I'm a senior, graduating May 2012. Currently have no job offer but would love to work in S&T one day. Doesn't look like it will happen right out of college, which is okay. Would it be helpful to go ahead and get a Series 3? I am not necessarily planning on trading commodities or futures but I figure an extra qualification showing my interest in the markets couldn't hurt... am i overlooking anything? I've been told this exam isn't extremely hard to pass. Would this be a nice addition to my resume?
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I think you're picking a great test to put on a resume. It shows that you're able to comprehend the material and that you're comfortable with the testing process. The test is not too bad. It has some math but nothing overly complex. It will also help if you understand the forex market. Get yourself a good study guide, read the materials and then do practice questions until you're sick of them. That's how you'll know you're ready to take the exam.
Don't you have to be firm sponsored?
Series 3 is one of the few that you don't need to be sponsored
Theres actually quite a few exams that don't require sponsorship. The 3 lets you start a CPO and the 65 let's you start an RIA (in most states). It's actually kind of cool (and scary!) what you can do without sponsorship. This also leads to another point. Don't let the 65 scare you, it's often cited by people as the "hardest" exam because the failure rate is so high. But this directly ties into the sponsorship because any yahoo with a couple bucks can take the exam. People walk into it cold all the time and fail because they haven't studied a lick. Take your time, learn the material and both of these are passable. I passed them both in 6 months - doing tons if practice questions is the key.
Series 3 license (Originally Posted: 05/30/2008)
1) Will putting a series 3 license on resume hurt for all non-sales jobs on the trading floor like trading,quant,etc? or will it actually help?
2) Series 3 is an individual license but do i need to park it somewhere if i am not using it?
3) Are the terms sales/broker/dealer used interchangeably for a BB for a sales position on the trading floor(unless its a separate broker shop)?
4) Do the sales people make the same amount of money as the traders in general?
Thanks
why would having more qualifications hurt you?
also what do you mean "park" your license somewhere? it's not a car
Ideally it shouldn't hurt but some people say that you have the license you are a sales guy-you dont have the passion to become a trader.....couple of people did say this could happen but i want to know what the majority of the people think about it.
PArking-if i dont use my license,it expires...so i make an agreement with company which basically shows that i am using it so that it doesnt espire.
Series 3 for a trading intern (Originally Posted: 09/21/2012)
This summer (after freshman year) I interned at a commodities trading firm as an assistant trader. I did a decent amount of execution. Though I have an offer to come back for this summer, I'm looking at other firms for this summer.
QUESTION: should I have had my series 3 last summer? The people I have networked with seemed confused that I didn't have it. I read the FAQ about licensing and yes I was an intern but I also did trade execution (under direct supervision from the head trader). I'm confident I could pass it (with some studying) before this summer.
Thoughts?
Where did you intern? Did you physically execute the trades - i.e., did your hand hit the button?
I won't name the firm, but yes, my hand did hit the button. nothing otc but a fair amount on the screen. again, this is all under direct instruction from the trader that sat right next to me
I didn't mean the firm - what country?
hahah nice didn't think about that... so am I in the clear or is there a euro equivalent?
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