The Financial Planning Association says it will push for relevant degrees that were obtained more than a decade ago to be recognised as part of existing planners’ education requirements, after receiving hundreds of concerned letters from members.
Planners who have business or economics degrees, for example, should receive at least partial credit for their studies, whether they earned them 10 years ago or 30 years ago, FPA chief executive Dante De Gori said.
“We’re advocating that a degree qualification should be recognised irrespective of how old it is,” De Gori said. “In our view, it doesn’t make sense that [the acceptable degree completion date] is restricted to 10 years. It’s creating a level of anxiety and confusion in the marketplace.”
The association would also be advocating for the Certified Financial Planner designation to be recognised as a component of existing advisers’ education requirements.
The FPA plans to give its feedback to the Financial Standards and Ethics Authority (FASEA) as part of its consultation on the authority’s proposed education framework to existing advisers.
De Gori stressed the FPA is strongly in favour of requiring degrees and said the FPA had been advocating for it for more than a decade. It supports the guidance for new planners and the pathway option for existing planners without a degree.
“For those who don’t have qualifications, we absolutely believe they need to do further studies,” he said. “The proposal of only having to do eight units of study is very reasonable.”
Late last year, FASEA said in its proposed guidance that existing planners could meet requirements if they completed a course that offers at least eight units at an AQF Level 8 that include ethics, professional attitudes and behaviours, the financial planning and advice process, and technical issues.
Since the proposed guidance was released, the FPA has received more than 500 emails, which broadly fall into three camps: those who have done a degree, but are concerned about it not being recognised; those who have done a combination of certifications and designations and have similar concerns; and those who refuse to accept change is coming.
De Gori was clear planners had to accept that minimum education standards are being formalised, rather than fighting the requirement.
“The FPA does not apologise for advocating for higher education standards,” he said. “We think it’s absolutely necessary for the future of the profession. This is absolutely necessary to put in place and get right. When you’re transitioning [about] 20,000 individuals, it has to be done in a way that’s fair and reasonable.”
