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Simply the Best: A Deep Dive into Knopman Marks’ SIE Exam Pass Rates

After more than a year of mining SIE Exam performance data, we are excited to provide our partners with greater transparency and new validation of our high-touch approach, best-in-industry pass rates, and exam-success predictors.

We have analyzed thousands of data points to glean meaningful trends that we are eager to share. These efforts reflect a major initiative at Knopman Marks focused on data collection and data analysis so that we can bring you, our valued partners, predictable exam results and new insights into our training process.

Why Our SIE Pass Rates Are the Highest

Knopman Marks’ SIE students had an average pass rate of 97.5% on their first attempt, for the 15-month period ending December 2019, which is 23 percentage points above the national average. Based on more than 7,500 test scores, these results were diligently collected and confirmed through individual follow-up with each student.

FINRA’s pass rates reflect the 11-month period ending August 2019. This average rate of 74% includes the test scores of 58,264 candidates taking the test for the first time.

“Our SIE Exam pass rates this first year out are a powerful endorsement of our approach and top-flight training,” said Brian Marks, President and Head of Performance at Knopman Marks. “They also reflect candidates’ commitment to our study process and to advancing their own careers. Trusting our Action Plan to guide their prep leads to confidence and success on exam day.”

Known for his effective and entertaining training sessions, Marks notes that Knopman Marks instructors strive to make SIE Exam training engaging and enjoyable. The pass rates support the firm’s mission to bring joy even to life’s thorniest challenges.

The results also reinforce the value of the Knopman Marks’ SIE Action Plan. Available to every student, the Action Plan is a step-by-step roadmap to success that helps build confidence by recommending to students what, when, and how to study to pass the SIE Exam. Our Action Plan combines study steps that include reading the SIE textbook, reviewing video lectures, completing practice exams, and using supplemental resources from our Training Center.

How to Know When You Are Ready to Pass the SIE Exam

Students who take our practice tests are able to gauge their SIE Exam readiness.

  • Students who pass our benchmark exam (70% or above) have a 99.2% chance of passing the SIE Exam.
  • Students with an average of 70% and above on completion of 1,000 questions pass the exam 99.7% of the time.
  • Students with an average of 60%–70% on completion of 1,000 questions have more than a 90% chance of passing the SIE Exam.


Also important are two data points that show when students are not ready to test:

  • Students with a failing benchmark exam score of below 55% rarely pass the SIE Exam.
  • Students with an average score of 55% or below on 1,000 questions fail the SIE Exam at least 25% of the time.

More Great Things to Come

Our SIE Exam pass rates tell a persuasive story that’s both short and sweet: Our test prep works.

Thanks to strong partnerships with clients, faculty, and students, we are able to deliver the best exam pass rates in the industry and accurately predict exam performance. We value the trust we have built through our consistently exceptional results.

We invite our partners to stay tuned as we continue to raise the bar, with an even deeper focus on data analytics and new resources in the pipeline. We accomplish great things together.

The SIE Exam makes careers in finance more accessible. Learn more about the SIE Exam here. If you are considering Knopman Marks for your SIE Exam prep, check out this video to get started with your first SIE lesson on equities.

Ready to test your knowledge? Download an SIE practice exam. Learn more about our offering here.

Suzanne Riss is an author and Director of Communications at Knopman Marks Financial Training. Previously the award-winning Editor-in-Chief of Working Mother magazine, she is a fierce advocate for issues facing working moms and an authority on work/life trends. Her expertise has been tapped in interviews by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Good Morning America, the Today Show, and CNN. Suzanne's third book, Work Disrupted, published by Wiley, was released in January 2021.