Student Professional Certification Resources

Professional Certification Resources

Useful Resources About the College's Certification Marks

Students who successfully complete the requirements of the College’s professional certification programs and comply with standards of professional conduct are authorized to use the College’s certification marks for a given program. The College’s certification marks may only be used by those specifically authorized by the College.

Learn more about communicating your recent educational accomplishment(s), renewing or relinquishing a certification or designation or filing a complaint or grievance against a designee.

Communicate Your Professional Certification Accomplishment

The College for Financial Planning®—a Kaplan Company has developed this Professional Designations Toolkit to support our professional certification holders in creating communications and awareness about the credential(s) you have earned and what that means to the clients you serve. This toolkit contains ideas for how to communicate your recent educational accomplishments and other resources.

Renew a Professional Certification

Following the initial conferment of one of the College for Financial Planning®—A Kaplan Company’s professional certifications and designations, authorization for continued use of the credential must be renewed every 2 years.

To avoid late fees or possible suspension of your certification or designation, click here to review and become familiar with renewal requirements.

Designations are eligible for renewal beginning 120 days prior to the expiration date. You can complete your renewal online in less than 10 minutes by logging into your student account. If you require assistance with the process, please contact the Student Support Department at 800-237-9990, option #2

Relinquish a Professional Certification

If you need to voluntarily relinquish your certification or designation from the College, please complete the designation relinquishment form.

Reinstatement after Expiration

An individual may request the College to reinstate their right to use the designation within two years following the expiration date by fulfilling all outstanding renewal requirements and paying all outstanding fees. In the event the College reinstates the individual’s right to use the designation, the reinstatement will backdate to the original renewal date.

Individuals who do not reinstate within two years following their expiration date are ineligible for reinstatement and are instead required to reenroll in the education program and fulfill all other initial designation requirements in place at the time of their request.

For the MPAS® designation, individuals who do not fulfill all outstanding renewal requirements within two years following the expiration date must complete 40 hours of content-specific continuing education within a 12-month period and pay a reinstatement fee in addition to meeting the initial designation requirements in place at the time of the request.

To request reinstatement of your designation, please complete the linked form for professional designation reinstatement and designation renewal form.  Once your submissions have been reviewed we will contact you with more information and next steps.  If you have questions, please contact renewals@cffp.edu.

File a Grievance Against a Designee

Individuals authorized to use one of the College for Financial Planning’s professional certifications are subject to a disciplinary process. Complaints against a designee may be filed by a designee’s client, employer, or any other individual with whom the designee has established a formal business engagement for purposes of providing asset management, retirement planning, or financial planning services to that individual.

The College for Financial Planning investigates all complaints and its Ethical Conduct Committee determines whether allegations are justified and whether the conduct warrants disciplinary action.

Contact Us

If you need further assistance, please contact us directly at renewals@cffp.edu.