FINRA Exams

Hey everyone - in anticipation of starting FT soon, want to get ahead and start studying for the SIE, Series 63 and 79. From what I've read on this thread, the SIE is somewhat easy and requires maybe a day to study for, and the other 2 are much harder and take significant time and effort. Would be curious to hear any tips / advice as to how to be as efficient as possible when it comes to passing the exams. 

8 Comments
 

You need max a week for the 63 and 79. Maybe 2 weeks for the 7 but i don't think you're taking that. I wouldn't entirely underestimate the SIE, however. Spend at least 3 or 4 days studying for it.

 

Just curious if the 79 is harder than 63. I took SIE/63 already and take 79 in a few months and it's made out on this site to be a little difficult so shocked to see it can take a week. For reference, I took about 2 weeks for the SIE and 2 weeks for the 63 (albeit it was during my semester).

 

They gave us 2 weeks for the 7, then 2 weeks for the 63 and 79. I took all 3 without having ever studied either finance or accounting and passed them on the first go. The 79 was probably harder for me insofar as I had to learn new content. If you know the material already, the 63 is definitely harder.

 

I found the 79 to be the easiest. About a third (maybe even half) is basic banking technicals, so if you’re good on those it’s free points. I always liked those too because it’s cut and dry—you either get the right answer or you don’t, no confusing wording or semi-right answers there to trip you up.

I found the 63 to be the hardest (controversial) — it’s short but straight memorization, it’s not conceptual at all, it’s a straight law exam and extremely outdated.

The 7 is long, but more conceptual and common sense than the 63 and has a good amount of math/technical-ish questions as well.

In all cases, your firm will give you Knopman Marks which is fantastic. If you are smart/competent enough to break it into IB, passing these in a timely manner should not be an issue.

Career Advancement Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 08 97.8%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.3%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.8%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.3%

Professional Growth Opportunities

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.3%

Total Avg Compensation

August 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (48) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (25) $178
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (83) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (75) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”