I recently finished working with someone who used Smart 66 on the Web from Pass Perfect and he passed with a 80%. He was using materials from another provider and was scoring 80 to 90% on practice tests and then he switched to Pass Perfect and on his first final exam he scored about a 60%. Their exams are tough which is great. With my help and his hard work with the Pass Perfect materials, he passed the exam on his first try. A friend of his had used Training Consultants based on positive comments about them and failed the exam on his first two attempts. Not sure if it was the materials or lack of effort on the second attempt. On his first attempt, this person did not study very much.

I would have to say it was lack of effort. I studied with TC and TC only and passed with an 83 on the first attempt.

I must stay the series 66 is a very hard exam. If you are using training consultants focus on the laws chapters 1,2,4 and chapter 5 and 6 for Investments and you will pass. You have to score in the 90’s for the standard finals to succeed in the exam and really try to understand the concepts. I managed to get an 83% first attempt but I earned it. Very very very hard exam and I can see how someone can fail if you don’t understand the underlying concepts. I would say you can use any provider but understand the concepts because if you are looking for questions hoping for them to be on the actual exam you WILL FAIL plain simple. You have to put in more effort than 7. Anyways good luck to you all.

Well guys, mark another win down for TC - I studied my butt off after not passing the first time using FireSolutions and decided to purchase TC on my own because of all the great things I heard about it from this forum.

I studied for three weeks (1/4-1/23) using TC and scored in the low to mid 80’s (83, 85, 82, 79, 85) on my first round of finals, I then went back and reread chapters 1 and 6 and took sets of 50 questions twice in chapter 1 and 6. Following this I took 2 Random Finals and scored 92 and 89 and then retook the finals I didn’t score above 85 on.

Following this I called TC and spoke with the people they had available to answer questions - every time I called they were available and gave me 30-40 minutes of phone time to ask any questions I had and were extremely quick and helpful in answering everything I had asked.

Yesterday I took my exam at 3pm - before it I was extremely nervous (my job was on the line) and I called to ask 2 last minute questions, to my surprise the owner of the company, who is also the founder (Tina) was actually the one who took my call. She was extremely nice, helped me figure things out and literally gave me a pep talk and calmed me down, she said “I predict you will score between 83 and 87 based on your questions and exam scores - you will be fine” and then gave me her email to follow up and let her know how I did. I SCORED AN 85. Talk about an accurate forecast! I must say that not only did the course content completely prepare me for the test but the customer service and availability of support was amazing.

10 out of 10 for TC - buy it if you want to pass this test.

Can someone please send me the KAPLAN “cheat sheet” for the S66. I am testing next week.

I had to pay for mine, so I am guessing that everyone else is going to make you do the same. Don’t put all of your hope in passing the exam with it. It is a 4 page breakdown. You need to know a lot more about the information than what they give you. The best thing, even though it is time consuming is to go through the book and jot down, “what is this…” on every subject that you are having difficulty with. I had the cheat sheet for the 7 and it only helps you if you know a lot about the subject.

Anyone who has recently taken the 66 exam and pssed using training consultants-
I am using TC and am currently scoring mid-high 80’s on exam’s and topic quiz’s. However,my concern is that Ive seen most of the questions before…
Is the actual S66 exam harder than the TC study questions?

I dont feel confident. Im testing in less than a week.

Was scoring 60’s on Kaplans 50 question mini-sets on Friday. Bought TC on Saturday scored 75, 83, 85, 88, 89 with a 88 on the Random Final on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday. Took the exam today, and got an 85%. Net net, about ten days of studying and banged it out whenever I had time after work. My advice, do as many questions as possible, even if it means less time taking notes on the actual material. After you have completed enough questions you can start to see trends, and in my opinion that is a much better way to learn than reading this dry garbage.

I’m not sure if people still look at this forum since it’s a little old, but passed the 66 today with an 82 and thought I’d give my experience since I read through forums when I was studying…a lot are probably my opinions…

1…yes, the 66 is much harder than the 7. The 7 was a TON of material, but it was "this definition is “this” and that security is “that”. Very, very little of the 66 is actual straight up answers, a lot is scenarios and understanding concepts…and if u know that “x” is the reason for “this”…u also have to know “x” might have 3 other things it’s called.
2.) I used my calculator once, and as stated earlier by someone…it was like “3.5% x 4%”…so if u graduated 8th grade…no math
3.) I used pass perfect to study, once u got to the FINALS…the questions became realistic, studying the practice questions/tests will give u a BASE understanding…but the main focus should be the final exams.
4.) don’t get discouraged…again as stated earlier, I felt like I was guessing 3/4ths of the test…so what was CRUCIAL was eliminating the wrong answers first. It seems inevitable, a LARGE part of the 66 is making educated guesses…I even remember looking at my screen seeing 51/110 complete and thinking “wow I’d really like to just stand up and leave…” So I raised my hand, took a pee break, and came back and finished
5.) the bell curve for me was 100% accurate…first and last 10-15, super easy, basic outta the study book questions…the middle was where I literally said multiple times “wtf test am I even taking??”

