Professional Certifications

Program Description

The Accredited Asset Management Specialist^℠, or AAMS^®, is a certification program for financial professionals. Created in conjunction with many of the country’s top investment firms, AAMS^® is uniquely suited to the needs of today’s investment professionals. In this course you will discover a logical progression of topics, enabling you to think in terms of clients’ total financial situations, not just their investments. At the conclusion of your studies, your abilities to identify opportunities and employ strategies are enhanced not only with regard to investments but also related to planning for insurance, tax, retirement, and estate issues. The result is that you will be able to develop stronger, lasting client relationships. The program provides advisors with strong fundamental financial knowledge with an additional focus on asset management.

At the time you enroll in the Accredited Asset Management Specialist℠ (AAMS^®) designation program, you also have the option to enroll in the College’s Financial Advising Accelerator certificate program at a reduced tuition. The Financial Advising Accelerator is an online self-study course for new and early career financial advisors that focuses on key advising and business-building skills necessary to launch a successful financial planning career.

Before you complete the AAMS^® program, the Financial Advising Accelerator certificate program is designed to help you learn the practical skills needed to plan for, develop, and manage your practice, and confidently engage with clients. At the conclusion of the Financial Advising Accelerator certificate program, you will continue your professional development with the AAMS^® program, helping you create a solid foundation for fundamental financial knowledge with a specific focus on asset management and investments.

Upon completion of this program, you will:

• Understand ethical duties, the fiduciary standard, and the fundamentals of the major areas of financial planning.

• Be able to increase productivity, build confidence, and be able to make recommendations based on building long-term client relationships.

• Have a comprehensive review of financial issues that clients face, enabling you to understand and address the total financial picture of each.

• Have learned real-life examples, figures, and tables, translating financial planning concepts into everyday work experience, making what you learn immediately applicable to your business.

Learning objectives and topics covered throughout the AAMS^®program include:

• The Asset Management Process

• Risk, Return, & Investment Performance

• Asset Allocation & Selection

• Investment Strategies

• Taxation of Investments

• Investing for Retirement

• Deferred Compensation & Other Benefit Plans

• Insurance Products for Investment Clients

• Estate Planning for Investment Clients

• Fiduciary, Ethical, and Regulatory Issues for Advisors

Learn More and Enroll

Learn more about the Accredited Asset Management Specialist℠ (AAMS^®) program and enroll when you are ready.

Program Description

The Accredited Behavioral Finance Professional^℠ (ABFP^®) certification program is a unique graduate-level program for advanced financial planners. Blending classic foundational theory with academic experiments and real-life situations, students will learn to recognize and mitigate client financial behaviors. The ABFP^® program explores the field of behavioral finance: the study of psychological explanations for economic behavior exhibited by individuals, institutions, and nations. Behavioral science is an interdisciplinary body of knowledge with strong ties to the social sciences – psychology, sociology, anthropology, economics, and political science. The role of the scientific method in understanding and applying knowledge regarding topic areas provide the foundation for further exploration. This course is devoted to understanding the nature and role of psychological biases, heuristics, and emotions in influencing financial decision-making under uncertainty. Areas of decision-making behavior that will be thoroughly explored include economic theory, psychological perspectives, and applications to investments or lifetime retirement planning cash flows. This course provides financial advisors and investment professionals with the foundational knowledge of behavioral finance history, definitions, trends, and portfolio construction principles, and best practices for integrating behavioral finance theories into real-life situations. Upon graduation, ABFP^® designees earn 3 graduate-level academic credits that can be applied to the Master of Science in Personal Financial Planning degree program.

Learning objectives and topics covered throughout the ABFP^®program include:

• Understanding behavioral finance theories

• Integrating research and practical knowledge from the behavioral finance field

• Applying informed ideas within the client setting

• Demonstrating creative critical thinking of the nature, sources, consequences, and effective management of financial behavior in theory and practice

Upon completion of this program, you will be able to:

• Understand behavioral finance theories.

• Integrate research and practical knowledge from the behavioral finance field.

• Apply informed ideas within the client setting.

• Demonstrate creative critical thinking of the nature, sources, consequences, and effective management of financial behavior in theory and practice.

Learn More and Enroll

Learn more about the Accredited Behavioral Finance Professional℠ (ABFP^®) certification program and enroll when you are ready.

