How I Passed Series 65 Exam On My First Attempt
Back in July of 2023, I took (and passed) the Series 65 Exam. This is a summary of things I can share about the exam.
That aside, there is a confidentiality statement that I agreed to before I took the exam, so I won’t be sharing any questions or specific information about the test that isn’t already available elsewhere.
Besides, every test is different. Yes, everyone receives the same number of questions from the same pool of topical categories, but no two tests are the same.
The exam was 140 questions long (only 130 count toward your score) and I had three hours to complete it.
Here are six things I wish I could go back and tell myself before I took the test.
1) Study A Bunch
I frequently asked myself, and Google, how much study time I needed to commit to leading up to the test.
You see, I’m a busy parent with two kids and a full-time job that isn’t exactly related to personal finance or investing. It was a sacrifice to spend my evenings reading study guides.
For the most part, the recommendations I read suggested studying about 60 hours.
If you already work in the financial industry, that may be enough. It wasn’t for me. At least, not enough to feel comfortable about.
I used the Securities Institute of America’s (SIA) Series 65 Exam prep book and online test bank to study for the exam. You can read my review of their products here.
SIA recommended two trips through the book (466 pages) and completion of all of the available online materials, including their insanely difficult GreenLight exam, in order to be fully prepared.
It was also suggested that once you are regularly scoring in the mid-80s or better on their practice tests you are probably ready for the exam.
Personally, I read through the textbook completely twice, then read through sections of the book I had highlighted (because they were challenging or important or both) 3 additional times.
I used all of the available online materials and answered 1062 of the 1900 available questions in the SIA test bank.
By the time test day rolled around, I was answering new questions correctly about 85%-90% of the time.
All told, I’d estimate that I spent around 100 hours preparing for the test over the course of 2.5 months.
I wouldn’t assume you can just cram for this test a week or two before the exam. It’s just too much material. I wouldn’t say it was the hardest test I ever took, but I don’t recall studying this much for another one either.
2) Use An Exam Prep Book/Guide
I seriously have no idea how you’d prepare for this test without prep material unless you’re already in the industry with a job closely related to investment advising or an attorney specializing in securities law or both.
As I mentioned earlier, I used SIA and, overall, it did the job. (Note: I do not receive any compensation for sharing my thoughts about SIA.)
The people who put together these materials clearly know a lot about the exam.
Given the breadth of material the exam covers, the textbook I used did a good job of being concise and getting to the point, even if the material is dry.
This feature alone ensured I was studying relevant information and not wasting my time on material I was unlikely to see on the test.
The exam prep software was very helpful as well. It was similar in difficulty to the actual exam (if not a touch harder) and the format was nearly identical.
It also helped me practice identifying key pieces of information in each question and sharpened my eye for “trick” questions.
I noticed as I continued using the exam test bank that I made fewer and fewer reading errors and understood each question very well.
(As an aside, I didn’t feel like the test tried to trick me as much as the prep material from SIA.)
3) Focus Heavily on The Legal Aspects of the Test
There are four categories covered on the Series 65 exam and they are broken out in the test as follows:
- Economic Factors & Business Information (15%)
- Investment Vehicle Characteristics (25%)
- Client Investment Recommendations & Strategies (30%)
- Laws, Regulations, Guidelines, & Ethics (30%)
For me, the most difficult questions were easily from the laws, regulations, guidelines, and ethics category. I don’t know how well I did on those, but that’s certainly where I was least confident in my answers.
I knew that was a weaker category for me based on my prep exam scores, but I didn’t really focus on it much more than the others in the days leading up to the test.
I should have used the exam prep test bank to focus questions in this category a little more, but oh well.
It’s also 30% of the test, so time spent there is better served toward a passing score.
If you have access to practice materials and notice that you seem to struggle a bit more in one category or another, I suggest directing more study time to your weaknesses.
4) The Testing Software is User Friendly
I never really expected the testing system itself to be clunky and difficult to use. After all, thousands of people across the country take this test each year.
The testing software is simple to navigate and easy to understand. Additionally, the first few minutes at the computer are spent walking through a tutorial that explains how to use the features in the testing software.
My favorite feature is the ability to mark questions you want to come back to.
Once you’ve selected a multiple-choice answer, a button appears at the bottom of the screen that provides an option to mark the question for review later.
Additionally, there’s a button that will take you to a screen that allows you to quickly visualize which questions you’ve answered, which questions you’ve flagged for review, and which questions you’ve yet to respond to.
This means you can quickly jump back to a question at any point in the exam, and then jump back to the last question you were on just as fast.
