Which CISI Exam Should You Take First?

For most people the answer is the Introduction to Securities & Investment, but it genuinely depends on your starting point and the role you are heading into. This guide maps the relevant qualifications and gives you a simple decision tree, so you start in the right place rather than the obvious one.

The foundation papers, briefly

A few CISI qualifications sit at the entry level, and it helps to know how they differ before you book.

Fundamentals of Financial Services (Level 2). The gentlest entry point, aimed at people completely new to the industry or in a support role. It is broad and introductory. If finance is entirely new to you and nobody has told you to sit a specific paper, this is the soft start.

Introduction to Securities & Investment (Level 3). The usual starting point and the one most graduates and new entrants mean by "the CISI exam". It covers the whole industry across eleven syllabus elements and is a recognised foundation for UK financial services. For most people reading this, this is the right first exam. We cover it in detail in how to pass the Introduction to Securities & Investment.

A note on the International version. CISI also runs an International Introduction to Securities & Investment, sometimes shortened to IISI, for non-UK markets. It is a different paper. Make sure you book and revise from the one that matches your role, which for UK candidates is the standard Introduction (CISI now lists this qualification as the Level 3 Award 'Introduction to Investment' in its exam shop).

The Capital Markets Programme

Once you are past the foundation, the Capital Markets Programme is the qualification major banks use to benchmark people working on the securities and derivatives side. It is completed with two exams: the regulatory unit, UK Financial Regulation, plus one technical unit, Securities or Derivatives, depending on your desk. There is a prerequisite, IntegrityMatters, CISI's short online integrity test, which you must pass before sitting the CMP papers. These are a clear step up from the foundation, so they are rarely the right place to begin unless your role demands it and you already have the grounding.

A simple decision tree

Work down this list and stop at the first one that fits.

Has your employer told you which paper to sit? Then sit that one. The decision is made; your job is to pass it efficiently. Most schemes specify the Introduction to Securities & Investment.

Are you completely new to financial services, with no specific requirement? Consider starting with Fundamentals of Financial Services to build confidence, then the Introduction. If you have a degree or some exposure, you can usually skip straight to the Introduction.

Are you a graduate or new entrant heading into a markets, operations, compliance or advice role? Start with the Introduction to Securities & Investment. It is the standard foundation and it sets you up for everything that follows.

Are you already working in capital markets and need the benchmark qualification? You may go straight into the Capital Markets Programme: UK Financial Regulation plus the technical unit your desk uses, Securities or Derivatives. Make sure IntegrityMatters is done first.

For almost everyone who is not already in a specialist seat, the path is the Introduction first, then the Capital Markets Programme if your role calls for it.

Before you decide, sanity-check whether you need it at all

It is worth a moment to confirm the qualification fits your goal, especially if no employer is requiring it. Our honest take on whether the CISI is worth it covers who it helps and who it does not, so you are sure you are sitting the right exam for the right reason.

Once you have chosen, the complete guide to passing your CISI exams covers the method that works across every paper, and when you are ready to sit it, here is how to book a CISI exam.