Answers to common questions about the FINRA Series 57 exam: eligibility and sponsorship, SIE corequisite, format/timing, scoring, retakes, what’s tested, and how to study.
Policies can change—confirm critical details with FINRA and your firm before scheduling.
Yes. Series 57 is a representative-level qualification exam and generally requires association with a FINRA member firm (or other applicable SRO member firm).
Yes. Series 57 is paired with the SIE as a corequisite. You must pass both to obtain the Securities Trader Representative registration.
Series 57 focuses on the practical rule-and-process knowledge used by traders: order types, market access controls, prohibited practices, short sale rules, Reg NMS concepts, and trade reporting/audit trails/settlement.
FINRA uses a scaled (equated) score. Unscored pretest items are mixed in and do not affect your result.
Put most of your time into F1 (82%): order handling, market access controls, Reg SHO and Reg NMS concepts, and prohibited practices. Then lock in clean points in F2 (18%): trade reporting, CAT/records, confirmations and settlement flow.
FINRA retake waiting periods can depend on attempt count and exam type. Verify current rules with FINRA at scheduling time.