Online FINRA Exams Are Coming to an End…Except for the SIE

Starting this month booking online FINRA exams is coming to an end. To be clear, the bookings ONLY are ending, and very soon having the ability to take it online will be ending. In today’s post, we go into detail on this new development.

 

Online FINRA Exams are Coming to an End…Noooo!

If you are one of the many thousands that enjoyed taking your exam from home, we hope that you don’t have to do it again. Online exam taking will no longer exist for almost all exams beyond September 2023.

FINRA has announced that June 9, 2023 was the last date that you could book an online exam. That includes all FINRA exams except for the SIE Exam. All exam taking going forward will be done in person.

That said, if you booked an online exam, you will have until September 9, 2023 to take it. If your exam is not taken by that day, FINRA will cancel your appointment and you’ll have to take it in person.

 

Why Are They Doing This?

Although we generally try to avoid speculation around FINRA’s motivations, our best guess is that it’s easier to monitor in-person exam taking.

Beyond simply making things easier to monitor, we expect fewer technical glitches as well. Our students report no shortage of technical glitches and snafus when taking the exam online. Using Prometric is a more reliable (most of the time) way for FINRA to deliver their exams.

Are there any exceptions? Well, actually yes.

FINRA may still make accommodations for those of you with a long commute. You may also be able to receive special accommodations if you have proof of need (e.g., doctors notes, etc.).

For more information check out FINRA’s website. Below is a blurb from their Series 7 portion of FINRA’s website:

“Beginning June 9, 2023, candidates will need an approved accommodation to schedule an online appointment for an NFA or FINRA exam (other than the SIE). Online appointments scheduled to be taken after Sept. 9, 2023, will be canceled if the candidate does not have an approved accommodation.”

Overall, this is unlikely to make any serious difference in outcomes. For a quick brush-up and to help you accelerate your progress so you don’t have to spend too much time studying over the summer, feel free to reach out. In the meantime, good luck with your exams!