It was especially useful for marking items that I wasn’t completely sure I had answered correctly. The feature allowed me to review those responses with the time I had remaining in the exam.
Honestly, I caught a few mistakes in my review. Who knows? They might have been the difference between passing and failing.
5) Pee Before You Start
It may be a bit crass, but it’s also very practical advice. I also didn’t need my future self to give me this little tip.
You are allowed to get up to go to the restroom during the exam if you need to, but it would be a pain to sign out, go, come back, go through inspection again, sign in, then get back to the test.
Not to mention all those steps will cost you time.
Just do yourself a favor and plan ahead so you’re not distracted during your test.
While you’re at it, I’d recommend wearing something comfortably warm for the exam.
I felt like a bit of an idiot walking into the test wearing a hoodie and jeans…in Alabama…in July, but I was glad I had long sleeves and pants during the test because the air in the room was quite chilly.
You really don’t need anything at the facility other than your ID. The test center provided a locker for storing personal items, a calculator, and two dry-erase sheets of laminated paper with markers.
There was also a set of ear muffs to block out noise from around you. I was in a room with dozens of other people taking different tests and one guy had an annoying habit of nervously tapping his locker key on his desk.
Seriously, guy. Like were you just completely unaware that the rest of us were trying to concentrate?
I used the calculator twice during the exam and used the dry-erase sheet to draw out an options chart I memorized to help me avoid getting confused on those during the test.
There’s also a calculator built into the exam software along with a notepad if you’d prefer to use those instead.
6) Other Thoughts About My Experience
Overall, the test was a little easier than I expected.
The first 30 to 40 questions flew by as I found them to be relatively easy.
The middle third of the test was the most challenging for me and I even wondered for a bit whether or not I was in danger of failing.
Then, the last 40 questions were as easy as the start and my confidence rebounded.
After my first run through the exam, there were about 35 to 40 questions that I went back to review. I changed my responses on 6 to 8 of them.
It took me two hours to get through all 140 questions and I spent about 45 minutes revisiting questions I had marked, carefully reading each word.
I didn’t need the full-time, but I definitely didn’t want to have to take the exam again so I was very careful in my review.
Submitting the exam at the end was straightforward. It takes a couple of confirmation clicks so you don’t have to worry about hitting the wrong button after your last question and losing your opportunity for a review.
After clicking the final, submit, end my test, point of no return button, the computer spends a few seconds processing your test, and… your heart rate increases by about 20%…you are asked to acknowledge that the test itself does not license you to begin selling financial advice…your heart rate increases by about 40%…and you’re waiting for word…and…
Result: Pass. Whew.
Onto the next screen.
It felt very unceremonious, but the sense of relief was profound for me anyway.
Finally, there was a survey asking a few questions about the testing facility and my experience. My reviews were all positive.
Then I left the exam room, picked up my stuff, went to my car, was called back by the testing admin, got my fancy sheet of paper (it’s not really fancy at all), and then I went home.
Other Questions People Ask:
What materials did you use to prepare for the Series 65 exam?
I used The Securities Institute of America’s Series 65 Exam Review textbook and their online test bank. I also wrote a review about these products.
How much time did you spend studying for the Series 65 exam?
In all, I estimate that I spent about 100 hours preparing for the exam over the course of 10 weeks. This includes reading the prep textbook I bought twice and taking the available practice tests and quizzes from SIA that came with my study materials package.
I took my time reading through the book twice, spent a couple of weeks taking online quizzes and reviewing things from the book I was struggling with, and then probably spent over 50 hours of my prep time in the last two weeks before the test.
Was the Series 65 exam hard?
Yes and no.
I took a practice exam I found online before I began studying and I got about 55% of those questions right. Obviously, I didn’t know what I was doing.
However, with 100 or so hours of prep, I didn’t think the exam was all that difficult.
My point is your experience will depend in large part on how well you prepare for the test. I didn’t think it was particularly tricky or challenging to understand.
For most questions, you either knew it or you didn’t. Period.
Did you get a score from your test?
No, but I got a lovely sheet of paper with my name on it, the NASAA logo, my test information, and the word “Pass.”
I just noticed that the test center notarized it too, so that’s cool.
Actually, I walked out of the testing center without this piece of paper and had to be chased down in the parking lot by one of the test administrators.
Looking back, this piece of paper seems important. Be sure you pick yours up on the way out the door.
I’m several hours removed from the exam now and I have to admit that I’m very curious how many I got right and wrong.
Oh well. I’m sure there’s a good reason you don’t get your actual score.
