The Education Requirement
Guide to CFP® Certification

As a first step to CFP® certification, you must master nearly 100 integrated financial planning topics. The topics cover major planning areas such as:

• General principles of financial planning
• Insurance planning and risk management
• Employee benefits planning
• Investment planning
• Income tax planning
• Retirement planning
• Estate planning

Although education is a fundamental part of achieving CFP® certification, fulfillment of a course of study covering the required topics does not automatically equate to preparedness for the CFP® Certification Examination.

Before determining an examination preparation strategy and applying for the exam, all individuals considering taking the CFP® Certification Examination should review the currency and completeness of their education against the current list of topics. Retaking courses or taking additional courses to improve currency and mastery of specific topic areas are important complements to the educational foundation. Previous experience and exam preparatory factors, such as taking an appropriate review course, are also beneficial. Taking actions to ensure your education is comprehensive and up-to-date may improve your ability to synthesize and evaluate complex concepts at an advanced cognitive level.

Remember, the CFP® Certification Examination does not test textbook theories, but rather it assesses your ability to apply your financial planning knowledge in an integrated approach to deal with "real-life" financial planning situations.

Bachelor's Degree Requirement

In addition to completing courses that cover the financial planning topics required for CFP® certification, a bachelor's degree (or higher), or its equivalent,¹ in any discipline, from an accredited college or university² is required to attain CFP® certification. The bachelor's degree requirement is a condition of initial certification; it is not a requirement to be eligible to take the CFP® Certification Examination. After you pass the CFP® Certification Examination, you will be required to provide evidence (official transcript from the degree-granting institution) that you hold a qualified bachelor's degree or higher degree.

You have five years from the date you pass the CFP® Certification Examination to satisfy the bachelor's degree and work experience requirements. If you have not reported to CFP Board your attainment of an acceptable bachelor's degree or higher degree within this time frame, your candidacy for CFP® certification may be terminated. A one-time, three-year extension may be granted on a case-by-case basis. Requests for an extension should be sent to CFP Board by e-mail to initialcert@CFPBoard.org or by fax to 202-379-2299.

¹ International degrees may be substituted for a U.S. undergraduate degree if they receive equivalency from a third-party evaluation agency which is a member of National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) www.NACES.org. Applicants should request a document-by-document evaluation.

² An "accredited college or university" is one that has been accredited by an accreditation body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. To confirm a school's accreditation please visit the Department of Education's Web site (ope.ed.gov/accreditation/Search.aspx).

The bachelor's degree requirement for CFP® certification became effective March 1, 2007. Read information CFP Board provided about the deadlines for those planning to seek CFP® certification before the effective date of the bachelor's degree requirement.

CFP Board-Registered Programs

You can complete a course of study in financial planning offered by an educational institution with a curriculum registered with CFP Board.

Course Titles and Length of Study

CFP Board has reviewed the upper division undergraduate level or higher educational programs at registered institutions to ensure that they cover the core knowledge needed to practice personal financial planning. Regardless of program type, the curriculum taught must be the equivalent of at least 15 semester credit hours. Each educational institution may present the topics under various course names and titles, such as risk management, financial analysis or estate planning. However, each Registered Program will cover all of the topics needed to meet the education requirement for CFP® certification. Some programs include various specialized courses or a review course to better prepare you for the CFP® Certification Examination. Program Directors at any CFP Board-Registered Program have the authority to waive students out of courses in accordance with their college or university policy.

Contact one of the programs for more information about courses offered, class schedules, tuition and transfer of credit for courses previously taken. In general, the course work in a certificate level program can be completed in 18 to 24 months.

CFP Board does not endorse one program over another. All programs cover the same core curriculum, yet vary in style, length and delivery method. They may be certificate programs, undergraduate programs or graduate programs. Programs can also differ in their delivery methods with some having traditional classroom-based instruction and others offering self-study or online courses. All institutions are accredited by their region's accrediting body.

Coursework from Multiple CFP Board-Registered Programs

If you have successfully completed individual courses at two or more CFP Board-Registered Programs but have not completed, or had credits transferred to, any one entire program, you may qualify to apply for the CFP® Certification Examination under the Multiple CFP Board-Registered Programs status. After applying for the exam you will be required to provide transcripts to verify completion of the education requirement through this approach. Please note that not all CFP Board-Registered Programs have the same number of courses nor do they cover the core topics in the same order or course sequence. Programs may group or combine topics differently, and semester hour equivalencies may vary. To qualify to take the exam through this approach, you must have covered all required topics and have achieved the minimum 15 semester credits or the equivalent in core topics.

