuities, options, direct participation programs, and government securities to customers.
Series 63
Uniform Securities Agent State Law Examination (Series 63)
State registration exam for broker-dealer agents, commonly taken together with the Series 7.
- Level
- State registration law exam for broker-dealer agents; no other exam is a prerequisite, and it is typically taken alongside a products exam (e.g., Series 6 or Series 7) to complete state licensing.
- Format
- 65 multiple-choice questions (60 scored, 5 unscored/pretest), 75 minutes, closed-book, computer-based at Prometric test centers
- Passing score
- 72% (43 of 60 scored questions)
- Number of questions
- 65 total questions (60 scored toward the final result, 5 unscored pretest questions interspersed and not identifiable to the candidate)
- Prerequisites
- None. No corequisite FINRA exam is required; candidates are scheduled either by a sponsoring FINRA member firm via Form U4/WebCRD, or independently through FINRA's Test Enrollment Services if not associated with a member firm.
- Who it's for
- Individuals seeking state registration as a broker-dealer agent (securities salesperson); commonly pursued together with the Series 6 or Series 7 as part of full state licensing.
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