Securities Industry Essentials (SIE) Exam

The qualification tests for several occupations in the financial services industry, formerly known as the Series exams, have been streamlined into one initial exam called the Securities Industry Essentials Exam—or the SIE Exam. Passing this exam qualifies you to pursue a career in the financial services industry.

Back in 2015, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) streamlined its testing structure by consolidating the fundamental knowledge shared across several of the Series exams into the SIE. Candidates can then take an additional "top-off" qualification exam for the specific field they hope to enter.

The SIE had a major structural impact on the qualification exams. The SIE replaces portions of every previous exam, including the Series 6, Series 7, Series 22, Series 55/56 (replaced by Series 57), Series 79, Series 82, Series 86/87, and Series 99. These tests were shrunken, becoming qualification exams that focus on the specialized knowledge needed for each particular qualification.

Top-off exams are offered for the following representative categories:

Overall, this was clearly an effort to remove some of the duplicated information in the tests, but it also opened the door to a much more important change to the process of qualification, which is no longer having to be associated with a FINRA member firm to take the SIE.

Under the former FINRA rules, you generally needed to be employed or otherwise sponsored by a FINRA member in order to take the exams. The SIE removes this requirement, although you still have to be associated with a FINRA member firm to take the top-off exams. This means that an individual can choose to start on the path towards a FINRA qualification on their own.

Successfully taking the SIE doesn't guarantee anyone a successfully break into the financial industry, but it is safe to say that passing it prior to looking for a job may give you an edge as a prospective employer only needs to sponsor the top-off exam to get you qualified for a particular role.

FINRA supported the idea that recent graduates and people looking to get into the industry should take the SIE on their own. They’ve made it more attractive by extending the validity of the SIE to four years, giving a generous window for passing participants to then find a firm to sponsor the top-off exams. FINRA member firms are able to see who has passed the exam via the Central Registration Depository (CRD).

In their original Securities and Exchange Commission filings, FINRA targeted the fall of 2016 to early 2017 for a rollout of their highest volume exams. This proved to be a bit optimistic. There were several shifts in the scheduling, one resulting from the requests of member firms and industry associations for more time to set their own processes in accordance with the new structure. The SIE and top-off exam rollout took place on Oct. 1, 2018 and was accompanied by the retirement of multiple low-volume exams, such as the Series 42 and Series 62.

Originally, March 2018 was targeted for the implementation of the SIE and top-offs for Series 6, 7, and 79. Oct. 1, 2018 became the date for a complete overhaul rather than a phased-in approach. Adding to some of the confusion was part of the attempt to modernize; the Series 55 was replaced by the Series 57, although it still appeared in the original notice for the SIE updates. That update was simply a standard part of FINRA reviewing and tweaking curriculum, rather than part of an overhaul of any core knowledge.

The SIE exam structure is largely based on the general knowledge components of the exams it replaced that portion for. In January 2018, FINRA provided more details on the structure. The sections and question count are as follows:

The 75 questions are actually 85, since there are 10 randomly distributed pre-test questions that do not count towards the score on the exam. Candidates have an hour and forty-five minutes to complete the entire exam. A full outline of the SIE content is currently available on FINRA's website.

Passing the SIE exam can provide a number of benefits to your career:

If you already passed one of the FINRA exams and are currently registered as a representative, you are considered to have passed the SIE already. If you passed one of the exams and are not currently registered, you may need to take the SIE depending on how many years elapse between now and your next registration. And, of course, if you passed the exam but your registration has lapsed, you will need to take the SIE and the new top-off for that qualification before being reregistered.

This is pretty much the same as it has always been, except you would be taking two exams instead of one. In fact, the exams are designed to take the same total time as the previous versions. For example, the SIE and Series 7 top-off exam take the same amount of time as the previous Series 7 exam.

For member firms, the cost of the top-off exams is less than the previous exams because the content was shifted to the SIE. So, if an individual has passed the SIE prior to joining a firm, it is a good indication that this person already has the basic aptitude and wherewithal to pass a top-off exam. The cost of getting that individual registered is reduced because they paid out-of-pocket for the SIE, which will likely help make a candidate more attractive to a firm.

The Securities Industry Essentials (SIE) Exam is designed to assess your knowledge of the securities industry. It ensures that people entering the industry are qualified and knowledgeable for the work they are doing. It streamlines the previous initial qualification exams into a single test, supplemented by "top-off" qualification exams.

If you want to be registered to work in a securities business, you must pass the SIE and the appropriate qualification exam for the type of securities work you'll be doing. If you already took one of the old exams and your license lapsed—assuming two years have passed since you were last registered—you have to retake the Series 7. You need to retake the SIE only if four years have elapsed since you last passed it or were last registered.

The overall content covered over the two tests—the SIE and the Series 7 top-off exam—will be nearly identical to the previous Series 7.

FINRA does not share the SIE pass rates. However, various test prep companies state that around 25-27% of candidates fail the exam on the first try. If you fail and want to retake the exam, the wait time is 30 days for the first and second attempts, then six months if you fail the third attempt.

If you were already sponsored to take one of the qualification exams, go for it. These changes won't impact you at all. If you expect to be sponsored in the future, the overall content you need to master won’t change even though you have to do it in two chunks. If, however, you are not currently sponsored or in the industry, the SIE will open the door for you to start down the path of a financial career without having to associate with a member firm first. This change gives you a choice you didn't have before.

Exam advice

A typical examination question in Mathematics will have several parts to it. Some parts (most usually at the beginning of the question) test your knowledge, by asking you to reproduce "bookwork", i.e. material presented in the lectures. Really, these parts test how well you've revised. Occasionally, especially in certain more advanced courses, there are entire questions that are bookwork. In some courses, some pieces of bookwork come up in the exam almost every year. In other courses, hardly any bookwork is set explicitly.

Tip: Figure out which pieces of bookwork come up most frequently, and make sure you can answer those questions easily and quickly.

You would be surprised how many poor attempts at routine bookwork questions we see every year. These are the parts of the questions that we expect students to be able to do.

Other parts of examination questions involve a "problem". In a "Methods" course, this will typically involve you applying a known technique from the course, and again this is something we expect you to be able to do. In a Pure Mathematics course, you might be asked to prove a result, or to apply a result in a particular setting.

Tip: Sometimes (but certainly not always!), the first part of the question is intended as a big hint as to how you should approach the second part.

Many exam questions, especially those that are otherwise very routine, have a last part (a "rider") which is more challenging than the rest of the question. This is quite deliberate, and the intention is to test whether you've really understood the material.

Tip: Do try all the riders (they're not always so hard after all!) but don't waste too much time on them in an exam if there are other things you can tackle instead.

Students sometimes seem to be annoyed that they have to do something clever to get 100% on a question. Don't forget, in many other subjects it's practically impossible to score 100% on a question!

Tip: Make sure you've answered all the parts of the question. Sometimes you're asked to do seven or eight things, and it's easy to overlook one.