Taking the FINRA SIE as a Freshman?
Hey all lovely Apes and Monkeys,
I'm a prospective college freshman looking to get into financial services (end-goal is PE or VC) coming from a non-target school who unfortunately had their summer internship canceled :(. I was wondering if studying the base SIE test this summer would be a good way to leverage my time to show employers and recruiters I am very serious about pursuing this path and show I am and goal-driven while also learning some barebones fluency in the field. I noticed on the FINRA site I only need to be 18 and need no sponsorship, so I'm interested at the very least.
My main questions are: 1. Would it even be feasible for me to study for it from scratch (I would consider myself a bright student) with no related classes solely using resources like Kaplan? 2. Do you think it's a good way to leverage my time? Obviously, whenever a thread is made like this, people say have fun and join clubs, but I already have that covered, I'm enjoying myself in college :)
The end goal is to get an analyst internship position in my second year. Right now this summer it looks like I will have to go with my backup of handling finances for a school department. Thank you lovely peeps, and stay healthy out there!
Horrible idea. Test only lasts for 4 years, so by the time you graduate you would need to take it again.
Freshman Summer
3 years???
Waste of your time - most banks will pay for you to take it when you start FT and it isn't required at an intern level. You'd be better off learning python, networking, studying technicals, or studying for the CFA. The middle two would be the best use of your time.
Thanks for the advice. If it's not too much trouble, how should I get started learning technicals?
I would suggest the WSO interview guides or something similar. I used breaking into Wall Street for my prep and it covered what I needed to know. Make sure to read the guides in depth and learn the stuff - don’t just memorize the vault 50.
Using the WSO technical guide ;)
CFA Investment Foundations
I actually did do this and managed to pass my freshman year, so yes it is feasible. If you decide to go through feel free to DM.
@quantgrunt, it is impressive you passed SIE freshman year. Can you share more details on how studying or passing the test helped you in interviews and landing internship offers?
My # of bananas and username is deceiving. There is a reason why I'm not certified lol (I'm a lot younger than most realize). In other words pretty much every temp role I've gotten so far was due to simply doing well in behavioral/fit questions. I think next year when I recruit for a critical FO internship it will come into play more. I don't think anyone will be like "Oh wow this kid passed the SIE he's a finance genius !??!" because everyone knows that's not true lol. However I definitely can demonstrate work ethic, attention to detail (lot of grunt details on the exam), and interest in finance which is what I am going to use it for.
If you are interviewing for a specific FO role it's better to get a specialized guide on that specific role. The SIE is an overview of a lot of different divisions and has oddly specific details that sometimes miss the relevant points about a topic.
The information in that stuff is completely archaic and is for purpose of being able to legally do the job - it’s mostly regulatory spiel and like others have mentioned lasts only 4 years if you don’t land sponsorship- it’s not like taking the CFA or GMAT. Learn a coding language - vba
Thirding that it's not worth it. Network
I took it and passed over Winter Break Sophomore year, wasn't helpful at all for getting in the door anywhere.
SIE is the same difficulty as the final in my Intro to Finance course I took (4 semester-hours at my Non-Target) and I was finished with all the questions in about 25 mins. Not hard at all.
Used Knopman for training and start to finish took me two weeks, mainly studying after getting home from my 9-5 job.
Nobody will sponsor you at this stage for the 7/66 so I'd just wait a year. Spend this year networking HARD for a Sophomore internship, as that will help much more.
Oblique I would say taking the FINRA SIE as a freshman is too early (Anon mentioned the timing element and they're totally right). However, taking the FINRA SIE as an undergrad, either a junior or a senior, is a reasonable thing to do that will show you're serious about a finance career on your resume. I'd say it's worth it.
The FINRA SIE also isn't too tough - most can pass it in 50 hours of studying, and I'd say 100 hours tops. Of course, your mileage may vary, especially if you study for it over a long period of time.
Good luck!
Nerd
Save it for junior or senior year and just get it out of the way as a time saver. One less thing you have to do when you hit the desk.
For anyone who finds this thread later: the top-voted answer in this thread is right, and it holds up. If you're a college freshman (not high school, since FINRA requires you to be 18 to sit for the SIE) trying to figure out whether to spend a summer on this, the honest read is that the SIE alone won't move the needle much for recruiting into IB, PE, or VC. Nobody's pulling you into a first-round because you passed a 70% cutoff on an 80-question, 105-minute intro exam. What it can do is give you real vocabulary (equities, debt, options, regulatory structure) that makes case studies and technical interviews less foreign, and it's a legitimate way to fill a resume line if your internship fell through.
A few practical notes: you don't need a sponsor and there's no fee waiver, so budget the $100 fee and treat it like a light commitment, not a summer-defining project. Self-study from scratch is doable for a bright student in 4-6 weeks of consistent work, but weigh that time against learning basic Python, building your technical vocabulary, or actually working through real interview prep, since those transfer more directly to how you'll be evaluated. If you do go the SIE route, don't rely on a single paid provider's materials alone, cross-check with practice questions from a couple of sources so you're not just memorizing one bank's phrasing.
Disclosure: I run CertFuel, a free SIE prep course, so take my framing with that in mind.
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