Program Description

The Accredited Domestic Partnership Advisor^℠, or ADPA^® program, is the only certification program of its kind that prepares financial professionals to address the unique planning needs specific to unmarried, coupled persons. You’ll gain an understanding of how planning differences for domestic partners compared to legally married couples manifest themselves in the individual domains of financial planning. Your skills, augmented with knowledge from this up-to-date program, will help you analyze and evaluate alternative planning techniques pertaining to wealth transfers, federal taxation laws, retirement laws and benefits, and planning for end-of-life needs. This program is ideal for advisors looking to augment their skills and knowledge to effectively counsel clients in domestic partnerships and help compensate for the adverse effects of financial laws or benefits that are either unavailable or provide less protection to them. It is also beneficial for accountants and attorneys who provide tax and legal services for persons in domestic partnerships.

Learning objectives and topics covered in the ADPA^®program include, but are not limited to:

• Wealth Transfers for Domestic Partners

• Federal Taxation Issues for Domestic Partners

• Retirement Planning and Relationship Issues for Domestic Partners

• Planning for Financial, Medical, and End-of-Life Needs of Domestic Partners

• Qualitative Planning Considerations

Upon completion of this program, you will be able to:

• Identify reasons individuals involved in a domestic partnership need alternative financial planning options.

• Address specific situations in which wealth transfers, federal taxation laws, retirement laws and benefits, and planning for possible incompetence and end-of-life needs by such individuals is different than similar planning done for individuals who are recognized as legally married under federal and state laws.

• Understand the purpose, nontax characteristics, and tax consequences of financial planning techniques commonly used in these areas, and their advantages and disadvantages, for individuals involved in domestic partnerships.

• Apply specific financial planning techniques that benefit individuals involved in a domestic partnership, and help compensate for the adverse effects of financial laws or benefits that are either unavailable to such individuals or provide less protection to them.

Learn More and Enroll

Learn more about the Accredited Domestic Partnership Advisor℠ (ADPA^®) program and enroll when you are ready.

Program Description

The Accredited Portfolio Management Advisor^℠, or APMA^® program, is a graduate-level certification program for experienced financial professionals. The program covers the finer points of portfolio creation, augmentation, and maintenance. Students gain hands-on practice in analyzing investment policy statements, building portfolios, and making asset allocation decisions, to include determining sell, hold, and buy decisions within a client’s portfolio. Upon successful completion of the Accredited Portfolio Management Advisor^℠ course, 3 graduate-level academic credits will be earned that can be applied to the Master of Science in Personal Financial Planning degree program.

Upon completion of this program, you will be able to:

• Differentiate investment principles and theory

• Assess characteristics and risks of various asset classes and investment vehicles, including real assets and alternative investments

• Apply approaches to asset allocation

• Examine ethical duties and the fiduciary standard

• Differentiate the taxation of various types of investments

• Evaluate investment and retirement planning issues

• Assess factors pertaining to client suitability

• Analyze the purpose of and elements in an investment policy statement

Learn More and Enroll

Learn more about the Accredited Portfolio Management Advisor℠ (APMA^®) program and enroll when you are ready.

Program Description

The AWMA^® program is a certification program designed for experienced advisors who want to better address the unique needs of high-net-worth clients. The program’s one-of-a-kind curriculum contains sections dedicated to behavioral finance, working with all business owners, and succession/exit planning. There is also an entire module specifically dedicated to the fiduciary and regulatory issues facing advisors. With this designation in your arsenal of knowledge, you’ll be able to help clients capitalize on opportunities to preserve, grow, and transfer their wealth. Gain the confidence to optimize clients’ investments to achieve their goals while minimizing investment volatility. Upon successful completion of the Accredited Wealth Management Advisor^℠ course, 3 graduate-level academic credits will be earned that can be applied to the Master of Science in Personal Financial Planning degree program.

Upon completion of this program, you will be able to:

• Identify and plan for the complex needs of high-net-worth clients.

• Increase productivity, build confidence and be able to make recommendations based on building long-term client relationships with high-net-worth clients.

• Understand the comprehensive view of financial issues that clients face, enabling you to understand and address the total financial picture of each.

