Stock Brokers!?

I am a freshman in high school and I AM going to become a stock broker. I was just wondering if anyone could tell me what i am going to have to do. Preferably someone who has done it before.

what courses to take
2 year college 4 year?

and if there is some way to practice brokerage?

Thank you for your help!!

Public Comments

1. Well stock brokers are sales men, and most likley you want to be a certified financial planner. You should pick up a few sales book and get a series 7 book. This will be more then enough to get you started. You don't need a college education to be a stock broker. But if you are going to school then a finance or business degree would be more then ok.

2. I worked as a stockbroker for the first 3 years I was in the finance industry. It is not a job for everybody. In the first year there is a 70-80% failure rate. You need to be able to bring in large amounts of assets (minimum $20 million) to survive after year 2 when you go completely on commission for income. The hours are insanely long, be prepared to get to work at 7am and leave at 7pm during the week, be prepared to work Saturdays, in your first year. It can be extremely stressful because of the pressure to succeed, hence why failure is so high. It is 95% sales, in the beginning its more important to bring the assets as opposed to anything else. Not a job for someone who is afraid of hard work, long hours, high stress, etc...

As far as education is concerned, a business degree would be helpful, just to have a basic understanding of the markets, accounting, etc.. The truth is being a successful stockbroker has very little to do with indepth market knowledge it is all about sales ability, networking and gathering assets. You will need to get a series 7, 63, and 65 NASD License, and you must be able to discuss market terminology to less sophisticated investors. In my experience stockbrokers are great salespeople, but overall industry knowledge is not always that strong. You want to be a stock broker start networking with high net worth individuals now, it will make the asset gathering part of the job much easier down the road.

3. scottrade.com ...contact them asap about your ambitions! i am impressed... at your age, to know that is what you want to do! amazing! they will set the sails for you to follow and i must say you are in for a exciting ride!