Richard B. Wagner Memorial Scholarship Fund

About the Scholarship

The Richard B. Wagner Memorial Scholarship Fund was established jointly by CFP Board Center for Financial Planning and The Financial Planning Association® (FPA®) in an effort to advance and diversify the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® professional workforce.

The Fund honors the memory of Dick Wagner, who held the CFP® certification and was a well-known thought leader in the financial planning community with a passion for building the financial planning profession and empowering younger financial planners to succeed. He passed away in 2017 at age 68. Dick also contributed to the advancement of the profession through foundational articles such as “To Think… Like a CFP® (Professional)” and efforts like the What is Finology? Project, which studies our personal relationships with reciprocity and money.

The scholarship awards up to $5,000 to qualified students seeking to complete a certificate level CFP Board Registered Program that would qualify them to sit for the CFP® exam. Eligible candidates must demonstrate financial need and be from populations that are underrepresented in the financial planning profession in terms of gender, race, ethnicity, disability or sexual orientation. Applications will be reviewed by an independent Scholarship Review Panel comprised of CFP® professionals.

Eligibility Requirements

• Must not be a prior recipient of a CFP Board Center for Financial Planning scholarship;
• Must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident;
• Must be from an underrepresented population within the financial planning profession in terms of gender, race, ethnicity, disability, or sexual orientation AND must have a demonstrated financial need, as explained in an essay to be submitted during the application process;
• To receive the award, must be enrolled in a 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;
  • Must possess an undergraduate degree;
  • Must not have completed 6 or more 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 demonstrate commitment to the financial planning profession, as explained in an essay to be submitted during the application process; and
• Applicants will be required to pass a background check conducted by CFP Board, and must enhance and maintain the profession’s public image.

Submission Requirements

Applications will only be accepted through the application portal. Please do not attempt to submit application materials via mail, fax or email.

When submitting application essays and materials, please pay close attention to spelling, grammar and presentation, 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 will have to demonstrate proof of enrollment in a CFP Board-Registered certificate 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 in late August 2025.