• Apply real-life examples, figures, and tables, translating financial planning concepts into everyday work experience, making what you learn immediately applicable to your business.

• Identify risk management issues with a significant potential impact for high-net-worth individuals.

• Identify insurance products targeted to high-net-worth individuals.

• Identify or explain the purposes (uses), characteristics, and factors to be considered in using a given business exit planning technique.

• Identify characteristics, risks, styles, and strategies of hedge funds, real estate investments, and private equity.

• Identify and help clients to overcome the behavioral biases that lead to suboptimal results for many investors.

• Identify tax preference items or adjustments for the alternative minimum tax for noncorporate taxpayers.

• Analyze a situation to determine the necessity of estimated tax payments or to calculate the amount of investment interest expense that is deductible.

• Analyze a situation to calculate the self-employment tax or alternative minimum tax for noncorporate taxpayers.

• Identify and explain the advantages or disadvantages of various forms of nonqualified deferred compensation.

• Identify or explain the advantages or disadvantages of lifetime gifting.

• Identify or explain the purposes (uses), characteristics, and factors to be considered in using a given asset protection technique for a high-net-worth client.

• Analyze the current regulatory requirements of advisers and brokers including Regulation Best Interest and identify expectations of fiduciary advisers.

Learning objectives and topics covered in the AWMA^®program include, but are not limited to:

• Getting to know your High-Net-Worth client

• Investment Risk, Return, and Performance

• Advanced Investment Products & Strategies

• Considerations for Business Owners

• Income Tax Strategies for High-Net-Worth Clients

• Executive Benefits Planning for High-Net-Worth Clients

• Estate Planning for High-Net-Worth clients

• Fiduciary and Regulatory Issues for Financial Services Professionals

Learn More and Enroll

Learn more about the AWMA^® program is a certification program and enroll when you are ready.

Chartered Mutual Fund Counselor (CMFC^®)

Chartered Mutual Fund Counselor (CMFC^®) is a professional designation for mutual fund advisers. It was previously awarded by the College for Financial Planning, now part of Kaplan, to financial services professionals who completed a study program and passed an exam covering mutual fund topics.

It is no longer a certification offered by Kaplan/College for Financial Planning; as of 2021, the organization still supports the designation with renewals. If you have the CMFC^® and need to renew – find more information here.

Program Description

The CRPC^® certification program is for experienced financial advisors who wish to offer more comprehensive retirement advice to individual clients. Financial advisors face an increasingly complex onslaught of retirement planning questions as aging baby boomers look for investments to meet their lifestyle needs in 10 years, 20 years, and beyond, as well as determining when they can actually retire. This program will help you define a “road map to retirement,” enabling you to focus on clients’ pre-and post-retirement needs, as well as issues related to asset management and estate planning. Upon successful completion of the Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor^℠ program, 3 graduate-level academic credits will be earned that can be applied to the Master of Science in Personal Financial Planning degree program.

Upon completing this course, you will be able to:

• Gain practical knowledge and a competitive edge by strengthening technical skills in an evolving planning niche.

• Acquire skills needed to expand your business by meeting more of your clients’ needs.

• Address an array of client situations using the various types of plans and models studied.

Learning Objectives and Topics Covered:

• Maximizing the Client Experience During the Retirement Planning Process

• Principles and Strategies When Investing for Retirement

• Understanding Social Security, Military and Government Retirement Benefits

• Bridging the Income Gap: Identifying Other Sources of Retirement Income

• Navigating Health Care Options in Retirement

• Making the Emotional and Financial Transition to Retirement

• Designing Optimal Retirement Income Stream

• Achieving Income Tax and Estate Planning Objectives in Retirement

• Fiduciary, Ethical, and Regulatory Issues for Advisors

Learn More and Enroll

Learn more about the CRPC^® certification program and enroll when you are ready.

Program Description

As retirement plan options evolve and tax complexities increase, many companies seek professional plan administrators to design, install, and maintain their company retirement plans. Firms of all sizes recognize the unique skills needed to implement and oversee these internal retirement plans—skills within your reach with the CRPS^® designation. Your CRPS^® mark will set you apart from other advisors with the knowledge to recommend implementation techniques that can be executed into well-structured, company-appropriate retirement plans. Plus, you’ll be able to effectively administer retirement plans for businesses and their employees. Upon successful completion of the Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist^℠ program, 3 graduate-level academic credits will be earned that can be applied to the Master of Science in Personal Financial Planning degree program.