Study hard, study a lot, and learn concepts instead of straight up answers and ull do fine. Just don’t expect this to be a test u breeze through. Just my $.02

I took the 66 yesterday. Prior to doing so, I read through this thread with great interest and much fear. Maybe my experience can help.

I am in a unique situation in that I had actually taken and passed the 66 14 years ago (with a 72, which was good enough back then). But I had moved out of the country since then, and have just returned, so was required to re-take both the 7 (which I passed one week ago with a 92), as well as the 66. Having taken the 7 and the Canadian equivalent before, and having worked as an adviser managing securities in the real world, the 7 was not a problem. The 66 is a different animal. I had forgotten everything relating to state regulations, and had to learn this stuff from scratch. Also, the regulations have changed somewhat since I took it before.

My study guide was Kaplan, which I supplemented with the video tutorial from Knopman. The Knopman videos were very good at providing a core understanding of the key concepts. As a side note, I also used their video seminar for the 7, which I found much better than at explaining it than the Kaplan study manual and video lectures. I highly recommend Knopman for the 7 more than the 66, although both are good.

The Kaplan 66 guide seemed pretty good to me, although I have nothing to compare it with. It’s the only guide I used. My approach was to use the Knopman videos to learn the core information, and the Kaplan material to delve into the minutiae. I only had four study days, and spent about 8 hours each day reading or using the Kaplan Qbank exams. My last day of study was almost exclusively taking practice exams. My highest score was a 74 on those exams, so needless to say, I worried. Reading this thread scared me even more, and I had every expectation of failing this exam.

Turns out, I passed with a 75. I got every answer right on the investment and recommendation portions, and scored in the 60s everywhere else.

This exam sucks on many levels. Listen to the others who have emphasized that doing well on the 7 isn’t an indication of how you might do on the 66. It’s a different beast. Much more difficult than the 7, in my opinion. It also has zero application to the real world. It’s more a rite of passage than helpful preparation. I hated this exam so much, and suspect there is a special place in hell for those who create it.

I passed my series 66 yesterday with TC! This was my second attempt.

(My first attempt was with Examfx and I only got a 63% after 15 hrs of studying. I hadn’t touched series 7 stuff at all, new to industry, and had no idea how hard I had to study. Maybe Examfx isn’t so bad, but who knows…)

The TC practice exams were great (especially for the laws, which were half the exam), I only used them for 3 days. I read the TC book for about 30 hours though, prior to taking the exams.

The real test had many similar questions, but there were about 20-35 in the middle of the exam that were still iffy. The answer choices to these questions were either worded really similarly or required more in-depth knowledge of things like UGMA accounts, small details of variable annuities/life insurance policies.

IMO, no one can get 100% on this beast of an exam, since NASAA basically gets to focus on any small topic and ask super detail-oriented questions that are barely addressed in TC, STC, or what have you. The wording on the questions regarding laws can get super ridiculous as well.

I’m willing to talk more about/share TC if you PM me.

I just wanted to take a moment to add my 2 cents from my experience with the 66.

TLDR: Passed the 66 with an 82 using STC. Used Prac Exams and Closed Books with a review of the On Demand the night before.

I have to say first off this test was much more difficult for me than the 7. Even though I scored better on this test I felt I was double guessing myself throughout all of the prac exams and the final. What I feel was the most difficult was the versatility of concepts going back and forth on the state and federal side.

I scored decent on the Chapter reviews but horrible on the Q & A “Open Book” exams(Avg 68-70). The First Greenlight I scored a 66. I then went back and started the Closed Books exams and also took some of the exams “By Topic” on the areas I struggled on. From there I was scoring 80’s and 90’s on the Closed Books and scored a 79 on the Final Greenlight. Finally last night I repeated what I did for my 7, I opened up my laptop and let the On Demand lecture play on the topics I felt needed further review before I fell asleep. I also followed STC’s advice to arrive an hour early and review your notes one last time.

All in all this was a make or break test for me and I am beyond relieved that I passed. The test itself was very general with the questions and I felt I had about 22 questions that I was unsure of. I know most would like some magic trick to pass this but I feel the test itself is an anomaly.

In closing don’t get discouraged and don’t be scared off by whether someone fails with one product or another. I think I psyched myself out reading the stories on STC and the failures here. At the end of the day you get what you put into it and I wish everyone who attempts this the best of luck. Cheers.

I took the 66 for possibly the 5th time today, losing count at this point, and still did not pass, I made a 68, isn’t the passing grade 72? Each time I’ve taken it come just 3-4 points away from passing but I just cannot pass. I’ve done the online courses, studied the book done the live cram course, what else can I possibly do to get beyond the few points I’m coming behind at? I am really getting frustrated and it is maddening. I took the 7 and 63 and passed fine but the 66 is absolutely crazy I know the material since I’m coming so close but I understand there is a standard grade for passing. WHAT the heck else can I possibly do to pass it??? It is really upsetting me and I have studied very hard, each time I take the online Kaplan tests I can create on line, I pass them so I thought that was a sign I’m ready… can anyone offer any suggestions I’m going to take it in another month and if I don’t pass the 6th time I am giving up.

