What are financial planner courses?

Financial planner courses are specially designed to train those who have an inclination towards the efficient and effective management of funds. While financial planners are already in great demand in various developed countries where people depend on the financial advisors for managing their money, the concept of Financial Planning through independent advisors is slowly catching up in India as well.

There are various financial planner courses available in the country, which can be taken up by those who have the analytical ability and strategic planning capacity to implement various financial decisions.

Being a highly specialised field, financial planner courses are majorly taken up by those who have a background in financial management, including chartered accountants, MBAs in Finance, and Certified Public Accountants among others, as it gets easier for them to deal with the nitty-gritty of personal and company finance.

A financial planner essentially helps his clients, whether it is a company or an individual, to plan and implement financial strategies in-tune with their capital inflow and the objectives for which they plan to spend the capital. S/he assesses the cash flow and offers realistic goals that can be achieved in the short- and long-term through the optimal utilisation of the money-in-hand and the expected income to be generated in the future.

Many diploma and postgraduate-level financial planner courses are available in India. An Executive MBA degree in Financial Planning - a one-year program - from a reputable institute makes a person adept in handling Financial Planning needs of individual customers and small and medium businesses (SMBs). Most of the universities provide two-year full-time MBA course in Financial Planning while some others offer a combination of MBA and a Diploma in Financial Planning. However, the most appropriate degree for a financial planner will be a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) course, which is offered by the Financial Planning Standards Board India or FPSB India.

Read on to learn more about financial planner courses available in India.

 

Financial Planner Skill Required

Managing one’s own money is a tough task and equally tough, rather a little more is managing others’ funds. The foremost quality a financial planner needs is integrity or financial integrity to be precise. He should have strong interpersonal skills and should be transparent in his dealings with customers. A superior analytical ability and sound problem-solving skills are must, along with management experience and an innovative style of functioning. Since pass outs of financial planner courses need to be innovative and conservative at the same time, which could be a tough task; logical thinking with an appetite for risks is another important quality.

 

Job Prospects at UG Level:

Financial planner courses provide candidates with a window to the dynamic financial sector. Nowadays, many financial institutions make it mandatory for their financial advisors or analysts to have the CFP certification. A Certified Financial Planner can find desirable jobs in the private banking sector, wealth management companies, investment consultancy firms, and mutual fund and insurance companies among others.

 

Job Prospects at PG Level:

Further, roles offered to the pass outs of financial planner courses include financial advisors, risk analysts, portfolio managers, mutual fund advisors, retirement planning advisors, financial products marketing specialists, financial product designers, wealth fund managers, etc. One can also set up an independent consultancy firm and act as a tax planner, insurance advisor and debt management specialist.