Book excerpt: The most comprehensive guide to the Series 7 exam in the marketplace includes a self-directed study guide with all the most essential information to becoming a stockbroker. Areas covered include: Stocks, Debt Securities, Investment Banking, Securities Markets, Taxes, Securities Analysis, Self-Regulatory Organizations (SRO's), Mutual Funds and Investment Companies, Annuities, Margin, Options, Money Market Instruments, Direct Participation Programs and Municipal Securities. There is no prerequisite exam for the FINRA Series 7, however, test takers will be required to take the Series 63 or Series 66 as co-requisite exams. The Series 7 exam is made up of 260 multiple-choice questions of which 10 are experimental. Each student will be given a total of 6 hours for the exam (3 hours for each half). A grade of 72 is considered passing. This book includes multiple practice exams to help test takers improve their scores. The General Securities Representative Examination (Series 7) is an entry-level examination that qualifies the individual for registration with all self-regulatory organizations to trade, promote, and sell: Public offerings and/or private placements of corporate securities (stocks and bonds) rights warrants mutual funds money market funds unit investment trusts REITS asset-backed securities mortgage-backed securities options options on mortgage-backed securities municipal securities government securities repos and certificates of accrual on government securities direct participation programs securities traders venture capital ETFs hedge funds