I recently passed the Series 65 Exam to become a certified financial advisor and it was a lot more involved than I had anticipated. I have always enjoyed and had a high level of aptitude for personal finance and wanted to make a career transition to a fee-only advisor.  I have no formal education or training in finance or the financial advisory field, so I spoke with a friend who was a former financial advisor and he basically told me that the Series 65 Exam was no big deal and it should only take me about a week or so to study for it. My plan was to just watch some exam prep videos and ace the test.

I purchased an online exam prep course from Kaplan for about $200. With this came a study guide manual, access to online test questions, and some exam prep videos. I’m a visual learner and a slow reader, so the videos were the thing I was most interested in using for study material. I spent a week watching the videos and taking notes on them and took a full practice test and scored a 67%.  A passing score is 72%, I thought it was a decent start for my first test.  Unfortunately, over the next 3 weeks, I took 3 more tests and never scored above a 68%. Suddenly, this “no big deal” of a test was becoming a really big deal and I was struggling to figure out why my scores were not getting better even though my knowledge of the material was improving.  Something had to change because reading the study guide manual and watching some videos (multiple times) was not working for me.

After doing some critical evaluation on how I was preparing, I realized that I was studying to learn the material instead of studying to pass the exam.  There is a difference!  I totally changed the method of my studies for 1 week and took another test. I scored a 73% which was 7 percentage point higher than my previous test score of 66% and, more importantly, a passing score. I continued the new study method and my scores continued to increase. After another 2 weeks, I scored an 84% and felt ready to sit for the Series 65 Exam which I passed on my first attempt. 

In review, the first 4 weeks of my exam prep produced 4 test scores between 66-68%.  Even more concerning, my scores actually regressed on my last 2 practice tests. After changing my study methods I was able to improve my scores by 18 percentage points in 3 weeks with a test score of 84%.  In the Series 65 Study Guide Method, I include screenshots of every practice test score I took so you can view my progression from start to finish.  The more study time can be reduced, the better.  Time lost is money lost and I would like to save you the 4 weeks of frustration that I experienced at the start of this.  

The Series 65 Study Guide Method was created with 2 main goals: First, to help you pass the Series 65 Exam in the least amount of study time as possible. Second, to pass the Series 65 Exam with the least amount of money spent on study guide materials as possible.

Currently, most online study guide and exam prep courses are going from $200 to $300 with some over $400. That’s a lot of money to spend if it is not necessary, especially when the Series 65 Exam costs $175 to take. The Series 65 Study Guide Method will present you with unique study guide materials and multiple options so you can make the best choice for your learning preferences and maximize every dollar you spend.  Your total expenses on study guide materials, when using the Series 65 Study Guide Method, should be under $160 and potentially much less.

The Series 65 Study Guide Method contains PDF files within a compressed (zipped) folder that you will receive immediately after purchase that you can use as a study guide right away. The Series 65 Study Guide Method includes:
• A 5-page explanation of the method for how to organize and focus your studies to pass the Series 65 Exam in less time 
• A 1-page overview of the Series 65 Study Guide Method
• Two 1-page Tables that prioritizes the exam content and the exam topics you need to study
• Multiple screenshots from the Kaplan website so you can view my progression and have visual examples to reference  

Some of the topics within the Series 65 Study Guide Method include:

- Specific method to prioritize your study time - Why reading the entire exam manual is a poor use of study time - How to set up practice quizzes - A review of study materials from Kaplan and other companies - Where to access free or low cost study materials and videos - Unique exam tips and test-taking strategies

Lastly, I appreciate you taking the time to check out the website and to show my appreciation, I have provided a detailed description of the Series 65 Exam and compiled a brief list of study guide materials that I used and found helpful in my exam prep that you can access for FREE!  

I wish you all the best and hope everything on this website and in the Series 65 Study Guide Method serves you as well as it did for me!

GOOD LUCK!

____________________________________

- THE SERIES 65 STUDY GUIDE METHOD DOES NOT CONTAIN ANY SERIES 65 TEST CONTENT (PRACTICE QUESTIONS OR DISCUSSION OF KEY TERMS/PRINCIPLES) AND SHOULD NOT BE USED IN PLACE OF ANY SERIES 65 EXAM MANUAL OR PRACTICE TESTS.  THE SERIES 65 STUDY GUIDE METHOD IS MEANT AS A STUDY GUIDE TO ORGANIZE THE FOCUS OF YOUR STUDIES FOR MAXIMUM EFFICIENCY OF YOUR EXAM PREP TIME AND MONEY SPENT RELATED TO PASSING THE SERIES 65 EXAM.

- THE SERIES 65 STUDY GUIDE METHOD WAS DEVELOPED USING MATERIALS FROM KAPLAN.  HAVING ACCESS TO THE KAPLAN SECURITIES PRO QBANK PRACTICE QUESTIONS AND LICENSE EXAM MANUAL IS RECOMMENDED, BUT NOT REQUIRED.

- THE AUTHOR HAS NO AFFILIATION WITH KAPLAN.