i meant not emphasized on the stc materials...

Sorry to hear that .  STC is really all  you need to pass the exam.  It might be a question of how you approached the exam.  You really need laser sharp focus and concentration when studying for the 7.  Put in at least 100 hours and study almost every day.  DO NOT put away your books for more than two days at a time.  You may think this is funny, but pick-up Series 7 for dummies.  It really does break things down and can give you a different perspective.  I really don't think you need to spent a couple hundred more dollars on prep material.  Get the dummies book, study until you are getting high 80's-low 90's and you will be fine.  

I passed the exam yesterday with an 80% using STC materials. I agree that the greenlight exams were not even close to the actual test format. I only had a few things come up for the addendum. One question on what the vix moves inversly with, few questions on CMO's, but a lot on discretion on accounts. I really thought the STC supplemental exam that is 163 questions is fairly similar to how the test is structured.

Thanks guys. I think i need some new set of questions though. Any feedback about the kaplan materials? Copyright for this was just January 2012.

I think i need to focus more and re-read everything again. Basically going through each and everything. MikeA101010 i think you're right it had really a ton on acccount discretion and suitability. I was basing everything on concept and muni's and all the advice that was given to me about concentrating on it, but i think it applies more for the previous format.

Well, the new series 7 was suppose to de-emphasize munis and spread the questions around.  I am surprised Muni's were as heavily tested as you suggest.  If the emphasis is on suitability, it will be more difficult to get a high score.  The quantitative element (options, etc.) in the past has enabled people to get high scores.  It is much easier to get points on quant questions, than on questions that require you to memorize some text from the material.  

Munis were still a big part of the exam. I took the previous version of the test a few months back and failed by 3 questions and then passed on Tuesday and I would say Munis are weighted about the same. The only difference being it is not geared towards the underwriting of them, but more towards the suitability of them for clients, as well as things like the advertising of them and so forth. Now obviously that only applies to my 250 questions that I saw, in what I believe is a 1000 question bank to draw from. Another thing I noticed in the live exam versus practice, is that the live exam didnt have answer sets that were in the form of;

A) I

B) I or II

C) I, III and IV

D) I, II, III, IV

Which really made me feel comfortable. They still had the paired answers (I & II, II & III, etc.)

Hey MikeA

What study guide did you use for the series 7 exam?

I used STC book with the online exams. Comes with 13 Exams that you can do 4 times Q&A style, and 4 times closed book, all of them 125 questions each. They also have a 163 question supplemental exam that is supposed to prep you for the new test question format. They also have 2 progress exams that  I believe are broken down for each half of the book, 2 "Greenlight" Exams that are supposed to be the closest version of the test (I didnt think so though). And then they have an options test, and a muni test. And then you can take by topic exams.

Thanks Mike,

I'm currently using the STC material as well. Hopefully I will pass on my first try.

Good luck. I would spend some time on the addendum question set as well. Its a good way to study the new version of the question format. I took that quiz the night before and got a 92 on it. Then after the first half of the test, felt like there was no way I would pass it. But luckily it worked out for me.

I got the kaplan stuff today, so far been reading through my online access that they provided me. It seems like it is more detailed and explains suitability more in their sample questions in one PDF file i am reading. I hope this helps me out.

Example:

A customer is considering adding a real estate investment trust (REIT) to their portfolio.

They list all of the following as “plusses” or advantages. You correct your customer and

point out that one of them is not an advantage of investing in REITs. Which one is it?

A.) a professionally managed portfolio of commercial real estate assets

B.) dividend treatment

C.) using real estate as a potential hedge against the movement of other equity securities

the customer owns

D.) being able to divest of the shares easily

Correct answer: B.) dividend treatment

Rationale: Of those listed, only dividend treatment can be identified as not being an

advantage. While the expectation of receiving dividends is inherently good, dividends

paid by REITs to their shareholders are not recognized as qualified, and are therefore

taxable to the investor at their full ordinary income tax rate. The shares are traded on

exchanges or OTC and considered liquid, and having professionally managed assets

should be a plus. While real estate valuation and price movements are subject to many

forces, historically real estate has provided some hedge against the movements of other

equity securities.

Hope this helps out:

Five Major Job Functions / Number of Questions

1.) Seeks Business for the Broker-Dealer through Customers and potential Customers / 68 Questions

2.) Evaluates Customers' Other Security Holdings, Financial Situation and Needs, Financial Status, Tax Status, and Investment Objectives / 27 Questions

3.) Opens Accounts, Transfers Assets, and Maintains Appropriate Account Records / 27 Questions

4.) Provides Customers with Information on Investments and Makes Suitable Recommendations / 70 Questions

5.) Obtains and Verifies Customer's Purchase and Sales Instructions, Enters Orders, and Follows Up / 58 Questions

Good luck man.  Study your butt off for the next month, reschedule the exam and pass it.  

My score breakdown per section was 1) 76-85% 2) 50-60% 3) 86-90% section 4 and 5 was 76-85%

Hcalvarez,  if the questions are as easy as the one you included in this thread, then everyone should do just fine

There were some complex questions along those lines on the live exam. Little bit trickier though I thought. The one that sticks in my mind from the test was, what kind of position would you add to a clients IRA based on his salary, his 401k investments, his life insurance policy and the fact that he is getting a raise.

Hi Everyone,

I used Training Consultants and passed the 7 two days ago. I was very satisfied with with the support I received from TC. I could email a question and get a response the same day. On the exam I had alot of option questions, hedge fund, ETF, ETN, variable annuity, and municipals too.

I passed last week with an 86 using STC. I'd say it was still pretty muni and options heavy, and the options were extremely easier than most of the ones on the STC material. There was a lot of suitability, but you just have to think about what you've learned and apply it. Most of the suitability I saw were either tax treatment, time horizon suitability, or it was explicitly tell you what the client is looking for and you had to pick the appropriate product. There was one kinda tricky one that said 'joe wants to get broad exposure to the market and is willing to accept a lot of risk, which of these would meet his objective of accepting high levels of risk for maximum return' or something to that end. Then there would be answers like index etfs, etns, etc. but at the bottom was hedge funds.

One thing that I know wasn't covered in too much depth on STC was the minutae of Coverdell vs 529 plans and there was a question on that which you really had to know the both of them pretty well. It asked for a client who wanted to control the distributions of the account AND didnt want to pay someone to manage the account. Those options are mutually exclusive in both the 529 and Coverdell (they each have one or the other). The other two answers were UTMA which I didn't pick because you don't control the distribution on that one either...everything transfers at 18. The final answer was the one I picked with was a Trust, which I know barely if anything was mentioned about, but it was the process of elimination. Again, I don't know if I was right or not and I'm sure someone here will let me know if I'm wrong, but overall it was stressful but if you do the Q&A's, identify which ones you're getting wrong and study them before you do the next one, then do the closed book exams after you do all of them in a row, you will be fine. By the way, don't freak out if you're not scoring high on the first round of Q&As. It will all come together if you're honest with yourself about not memorizing the questions and you put the time in to do all of the tests.

Good luck to all...on to the 66.

I also used STC Material and failed the exam. I was scoring 80%+ on my practice and progress exams. I am looking to purchase new test questions and am leaning towards TC. Has anyone used them? Any input would be greatly appreciated. 

I have been studying the kaplan now for a few weeks and find it very similar to the test. I was on your boat, but now with kaplan, I am having a wake up call. I was not ready at all for the test. Scoring only low 60's so far. Havent finished the book yet, but the questions are more complex, and i beleive more closer to the actual exam.

I hope this helps you out. Feel for you..im taking my second shot at it next month. Good luck to us both.