3 Reasons to Become a Financial Counselor
Are you thinking about becoming a financial counselor? Look no further, in this post; we’re talking about a financial counselor and the three reasons to become an Accredited Financial Counselor.
What is a Financial Counselor?
A financial counselor helps individuals and families find the most appropriate step to uncover their economic well-being. A financial counselor has many abilities such as:
Build self- Awareness of individual’s money story
Look at budgeting and spending habits.
Look at money behaviors and set goals.
Help you build savings plans (CFPB)
You might find a financial counselor at a credit union, bank, college, or college. Either way, their goal is to help you see your financial building blocks.
Who offers A Financial Counseling Certification?
The © Association for Financial Counseling & Planning Education®, or the AFCPE for short, is nationally recognized in financial counseling. The program is nationally recognized as a substantial program by most financial institutions as an outstanding program.
Requirements and Training:
Education: To become an Accredited Financial Counseling Certification, AFC must take a series of financial courses. What makes it interesting is that there are multiple ways to meet your AFC® and you can do the following
Take a Self- Paced Program with the ACFPE
Completed college work in the personal finance or financial counseling
If you hold a CFP®, CPA, ChFC, or CFA
Experience: You must have 1,000 hours of documented experience in the field. If this number might freak you out, don’t worry because if you think about 1,000 hours in days, it’s roughly around 90 days if you dedicated six hours of the day to personal finance.
Exam: There is an exam that you must take to become an AFC. It’s a 165 multiple choice test; as of 2021, you must pass with 115 points if you take the exam. It takes roughly 3-6 months to study for the exam ( that’s an estimate).
Why is the AFCPE so Important?
It's important to note that financial coaching/counseling isn't heavily regulated, which means that anyone can say that they are financial counselors and not have any certifications. It's essential to ask specific questions when you are working with a business coach. One nationally recognized leader in financial coaching is the Association for Financial Counseling & Planning Education® (AFCPE®).
Three reasons to Become a Financial Counselor
1. FINRA tested and APPROVED
The AFCPE is the leading certification for FINRA. FINRA’s Congress’s authorization is to protect America’s investors and ensure that they don’t get screwed over by folks. FINRA believes in the education of the ACFPE so much that they even created a program with the ACFPE helping Military Spouse become Financial Counselors.
2. Understand the big picture of finance
Financial Counseling provides a bird’s eye view of personal finance. If you are interested in financial coaching or counseling, it will help you see all the details of finding individuals and families’ net worth. It will provide you with the tools to become a better listener and even create an ambiance for clients.
3. Become a Personal Financial Writer
If you are thinking about becoming a writer or making money as a freelancer, having a certification can reassure folks that you know the essential aspects of money and the numbers behind it.
I received the ACFPE Scholarship. And if you’re interested, the AFCPE offers different scholarships.