Learning Objectives and Topics Covered:

• Introduction to ERISA and the Fiduciary Standard

• Employer-Funded Defined Contribution Plans

• Participant-Directed Retirement Plans

• Retirement Plan Solutions for Small Business Owners

• Retirement Plan Selection, Design, and Implementation

• Administering ERISA-Compliant Plans

• Working with Participants

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Gain practical knowledge and a competitive edge by strengthening technical skills in an evolving planning niche.

• Acquire skills needed to expand your business by meeting more of your clients’ needs.

• Address an array of client situations using the various types of plans and models studied

Learn More and Enroll

Learn more about the Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist℠ program and enroll when you are ready.

Chartered SRI Counselor^℠

(CSRIC^®) is a professional designation for financial advisors. It was previously awarded by the College for Financial Planning, now part of Kaplan, to financial services professionals who completed a study program and passed an exam covering the history, definitions, trends, portfolio construction principles, fiduciary responsibilities, and best practices for sustainable, responsible, and impact (SRI) investments.

It is no longer a certification offered by Kaplan/College for Financial Planning; as of 2025, the organization still supports the designation with renewals. If you have the CSRIC^® and need to renew – find more information here.

Program Description

The Financial Paraplanner Qualified Professional^℠, or FPQP^® certification program, is the perfect introduction to personal financial planning for those with no prior experience. The program covers the six main facets in personal financial planning, but in a way better suited to practical rather than a professional application. The program is an ideal starting point for those new to the financial planning profession, individuals interested in a better understanding of their own finances, or for planners who wish to provide their support staff with additional insights.

At the time you enroll in the Financial Paraplanner Qualified Professional^℠ (FPQP^®) designation program, you also have the option to enroll in the College’s Financial Advising Accelerator certificate program at a reduced tuition. The Financial Advising Accelerator is an online self-study course for new and early career financial advisors that focuses on key advising and business-building skills necessary to launch a successful financial planning career.

Before you complete the FPQP^® program, the Financial Advising Accelerator certificate program is designed to help you learn the practical skills needed to plan for, develop, and manage your practice, and confidently engage with clients. At the conclusion of the Financial Advising Accelerator certificate program, you will continue your professional development with the FPQP^® program, helping you create a solid foundation for basic, practical knowledge of the financial planning process and the disciplines of financial planning.

Upon completion of this course, you will:

• Understand the fundamental concepts and terminology of financial planning;

• Have worked through a “real world” case study that applied many important concepts related to financial planning;

• Have a higher competence of financial planning concepts, allowing your company to benefit from improved client support provided by you due to your increased knowledge and skills; and

• Gain an edge on the sales competition by increasing your understanding of a broad range of financial topics, making you more aware of potential sales opportunities

Learning Objectives and Topics Covered:

• The Financial Planning Process

• Business Ownership, Cash Management, and the Use of Debt

• The Time Value of Money

• Insurance Basics & Property Insurance

• Life & Health Insurance

• Investment Basics & Strategies

• Retirement Planning

• Tax Implications of Financial Decisions

• Estate Planning Basics

• Case Study & Master Index

Learn More and Enroll

Learn about the Financial Paraplanner Qualified Professional℠ program and enroll when you are ready.

Descripción del Programa

El programa de certificación Financial Paraplanner Qualified Professional^SM, o FPQP^®, es la introducción perfecta a la planificación financiera personal para quienes no tienen experiencia previa. El programa abarca las seis facetas principales de la planificación financiera personal, pero de un modo más adecuado para una aplicación práctica que profesional. Este programa constituye un punto de partida ideal para quienes se inician en la profesión de la planificación financiera, para las personas interesadas en conocer mejor sus propias finanzas o para los asesores que desean proporcionar a su personal de apoyo conocimientos adicionales.

Al finalizar el curso:

• Comprenderá los conceptos fundamentales y la terminología de la planificación financiera;

• Habrá trabajado con un estudio de caso real, aplicando muchos conceptos importantes relacionados con la planificación financiera;

• Tendrá una mayor competencia en conceptos de planificación financiera, lo que permitirá a su empresa beneficiarse de un mejor apoyo al cliente gracias a sus mayores conocimientos y aptitudes; y

• Obtendrá una ventaja sobre la competencia en ventas aumentando su comprensión de una amplia gama de temas financieros, lo que lo hará más consciente de las posibles oportunidades de venta.