Important Questions to Ask about CFP Board-Registered Programs

Because the educational offerings are so varied, consider asking the Program Director the following questions when evaluating a program:

• What educational level is your curriculum (junior/senior baccalaureate, master's or doctorate level)?
  
  
• How long does it take to complete your curriculum?
  
  
• How much does your program cost? Does that amount include books, tests and other fees?
  
  
• Are you anticipating making changes to your program?
  
  
• How do you schedule your courses? How often are courses offered?
  
  
• Is your distance education program offered online or is it paper-based?
  
  
• What are the credentials of your faculty?
  
  
• Does your program have internships or job placement services?
  
  
• Does your program have a review course? Does it partner with a review course provider?
  
  
• Overall, how will your program prepare me to be a financial planner?

Challenge Status
CFP Board has approved specific academic degrees and professional credentials as fulfilling the education requirement for CFP® certification. If you have one of the following degrees or credentials, you will automatically be eligible to apply for the CFP® Certification Examination:

• Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC)
• Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU)
• Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA®)
• Ph.D. in business or economics*
• Doctor of Business Administration*
• Licensed attorney - inactive license acceptable**
• Licensed Certified Public Accountant (CPA) - inactive license acceptable**

Only the degrees and credentials listed above are approved for challenging the CFP® Certification Examination. In addition, the Certified Employee Benefits Specialists (CEBS) credential plus the addition of two courses will qualify an individual to apply for the CFP® Certification Examination.

If you hold a qualified degree or credential that allows you to challenge the CFP® Certification Examination through the challenge status, your exam application must be accompanied or followed with specific documentation verifying your qualification.

If your degree or credential is not on the list above, you may wish to consult the transcript review process as an alternate route to the CFP® Certification Examination.

*Degree must be from a regionally-accredited U.S. college or university.

**If you are fulfilling the education requirement on the basis of an inactive CPA license or law license, you will need to provide a letter from the applicable licensing board stating that you are in good standing with that authority.

Transcript Review
CFP Board recognizes that you may have covered some of the components in CFP Board's financial planning topic list through previous educational coursework not taken through a CFP Board-Registered Program. CFP Board will consider granting credit towards the educational component required for CFP® certification if:

1. You can demonstrate that you have successfully completed equivalent upper-division level college or university coursework at a regionally-accredited college or university; and/or
2. You have one of the credentials listed below that CFP Board has pre-approved for partial credit towards the educational component.

Review the detailed topic list and use the checklist on the transcript review application against your college transcript(s) to assess if you have covered any CFP Board topics.

Look for upper-division level courses (junior, senior or graduate level coursework with course numbers of typically 300 or greater) with titles such as Personal Income Tax, Insurance, Investments, Estate Planning, Retirement Planning and Personal Financial Planning.

To satisfy the entire educational component via a transcript review, your financial planning-related coursework must total at least 15 upper-division semester hours or 20 quarter hours. The courses must have been taken at a U.S. regionally-accredited four-year educational institution.

If, after reviewing your transcript, you feel that you have completed all or part of the necessary financial planning topics at an appropriate institution, you may apply to CFP Board for a transcript review.

The following credentials have been deemed to fulfill certain portions of the education requirement for CFP® certification. The first column lists the credential; the second lists the corresponding topics in CFP Board's topic list.

Continuing education courses, firm training and/or FINRA or state licenses do not fulfill any part of CFP Board's initial educational requirements.

*Individuals who hold the CEBS credential may complete two additional courses (Personal Financial Planning I and Personal Financial Planning II) from the Wharton School and the International Foundation for Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP) to satisfy CFP Board's education requirement. These individuals will not need to complete a transcript review application or submit a transcript review fee. Instead, they should use the CFP® Certification Examination application form and attach a copy of the CEBS designation and either a transcript or score report showing completion of the Personal Financial Planning I and II courses.

CFP Board-Registered Programs

Distance Education Programs
Registered Programs Listed by State

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