Apply for a Scholarship

Abacus Wealth Partners Scholarship for Increased Diversity in Financial Planning

ABOUT THE SCHOLARSHIP

The Abacus Wealth Partners Scholarship for Increased Diversity in Financial Planning aims to advance the financial planning profession by providing financial assistance to students pursuing CFP® certification who are from populations underrepresented in the profession and have a financial need.

Founded in 2002, Abacus Wealth Partners (Abacus) is a registered investment advisor (RIA) firm that manages approximately $3 billion in assets and provides financial planning services to more than 1,500 clients across the United States. Abacus’ mission is to expand what’s possible with money. This means being thoughtful about the social and environmental impact of the investments they manage, helping people to not simply build wealth, but to live more fulfilling lives, and effecting change in the financial services industry to create and serve a more diverse and equitable profession and client base. Abacus has partnered with the CFP Board Center for Financial Planning to offer this scholarship in an effort to create a more diverse and sustainable financial planning profession, so that every American has access to competent and ethical financial planning advice.

The scholarship awards up to $5,000 per student seeking to complete an undergraduate-level or a certificate-level CFP Board Registered Program, either of which would qualify the student to sit for the CFP® exam.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Must not be a prior recipient of a CFP Board Center for Financial Planning scholarship;
Must be a U.S. resident;
Must identify as Asian, Black or African American, Hawaiian Native or Pacific Islander, Hispanic or Latino, American Indian or Alaskan Native, or two or more of these ethnicities;
In order to receive the award, must be enrolled in an undergraduate or certificate-level CFP Board Registered Program. Click here for a list of eligible programs. If not enrolled at the time of applying, scholarship awardees will have up to 3 months to enroll or forfeit the award;
If applying for an undergraduate-level scholarship, must not be in the final semester at the time of the application;
If applying for a certificate-level scholarship, must possess an undergraduate degree and must not have completed more than 5 courses in the certificate-level program at the time of the application.
Must provide documentation of enrollment in an eligible program and costs prior to receiving the award;
Must have a demonstrated financial need, as explained in an essay to be submitted during the application process;
Must demonstrate commitment to the financial planning profession, as explained in an essay to be submitted during the application process; and
Must exhibit professionalism and the ability to enhance and maintain the profession’s public image as demonstrated in an essay to be submitted during the application process.

Applicants who are selected to proceed to the final round of the application review process will be required to pass a background check conducted by CFP Board.

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Please note that applications will only be accepted through this webpage. Please do not attempt to submit application materials via email, mail or fax.

When submitting application essays and materials, please pay close attention to spelling and grammar, as that will be factored into the grading process.

AWARD PROCESS

Scholarship awards will be disbursed in two equal installments. To receive the first installment, recipients must demonstrate proof of enrollment in an eligible undergraduate or certificate-level CFP Board Registered Program. If not currently enrolled in a program, recipients will have up to 3 months to enroll after being notified of the award. The second installment will be awarded either upon completing the program (if the awardee has already started coursework) or when the awardee is half-way through the program (if the awardee has not yet started coursework).

APPLICATION DEADLINE

The application window will be open until April 2, 2023.

AWARD DECISION

Scholarship applicants will be notified of the award decision via email in May 2023. If you have a question about the status of your application, please contact us at scholarships@cfpboard.org.

Application

CFP Board Account Number (if you don’t have a CFP Board account, click here to create one)

Important: Be sure your CFP Board account includes: 1) your date of birth, and 2) the last four digits of your social security number. Not having this information may delay your application and disqualify you from the scholarship.

CFP Board Account Number First Name Last Name Street Address City State Zip Code Phone Number Email How did you hear about the scholarship?

Ethnicity (select all that apply):

American Indian or Alaskan Native

Asian

Black or African American

Hawaiian Native or Pacific Islander

Hispanic or Latino

White

Please upload a headshot that may be used to recognize you if you are selected as a scholarship recipient. The headshot will not be used to assume proof of eligibility.

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Undergraduate Degree Transcript
If you are pursuing a certificate-level CFP Board Registered Program, please upload a copy of your undergraduate degree transcript. If you are pursuing an undergraduate-level program, please upload a copy of your current unofficial transcript.

Undergraduate Degree Transcript Upload

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Recommendation Letter: Please upload a professional or academic letter of reference as a Word document or PDF.

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Resume: Please upload a current resume as a Word document or PDF.

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Essay

Please upload an essay that addresses each of the questions below as a single Word document or PDF. Please pay attention to spelling and grammar as that will be factored into the grading process.

The core values at Abacus Wealth are: Serve Others, Listen Deeply & Speak with Care, Bring Genius and Enjoy. As a future CFP® professional, how will you exemplify these values and how have you exemplified these values in the past? (500 – 1,000 words)
Describe an adversity that you have faced, how you overcame it, and how this will help you succeed in your education and career in financial planning. (500 – 1,000 words)
Please indicate how you meet the eligibility requirements for this scholarship by 1) demonstrating that you identify as Asian, Black or African American, Hawaiian Native or Pacific Islander, Hispanic or Latino, American Indian or Alaskan Native, or two or more of these ethnicities, and 2) that you have a financial need. (250 – 500 words)

Essay Upload

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Program Type
Enter the type of CFP Board Registered Program you are attending:

Program Type

In order to receive the award, you must be enrolled in an undergraduate or certificate-level CFP Board Registered Program. If not enrolled at the time of applying, scholarship recipients will have up to 3 months from the date of being notified of the award to enroll, or will forfeit the award.

Please provide the name of a CFP Board Registered Program you are enrolled in, or will enroll in. If you don’t yet know the program you will enroll in, enter “Don’t Know Yet.” Click here to find a CFP Board Registered Program.

Program Name

If enrolled in an undergraduate program, enter how many semesters you have left to complete. If enrolled in a certificate program, enter how many classes you have left to complete. If you are not yet enrolled, enter “Not Yet Enrolled.”

If applying for an undergraduate-level scholarship, you must not be in the final semester at the time of the application.

If applying for a certificate-level scholarship, you must not have completed more than 5 courses in the certificate-level program at the time of the application.

Program Completion Status

Have you received or will you receive any other scholarships, employer education reimbursement, or financial aid to cover any portion of the cost of your CFP Board Registered Program? If so, please describe in detail below. (If not, please enter "No")

Other Financial Aid

By checking this box, I give permission to CFP Board to run a background check if I am selected to proceed to the final round of the scholarship selection process.

CFP Board will evaluate scholarship applicants against the Fitness Standards that apply to those who are applying for CFP® certification (https://www.cfp.net/get-certified/certification-process/ethics-requirement/fitness-standards). CFP Board will review the scholarship applicant’s background pursuant to the same process that CFP Board reviews applications for CFP® certification. If CFP Board discovers information that would subject the scholarship applicant to an investigation if the scholarship applicant were an applicant for CFP® certification, then CFP Board will deny the scholarship application. The fact that an individual receives a scholarship does not guarantee that the individual will satisfy CFP Board’s Fitness Standards when the individual later applies for CFP® certification.

Important: Be sure your CFP Board account includes: 1) your date of birth and 2) the last four digits of your social security number. Not having this information may delay your application and disqualify you from the scholarship.