The passing score is not 72, it is 75. Failing by 7 points indicates that you do not know the material well enough. You might be doing the work but you might not be understand what you are doing on a high enough level. I would look for different materials. My experience with students who use Kaplan is that sometimes they score considerably lower on the actual exam than on practice exams. This is especially the case when the student is using the materials over and over again. I recommend Pass Perfect’s Smart programs to most of my students. I just finished working with a series 65 student. He took 3 PP finals and the average of his exams was 77%. He passed today with a 77%. With that said, he had an advantage going into this; he has worked in investments for 30 years. You are at a big disadvantage with the 65 and the 66 if you do not have much investment experience. These people should probably seek help from someone with the experience.

Just seeing if there was anyone out there that could help me with the current situation I’m in? I have been studying with TC and Kaplan for the past month. I started taking the mock exams for kaplan and the standard finals with TC. So for, I’m averaging about a 78 with the kaplan exams and about a 77 with the TC exams (73, 79, 79, 78, still have to take the 5th exam). I am pretty scared becuase I take the exam on Friday and I don’t think I am getting good enough grades on these finals. I should be making higher grades on them, when I go back I tend to see that I have made a very dumb mistake on 3-4 questions each exam. So my knowledge is much greater than my test scores. I was just wondering if there is anyone else that has taken the test and has been in my position? If so, how did you do, any advice?

I would postpone the exam.

Hey all! So my story is that I took the 7 with STC material and got a 87. However, I realized that 1) STC practice questions are worded very differently from the actual test and 2) that it gives you more information than you need.

So, for the 66 I have been using TC partially because of comments on here and partially because of what other people I know have said. I have studied SIGNIFICANTLY less for the 66 than I did for the 7 and have gotten 85, 77, 83 and 78 on the first 4 tests by TC. The 78 doesn’t worry me too much because frankly i took the 4th test in a rush and didn’t go through it at a reasonable pace. However, I am slightly worried that these tests don’t really ask you tough questions. I take the test this Thursday and am curious of what other practice tests i can buy and take that will help build my confidence in the material. Basically, what other program has a great question bank/practice tests?

Also what scores should i be getting on the TC and whichever material you recommend to make sure that I’m really prepared for this thing?

Ok here is the real deal and no BS. I took the series 65 two times and got a 70 both times. I was using Test Teachers who I used for my 7, 6, 63, and Life and Health. They are amazing for those but for the 65 and 66 I would NEVER suggest. The only program I would suggest is Training Consultants. Training Consultants is amazing and was way different material than Test Teachers. I was scored a 78, 84, 74, 76, 84 on my finals. I scored an 89% on the 66 yesterday and I am a HORRIBLE test taker as you can see from not passing twice. TC had a bunch of questions that were word for word that I would have never got if I didn’t see them in my practice exams. They went over all the material that they tested on. TRUST ME!!! GET TC because they saved me from possibly loosing my job if I didn’t pass. Another thing, the 66 was WAY easier than the 65. Even if you already have your 63 like I did, still take the 66 over the 65. The 65 was by far the HARDEST test I have ever taken and I was a Finance major. Trust me!!! I hope this helps someone because I wish I had this advice 2 months ago.

just wanted to share my experience…
with regards to the 7, i used STC, passed with an 85 after 6 weeks of studying a lot, especially practicing the exams which were a f** pain…
I felt extremely hesitant while i took the real exam. got to the point that after the first half of the exam, i was feeling like i was failing and didnt want to go back in for the second part. but apparently, i understood the concepts more than i thought i did (i dont know if that is worded correctly).

For the 66, I was going to use STC as well, which is the one my firm provided. but after going online and reading this thread, i gave it a shot with TRAINING CONSULTANTS.
works GREAT. although there’s a lot less material to study, it can get extremely confusing, especially because in a lot of questions, all 4 answers are practically identical. but TC does a very good job preparing you for the real thing. my biggest challenge was vocabulary and wording because english is my second language.
Take as many finals as you can, and go over the explanations because that definitely helps a lot.
in my opinion,it is unfair to compare the 7 with the 66.
series 7 is a BEAST compared to the 66. the amount of material is overwhelming.
i put a lot of work and effort on both. i felt i didnt have to study as much for the 66 because i studied my butt off for the 7 and a lot of the material was still fresh.
for the 66, once you get the gist of state vs. federal, you should be perfectly fine.

Count me in as another believer of TC’s material. I took the 66 a month ago using another vendor and failed with a 68%. Took it today after studying diligently with TC for 3 weeks and passed it with an 81%. The questions from TC are very similar to what the actual exam contains in structure. I probably saw at least 10 questions I can remember that were almost word for word. That’s not to say the exam still wasn’t difficult – it absolutely was, especially the middle of it. But I was averaging 88-95% on the TC finals so I was fairly confident.

I’m very happy to have this exam in my rear view mirror, and I strongly encourage anyone who has failed previously with a different vendor to give TC a look. They SIMPLIFY concepts that can be very confusing by nature.