The ifs School of Finance (ifs) has suggested that big rises in the number of people taking their Certificate for Financial Advisers (CeFA®) served as evidence that people are increasingly seeing careers in financial advice as an attractive proposition.
Any individual who wishes to advise customers on investment, retirement planning and protection options must hold either CeFA® or the CFP.
Mark Roberts, head of financial regulation at ifs, said: “We have seen a substantial year on year increase in the number of people taking CeFA® since it was re-launched in 2004. For example, the number of those taking this qualification in 2007 was 12 per cent higher than in 2006.
“The fact so many people are taking CeFA® to enable them to become financial advisers is clearly great news for the industry.
“In addition, the average age of candidates taking CeFA® is 33, which goes someway to addressing claims that the average age of a financial adviser is too high. If these trends continue then we should see a drop in the average age of financial advisers as a whole and can be more confident that there will not be a shortage of advisers in the future.”
CeFA® meets the requirements of the Financial Services Skills Council (FSSC), is accredited by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA), and is incorporated into the National Qualifications Framework at level 3 (broadly equivalent to an A level).
And don’t forget ifs also run the Certificate in Commercial Mortgages (CeCM) which is aimed at those intermediaries who want to broaden the scope of their business into the commercial area. On successful completion of the module you will be able to demonstrate an understanding of: common types of products and schemes; legal and regulatory framework; factors affecting the value of commercial property; risk management in the various commercial sectors; and information gathering, affordability, suitability and breaches of payment.