Objetivos de Aprendizaje y Temas Tratados:

• El proceso de planificación financiera

• Titularidad de sociedades comerciales, gestión del efectivo y uso de la deuda

• El valor temporal del dinero

• Aspectos básicos del seguro y seguro de propiedad

• Seguro médico y de vida

• Aspectos básicos y estrategias de inversión

• Planificación de la jubilación

• Consecuencias fiscales de las decisiones financieras

• Aspectos básicos de la planificación patrimonial

• Estudio de caso e índice maestro

Más Información e Inscripción

Infórmese sobre el programa Financial Paraplanner Qualified Professional℠ e inscríbase cuando esté preparado.

Program Description

The Sports & Entertainment Accredited Wealth Management Advisor^℠, or SE-AWMA^®, certification program provides advisors with the specialized knowledge to help high-net-worth clients in sports and entertainment capitalize on opportunities to preserve, grow, and transfer their wealth. Your skills, augmented with knowledge gained from this program, will help you analyze and evaluate different planning strategies, including qualitative planning, trusts, investments, employee and retirement benefits, cash flow and tax planning, business planning, and estate planning. Upon successful completion of the SE-AWMA^® course, three graduate-level academic credits will be earned that can be applied to the Master of Science in Personal Financial Planning degree program.

Upon completion of this program, you should be able to:

• Identify and plan for the complex needs of high-net-worth clients

• Increase productivity, build confidence, and be able to make recommendations based on building long-term client relationships with high-net-worth clients

• Have a comprehensive view of financial issues that clients face, enabling you to understand and address the total financial picture of each

• Translate financial planning concepts into everyday work experience, making what you learn immediately applicable to your business

• Identify risk management issues with significant potential impact for high-net-worth individuals

• Identify insurance products targeted to high-net-worth individuals

• Identify or explain the purposes (uses), characteristics, and factors to be considered in using a given business exit planning technique

• Identify characteristics, risks, styles, and strategies of hedge funds or fund of hedge funds, real estate investments, and private equity

• Identify and help clients overcome the behavioral biases that lead to suboptimal results

• Identify tax preference items or adjustments for the alternative minimum tax for non-corporate taxpayers

• Analyze a situation to determine the necessity of estimated tax payments or to calculate the amount of investment interest expense that is deductible

• Analyze a situation to calculate the self-employment tax or alternative minimum tax for non-corporate taxpayers

• Identify and explain advantages or disadvantages of various forms of non-qualified deferred compensation

• Identify or explain advantages or disadvantages of lifetime gifting

• Identify or explain the purposes (uses), characteristics, and factors to be considered in using a given asset protection technique for a high-net-worth client

• Understand the special issues, key people, and challenges of working with athletes and entertainers

• Analyze the qualitative planning strategies available to athletes and entertainers

• Evaluate labor unions and their respective employee and retirement benefits available to athletes and entertainers

• Analyze the special cash flow and taxation circumstances as they relate to athletes and entertainers

• Analyze the business planning strategies available to athletes and entertainers

• Evaluate the estate planning strategies available to athletes and entertainers

Learning objectives and topics covered in the SE-AWMA^®program include, but are not limited to:

• Getting to Know Your High-Net-Worth Client

• Investment Risk, Return, and Performance

• Advanced Investment Products and Strategies

• Considerations for Business Owners

• Income Tax Planning for High-Net-Worth Clients

• Executive Benefits Planning for High-Net-Worth Clients

• Estate Planning for High-Net-Worth Clients

• Fiduciary and Regulatory Issues for Financial Services Professionals

• Special Issues for Athletes and Entertainers

Learn More and Enroll

Learn more about the Sports & Entertainment Accredited Wealth Management Advisor℠ program and enroll when you are ready.

Program Description

The Wealth Management Specialist^℠ (WMS^℠) program equips your staff with a substantial overview of the most critical concepts in financial planning and wealth management without the rigors of the CFP^® certification or a more comprehensive professional designation.

