Have you thought of a career in personal financial planning?
Perhaps an internship with a personal financial planner might give you some insight or if you can't do an internship, perhaps shadow someone who works in that field.
Personal financial advisors (or planners) give financial advice to people. They help with
investments, taxes, and insurance decisions.
They also help people plan for retirement and get their estate in order.
Personal financial planners are needed in banks, credit unions, stock
and bond firms, insurance companies, mutual fund firms (i.e., Fidelity), and in
financial planning firms. Most personal
financial advisors work in the finance and insurance industry or are
self-employed. They typically work full time and may meet with clients in the
evenings or on weekends. The median
salary is in the high $60s (According to the fed numbers on this the median pay
is $67,520 in May 2012. However, the compensation can be much much higher for
experienced financial planners. I worked
with planners way back in the 1980s were making six figure incomes. Personal financial advisors typically need a
bachelor’s degree. A master’s degree and certification can improve chances for
advancement in the occupation. The
certifications are the CFP and the ChFC.
Employment of personal financial advisors is projected to
grow 27 percent from 2012 to 2022, much faster than the average for all
occupations. As the population ages and life expectancies increase, demand for
financial planning services should increase.
The graying of America is certainly a factor. Retirement and estate planning are BIG
fields.We are offering the first step into this field with the CCB summer course - FIN320 Personal Finance (online) which starts on July 8th. It is a very practical course and has no prerequisites. There are still a few seats. You don't need to be a business major to take the course. Students from other schools are welcome into the course (assuming there is space!)
Note: I (Professor Michael Griffin mgriffin@umassd.edu) was a personal financial planner prior to joining UMD (26 years ago). I continue to do personal financial planning for clients and at one time had my own office (Griffin Financial Consulting) in my home town of Swansea, MA. It is an interesting and rewarding field.
