Certified Financial Planner™ (CFP^®)

Anyone can call themselves a financial advisor, but only those who have met CFP Board’s high standards for certification can call themselves a CFP^® professional. The Certified Financial Planner Program at Florida Atlantic University, a CFP Board-accredited program, will help you prepare you for the CFP^® Certification Exam. The program consists of 7 required courses: Fundamentals of Financial Planning, Insurance Planning, Income Tax Planning, Investment Planning, Retirement Planning, Financial Plan Development, and 1 optional, but recommended CFP Exam Review course.

For more information on becoming a Certified Financial Planning Professional or viewing CFP Board’s Principal Knowledge Domains & Topics, please visit CFP.net/getcertified and CFP.net/principaltopics.

Job Outlook :

Personal Financial Advisors

From now to 2031, job opportunities for personal financial advisors are expected to grow much faster than employment in other occupations, at a rate of 15 percent. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates an increase of 50,900 jobs.¹ That’s nearly five times as many jobs as it predicted pre-pandemic.

Over the next decade, more than a third of advisors (37 percent) are estimated to be retiring, according to a 2022 Cerulli Associates study.² The advisors expected to retire control 40 percent of total industry assets, or roughly $10.4 trillion.²

The 2021 Kitces Research³ study on Advisor Wellbeing focused solely on established advisors. It estimates that they earn a median income of $192,000. When compared with the median annual wage for all workers with bachelor’s degrees, at roughly $69,000, it’s clear that the industry holds great potential for financial rewards.

Financial advisors have the fortunate position of being in a profession that’s quickly expanding and is not only financially rewarding but also personally fulfilling for many. Our recent research shows that more than 90 percent of financial professionals said creating trust and providing clients with peace of mind contributes to their fulfillment.⁴

¹Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Personal Financial Advisors. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/personal-financial-advisors.htm

²Cerulli Associates. “40% of Advisory Assets Will Transition in 10 Years,” June 13, 2022 https://www.barrons.com/advisor/articles/cerulli-succession-plan-financial-advisors-retire-51655084377

³Kitces.com. “What Makes Financial Advisors Happy and The Second Kitces Research Study on Advisor Wellbeing,” August 9, 2021. https://www.kitces.com/?s=What+Makes+Financial+Advisors+Happy+and+The+Second+Kitces+Research+Study+on+Advisor+Wellbeing&s=What+Makes+Financial+Advisors+Happy+and+The+Second+Kitces+Research+Study+on+Advisor+Wellbeing&by-author=&by-category=&from-date=&to-date=&submit=

⁴eMoney Planning with Purpose Research, July 2021, Advisors n=393, End clients n=391. https://emoneyadvisor.com/blog/a-promising-picture-for-financial-planner-job-growth/

Long Term Schedule of Courses

We offer convenient Tuesday and Thursday evening classes. Participants may take one course per week, or fast track by taking two courses per week. Our dedicated advisors will assist you to map your fastest and most effective schedule to the CFP Exam!

CFP^® – Fundamentals of Financial Planning

An overview of the financial planning process, including ethics and standards, budgeting and financial statements, debt management, asset acquisitions, client assessment, education and special circumstance funding, fundamentals of financial institutions and economic concepts, the time value of money, organizational ownership types, property titling, basic business law, quantitative concepts, and monetary settlements.

CFP^® – Insurance Planning

An overview of insurance for financial planning, including: basic insurance risk concepts and needs analysis, life, health, disability, property and casualty insurance, group insurance, long term care insurance, viatical settlements, and insurance policy and company selection.

CFP^® – Income Tax Planning

An overview of the basic principles and laws of income taxation for individuals, employees, and business owners are covered. Topics include: income tax calculations for individuals and business, compliance, and accounting methods, taxation of trusts and estates, basis, depreciation, sale of assets, alternative minimum tax, charitable contributions, and tax management.

CFP^® – Investment Planning

An overview of the principles of modern investment analysis. Topics include: investment vehicles, analysis and measurement of risk and return, stock, bond and other asset valuation, portfolio theory and management, portfolio performance, passive and active investment strategies, asset allocation, efficient market theory, financial leverage, hedging with options, and taxation effects on investments.

CFP^® – Retirement Planning

An overview of retirement needs, Social Security and Medicare, alternative types of retirement plans, qualified plan rules and options, IRAs, Roth IRAs and other tax advantaged plans, retirement plan regulations including defined benefit and contribution plans, business firm plan selection, distribution rules. Group employee benefits plans, stock, and stock option plans, non-qualified plans, and employer/employee insurance plans.