At the time you enroll in the Wealth Management Specialist^℠ (WMS^℠) designation program, you also have the option to enroll in the College’s Financial Advising Accelerator certificate program at a reduced tuition. The Financial Advising Accelerator is an online self-study course for new and early career financial advisors that focuses on key advising and business-building skills necessary to launch a successful financial planning career.

Before you complete the WMS^℠ program, the Financial Advising Accelerator certificate program is designed to help you learn the practical skills needed to plan for, develop, and manage your practice, and confidently engage with clients. At the conclusion of the Financial Advising Accelerator certificate program, you will continue your professional development with the WMS^℠ program, helping you create a solid foundation for understanding the most critical concepts in financial planning and wealth management.

Learning Objectives and Topics Covered:

• Fundamental Considerations in the Wealth Management Process

• Time Value of Money Principles

• Credit and Lending

• Education Funding

• Measurement of Risk and Return

• The Asset Allocation Process

• Investment Strategies

• Tax Implications and Strategies in the Financial Planning Process

• Insurance Products in Wealth Management

• Equity Compensation and Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plans

• Business Ownership and Planning

• Estate Planning

Upon completion of this program, you should be able to understand the basics of the various financial planning subject areas.

Specifically, you will:

• Understand the core financial planning subjects of insurance, investment, retirement, income tax, and estate tax planning.

• Understand education funding options.

• Understand credit and lending options available to clients.

• Understand the time value of money and how to use an HP 10bII+ financial calculator.

Learn More and Enroll

Learn more about the Wealth Management Specialist℠ program and enroll when you are ready.

The Qualified Personal Finance Educator℠ (QPFE℠) certification program covers fundamental personal finance topics with a goal of increasing educators’ proficiency in teaching students how to make sensible decisions that will result in financial well-being throughout their lifetimes.

Topics covered 

• Determining Your Needs, Wants, and Money Goals 

• Budgeting: Managing What You Spend 

• Moving Your Money: Banking, Mobile Payments, and Loans 

• Managing Your Credit: Credit Cards, Credit Scores, and Other Money Sources 

• Buying a Car 

• Getting Your Own Place 

• Saving and Investing Your Money 

• Building Your Financial Security: Life’s Milestones, Retirement and Estate Planning

• Paying Your Taxes 

• Planning Your Future: What’s Next? 

• Funding Your Higher Education 

• Making Buying Decisions: The Influence of Social Media, Environmental and Economic Awareness, and Social Responsibility 

• Safeguarding Digital Privacy, Cybersecurity, and Other Online Best Practices 

• Managing Your Personal Finances: A Capstone Experience

The ETFs & Portfolio Construction certificate program is designed for financial advisors. The program aims to provide financial advisors with the right tools, education, and resources to have better conversations about Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) with their clients.

This online program provides an understanding of ETFs and how they can be used to develop a broad range of diversified investment portfolios that help meet client needs. You will learn about the different types of ETFs available, what helps make ETFs tax efficient, how new shares of ETFs are created, how ETFs can be used in the context of an overall portfolio, and how to construct a portfolio using ETFs that could meet client needs. The program includes hypothetical case studies providing examples of how ETFs can be incorporated in a client portfolio.

We developed the ETFs & Portfolio Construction certificate program in collaboration with iShares^® by BlackRock, one of the largest global asset managers and leading providers of ETFs.

Upon completion of this program, you will be able to:

• Compare and contrast ETFs to other pooled investment vehicles such as mutual funds

• Evaluate the use of ETFs in active and passive investment strategies

• Consider ETF investments across a broad range of asset classes

• Construct a portfolio using ETFs to pursue client needs

Learning Objectives and Topics Covered:

• Overview of the ETF market

• Introduction to ETFs

• ETF liquidity and trading

• ETFs: New ways of investing

• Choosing the right ETF

• Portfolio construction and management

Learn More and Enroll

Learn more about the ETFs & Portfolio Construction certificate program and enroll when you are ready.

College for Financial Planning offers a certificate program designed for new and early career financial advisors. This engaging self-study program—delivered 100% online—helps aspiring financial advisors gain key advising and business-building skills necessary to effectively engage with clients and build a robust book of business. Get started today and set a solid foundation for your financial planning career.

Learn more about the Financial Advising Accelerator certificate program.