FPA urged to talk to universities
A leading university has called on the Financial Planning Association (FPA) to negotiate with universities to establish a set of threshold tertiary qualifications to enable financial planners to call themselves professionals.
The director of the International Centre for Financial Services at the University of Adelaide, Clive Perring, has told Money Management that until financial planners are required to hold appropriate tertiary qualifications they will fail in their ambition to be regarded as professionals.
Perring has backed the approach being pursued by the FPA and has urged that future financial planners have as a minimum an appropriate undergraduate degree that has a strong foundation in finance, economics, accounting, statistics and marketing.
“We would advocate that the FPA should negotiate with universities to have certain requirements met,” he said. “The FPA should also be aware that in the overall picture, comparatively few students will initially opt for a pure financial planning degree.”
Perring said that in such circumstances a university such as Adelaide would offer degrees that provided a broad understanding of finance, accounting, economics, marketing and business statistics.
He said this would provide students with the analytical skills to make finance and investment decisions, understand financial instruments and securities markets, and manage risks.
AUTHOR
Mike Taylor
Recommended for you
With an advice M&A deal taking around six months to enact, two experts have shared their tips on how buyers and sellers can avoid “deal fatigue” and prevent potential deals from collapsing.
Several financial advisers have been shortlisted in the ninth annual Women in Finance Awards 2025, to be held on 14 November.
Digital advice tools are on the rise, but licensees will need to ensure they still meet adviser obligations or potentially risk a class action if clients lose money from a rogue algorithm.
Shaw and Partners has merged with Sydney wealth manager Kennedy Partners Wealth, while Ord Minnett has hired a private wealth adviser from Morgan Stanley.
