What Is Series 9/10?
If you're looking into securities supervision, you need to know that Series 9/10 is a two-part exam and license that allows you to oversee sales activities at a general securities branch office. Before you even think about taking these exams—officially called the General Securities Sales Supervisor Qualification Exams—you must already hold a Series 7 license.
These exams cover supervision of options, general securities sales, and trading in primary and secondary markets. FINRA administers them, and they used to be known as the Series 8 Exam. As the name implies, it's split: Series 9 is shorter, focusing on options sales, trading, regulation, and administration, while Series 10 dives deeper into a wider array of similar topics and requirements.
Series 9/10 Permitted Activities
The point of Series 9/10 is to ensure supervisors are competent to protect investors, so it tests your expertise in supervising sales of various products. This includes corporate securities, rights, warrants, closed-end funds, money market funds, REITs, asset-backed securities, mortgage-backed securities (corporate), equity options, options on corporate-backed securities, mutual funds, variable annuities and variable life insurance, government securities, repos and certificates of accrual on government securities, and direct participation programs.
Series 9/10 Eligibility
To be eligible, you must be registered with a FINRA member firm or another self-regulatory organization, and you need to have passed the Series 7 General Securities Representative test already. That's the baseline—don't skip it.
Series 9/10 Test Content
The exam has 215 multiple-choice questions across four major content areas: 60 for Series 9 and 145 for Series 10, including 15 unscored questions scattered in (five in Series 9, ten in Series 10). You'll get 90 minutes for Series 9 and four hours for Series 10. There's no penalty for guessing, so answer everything. It's computer-based, and you need 70% to pass. Check FINRA's Content Outline for more details.
Questions get updated with new rules, so stay current. Here's what the exam tests in terms of job functions and scored questions:
Series 10 (Part 1) Functions
- Function 1: Supervise associated persons and personnel management activities (28 questions)
- Function 2: Supervise the opening and maintenance of customer accounts (49 questions)
- Function 3: Supervise sales practices and general trading activities (52 questions)
- Function 4: Supervise communications with the public (16 questions)
Series 9 (Part 2) Functions
- Function 1: Supervise the opening and maintenance of customer options accounts (18 questions)
- Function 2: Supervise sales practices and general options trading activities (19 questions)
- Function 3: Supervise options communications (5 questions)
- Function 4: Supervise associated persons and personnel management activities (13 questions)
Series 9/10 Exam Sample Questions
To give you an idea, here are some sample questions from FINRA, with correct answers marked by an asterisk:
Example 1: Which of the following items is considered retail communication? (A) Electronic communication distributed to institutional investors on a daily basis (B) Social media communication with institutional investors on a daily basis (C) Written communication distributed to 10 retail investors within a 30-day period (D) Written communication distributed to more than 25 retail investors within a 30-day period*
Example 2: A qualified person must inspect an office of supervisory jurisdiction (OSJ) at least: (A) Quarterly (B) Annually* (C) Every two years (D) Every three years
Example 3: Listed equity options would not be adjusted for which of the following actions in the underlying security? (A) A 2-for-1 stock split (B) A 1-for-5 reverse stock split (C) A stock dividend of 5% (D) A cash dividend of $0.50*
The Difference Between Series 9/10 and Series 24
Both Series 9/10 and Series 24 are for principals supervising sales activities, but there are key differences. With Series 24, you're qualified to supervise sales in corporate securities, rights, warrants, closed-end funds, money market funds, REITs, asset-backed securities, corporate mortgage-backed securities, mutual funds, variable annuities and variable life insurance, direct participation programs, securities traders, venture capital, mergers and acquisitions, and corporate financing. Plus, it covers overseeing the firm's overall investment banking and securities business.
Series 9/10 covers sales supervision in all that (except securities traders, venture capital, mergers, acquisitions, and corporate financing), and adds equity options, options on corporate mortgage-backed securities, government securities, repos and certificates of accrual on government securities, municipal securities, and municipal fund securities. It covers more ground in some areas, so choose based on your role.
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