CFP^® – Estate Planning

An overview of the conservation and transfer of wealth. Topics include: documents used in estate planning, property transfer and gifting strategies, estate and gift taxes, types and taxation of trusts and wills, qualified interest trusts, charitable giving, life insurance and valuation issues, deferral and minimization of estate taxes, intra-family, business and generation-skipping transfers, disposition of estate and fiduciary responsibilities.

CFP^® – Financial Plan Development

An in-depth review of the development of a financial plan, designed to enhance the knowledge, skills and abilities of individuals seeking to attain CFP^® certification and implement an assessment of their ability to deliver professional and competent financial planning services to the public.

CFP^® Exam Preparation Review

An optional course designed to tie the various components of the curriculum into a unifying framework, focusing on casework to engage the student into critical thinking to serve as preparation for the CFP^® Board examination.

Important to Note:

The courses above are scheduled in advance, and it is incumbent on each incoming CFP^® student to map out a viable plan of study from among the required courses. This will allow you to plan your schedule in the most convenient pace and format for you. PRE-mapping out your plan of study is imperative so that you may reasonably predict the date by which you will have satisfied the CFP Board's requirements against the CFP ^® Board's windows to sit for the CFP^® exam. For more information on your scheduling options, please visit our Long Term Schedule of Courses. If you have any questions , please email Robert Munoz.

Discounts Available:

• Members of the FPA South Florida Chapter will receive $25 off the tuition of each of the seven (7) required courses, with proof of membership. Visit the FPA South Florida Chapter's website for more information and to become a member today.
• Register for all 7 courses upfront and receive a 10% discount on program fees.
• Register 3 or more students from the same firm (simultaneously) and receive a 10% discount on program fees.
• Capstone Test Preparation Course FREE to those students who complete the CFP Board's required courses at FAU.

Scott Barnhart, PhD Finance is Program Director and developer of FAU's Executive Continuing Education Certificate program. He is also the Program Director and developer of FAU's board registered MBA Financial Planning Track.

The CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER Professional Certificate Program at Florida Atlantic University is registered with Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. (CFP Board). As a CFP Board-Registered Program, our courses satisfy CFP Board’s education requirement, allowing an individual to sit for the CFP^® Certification Examination. Our instructors provide you with the most current information in financial planning.

Individuals can attain CFP^® certification after fulfilling the education requirement, passing the comprehensive CFP^® Certification Examination, demonstrating work experience and completing the ethics requirements. A CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER professional has attained financial planning’s most prominent certification.

Florida Atlantic University does not certify individuals to use the CFP^®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and federally registered CFP (with flame logo) certification marks. CFP certification is granted only by Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. to those persons who, in addition to completing an educational requirement such as this CFP Board-Registered Program, have met its ethics, experience and examination requirements.

Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. owns the certification marks CFP^®, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER and federally registered CFP (with flame logo), which it awards to individuals who successfully complete initial and ongoing certification requirements.

Long-Term Schedule

Contact Us

Robert Munoz
Program Coordinator
phone: (561) 297-2571
email: rmunoz@fau.edu
map: Bldg. 103, SF 129

Accreditation

The CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER Professional Certificate Program at Florida Atlantic University is registered with the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. (CFP Board).

The mission of Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. (CFP Board) is to benefit the public by granting the CFP ^® certification and upholding it as the recognized standard of excellence for personal financial planning. For more information regarding the CFP® Certification Examination, please visit www.CFP.net.

Statistics

• Job Growth Rate
  
  In 2011, CNN Money ranked the Financial Advisor profession number 3 in terms of job growth with a projected 10-yr. job growth rate of 30.¹
  
  In 2012, CareerCast.com ranked the Financial Advisor profession the number 5 job on its top ten list. ²
  
  The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that employment opportunities for Personal Financial Advisors will continue to grow much faster than average. It predicts > 32% growth in employment from 2010-2020; 14% is the avergae growth rate for all other occupations.³
  
  
  1CNN Money
  2 CareerCast.com
  3 Bureau of Labor Statistics

• Higher Earnings

Advisors with CFP® Certification earn 21% more than without.

Bureau of Labor Statistics

• Increased Job Security.

  Financial Planning jobs will surge by 30% between 2008 and 2018.

• CFP Board of Standards, Inc.

• More Job Satisfaction.

  81% find earning CFP® certification rewarding in professional terms.

  Financial Planning News, 2007