What Do I Need to Qualify For Certified Financial Planner Scholarships?

Rebecca Lake
A financial advisor receiving a CFP scholarship
A financial advisor receiving a CFP scholarship

Becoming a certified financial planner could help you to advance your professional career. Obtaining certification means completing certain education and exam requirements. The CFP Board Center for Financial Planning administers a number of scholarship programs to help with managing the costs of pursuing certification. If you're interested in applying for a CFP scholarship, it's helpful to understand the basic eligibility requirements. Ready to grow your client list? SmartAdvisor can help bring qualified leads to you.

How CFP Scholarships Work

The CFP Board offers more than a dozen scholarships for aspiring CFP professionals to help with the costs of completing the necessary exam and education requirements for certification. Sponsors and donors provide funding for CFP scholarships. Each scholarship has its own eligibility requirements, application process and deadlines. The award amounts also differ. The largest scholarships offer up to $10,000 in funding to recipients.

In addition to administering its own scholarship programs, the CFP Board also offers a clearinghouse of third-party scholarships. The clearinghouse features scholarship programs from different organizations that offer funding to cover the cost of education coursework to get certified, the CFP exam fee and CFP exam review courses.

CFP Scholarship Eligibility Criteria

Each scholarship offered through the CFP Board has its own requirements applicants must meet to qualify for funding. Some are more specific than others, though U.S. residency is required to apply for most scholarships. Here are some of the factors that can determine your eligibility for different scholarships.

  • Education and level of study

  • Financial need

  • State of residency

  • Previous CFP scholarship awards

  • Commitment to the financial planning professions

  • Overall professionalism

Diversity is also a consideration for many of the scholarships offered by the CFP Board. To qualify, you may need to belong to an underrepresented population within the financial planning industry. Underrepresentation can span gender, race, ethnicity, disability or sexual orientation for the purposes of being eligible. Some also consider military veteran status for determining eligibility.

There's one more thing to keep in mind. Applicants who make it to the final round of consideration for any CFP scholarship must pass a background check.

CFP Scholarship Examples

A man receiving a scholarship to become a CFP
A man receiving a scholarship to become a CFP

Reviewing different scholarship options offered through the CFP Board can give you a better idea of what's needed to qualify. Here's a sampling of what's available and who is eligible to apply.

Abacus Wealth Partners Scholarship for Increased Diversity in Financial Planning

This scholarship awards up to $5,000 to students who are completing an undergraduate-level or certificate-level CFP Board Registered Program. To be eligible, you must:

  • Not have received a CFP Board Center for Financial Planning scholarship previously

  • Be a U.S. resident

  • Identify as Asian, Black or African American, Hawaiian Native or Pacific Islander, Hispanic or Latino, Native American or Alaskan Native or two or more of these ethnicities

  • Not be in your final semester of study if you're applying for an undergraduate-level scholarship

  • Not have completed more than five courses in the certificate-level program if you're applying for a certificate-level scholarship

  • Have a demonstrated financial need

Additionally, applicants must provide proof of enrollment in an eligible program and submit an essay demonstrating their commitment to financial planning.

Aspiriant Impact Scholarship

The Aspiriant Impact Scholarship provides up to $5,000 to students who are completing a certificate-level CFP Board Registered Program or up to $10,000 for students completing an undergraduate-level program. To qualify, you must:

  • Be a U.S. resident

  • Possess or be in the process of completing an undergraduate degree

  • Enroll or be in the process of enrolling in a certificate- or undergraduate-level CFP Board-Registered program

  • Be from an underrepresented population within the financial planning profession and/or have a demonstrated financial need

Applicants will also need to be able to exhibit professionalism and commitment to the financial planning profession.

Facet Scholarship for Increased Diversity in Financial Planning

The Facet Scholarship for Increased Diversity in Financial Planning awards up to $5,000 to aspiring CFP professionals who identify as African American or Black. To qualify, applicants must:

  • Be legally able to work in the United States

  • Possess an undergraduate degree if applying for a certificate-level program scholarship

  • Be enrolled or planning to enroll in a certificate or undergraduate CFP Board Registered Program

  • Have a demonstrated financial need

Recipients are not obligated to be affiliated with Facet upon completing the program.

Mission Wealth Scholars

Mission Wealth Scholars awards students up to $5,000 to complete an undergraduate-level or certificate-level CFP Board Registered Program. To qualify, you must:

  • Be a U.S. resident

  • Be enrolled in an eligible program at a college or university located in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Texas or Washington State

  • Have a demonstrated financial need and/or belong to an underrepresented population within the financial planning community

You can also qualify if you live in one of the states listed above on one condition. You must be enrolled in an online undergraduate or certificate-level CFP Board Registered Program when the award is issued.

Wealthspire Advisors CFP Certification Diversity Scholarship

Wealthspire Advisors offers up to $5,000 to students who are completing an undergraduate or certificate-level CFP Board Registered Program. To qualify, you must:

  • Be a U.S. resident

  • Possess or be in the process of completing an undergraduate degree

  • Belong to an underrepresented population within the financial planning profession, based on gender, race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation or veteran status

  • Have a demonstrated financial need

Recipients must prove they’re enrolled in an eligible program before scholarship funds can be disbursed.

Applying for a CFP Scholarship

You can apply for CFP scholarships online through the CFP website. The CFP Board regularly updates each scholarship page when the application window opens and when it closes.

Each scholarship has its own application form. If there is an essay requirement, you'll need to include that with your application as well. If you have questions or need help, you can contact the CFP Board via email at scholarships@cfpboard.org.

To apply for third-party scholarships, you'll need to visit the sponsoring organization's website. For example, if you'd like to apply for the Robert J. Glovsky Scholarship you'd need to go to the Boston College website to learn more about eligibility requirements and how to apply.

Bottom Line

A man finding out he's being awarded a CFP scholarship
A man finding out he's being awarded a CFP scholarship

Getting a scholarship could make it easier to check off the various requirements to obtain a CFP certification in order to manage a client’s wealth. Aside from knowing what makes you eligible for these awards, it's also important to be aware of the deadlines for applying. Otherwise, you might miss an opportunity to qualify for funding.

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