Whether you are taking a FINRA or NASAA exam in 2024, there are some simple study tricks to know to get you through your exam the first time around.
These tricks seem so easy, that people sometimes ignore our advice and use their own methods. Sometimes that can be totally fine. However, after almost a decade of teaching, it is the most fool-proof way to ensure we get a student as close as possible to a pass, or a pass, the first time around.
FINRA or NASAA Exam in 2024…Space it Out
First things, first. Whether you are taking the SIE Exam, Series 7 Exam, Series 86 Exam, or Series 63 Exam, we recommend that you space out your studying.
Of course, work gets busy, and this is not always an option. If you can, try to study at a minimum of five days per week, and ideally six. Doing anything less may make it difficult to squeeze in all you need to learn, and doing more than that, you may risk burning out.
Doing five or six days per week over a 4 to 6 week will also help you spread out your studying so that you can revisit topics on a regular basis, and not overload your mind on any given day.
Most people we encounter that are having issues studying try studying one topic very intensely at a time. Some also visit a topic once and then leave the topic until the last week before the exam, and expect to remember everything. That is very unlikely to happen. Try juggling.
Juggling Starts with One
Studying is just like juggling. You start with one topic, and then you keep adding more. As you add more however you have to cycle back through the previous topics. To do so we recommend taking very small targeted exams.
You may ask yourself, how can I get through all of the topics if I’m only doing a handful (we recommend 15) of questions and drilling down into subtopics? The answer to this is that you should not necessarily be doing practice quizzes on all of the subtopics. You should only focus on the areas where the weight on the real exam is highest, and your score is the lowest.
Since you will need to fill in the gaps left with the smaller sections, take at least one full practice exam per week to make sure you are seeing all of the other areas. Ideally, we recommend two practice exams (Kaplan and STC are usually the best resources) per week, but do what your schedule will allow.
Overall, at Professional Exam Tutoring, we highly advocate, spreading out your studying, and repeatedly hitting areas that are highly weighted, and causing you issues. With enough time, you can play the odds and most people can scrounge up enough points to pass. If you need help on this, feel free to reach out! Good luck! And happy new year!