CFP exam educational requirements

The following list contains the required 72 topics for all CFP Board Registered Programs. If topics are covered in multiple courses, programs are encouraged to list each course.

EFFECTIVE 2015 (subject to revision in 2016)

UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS
FOGELMAN COLLEGE OF BUSINESS
DEPT. OF FINANCE INSURANCE AND REAL ESTATE

CFP BOARD'S FINANCIAL PLANNING TOPIC LIST (72-TOPICS)

AT A MINIMUM, THE CURRICULUM SHALL CONTAIN COURSES THAT ENABLE THE STUDENT TO ACQUIRE AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE TOPICS FOUND IN CFP BOARD'S FINANCIAL PLANNING TOPIC LIST.

"The purpose of the topic list is to guide educational institutions to develop degree and certificate programs in financial planning that deal with the skills and knowledge deemed important to the tasks involved in comprehensive financial planning. The required topic coverage and the recommended optional courses described herein were formulated based on CFP Board's job analysis study of the practice of financial planning. The periodic updates of the job analysis study practice will result in modifications to the curriculum guidelines from time to time, approximately every five years. Topic coverage adequacy will be determined by CFP Board's review of detailed course syllabi, textbooks, student evaluation methods, faculty credentials, and other relevant materials. Throughout the registration period, course materials should be kept up-to-date and reflect current law and practice (Criteria for Registration of a Financial Planning Curriculum with CFP Board, January, 2012)."

A. Professional Conduct and Regulation Take any one course from EACH ROW	Course Number
A.1 CFP Board's Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility and Rules of Conduct	FIR 4610; FIR 4620; FIR 4730
A.2 CFP Board's Financial Planning Practice Standards	FIR 4610; FIR 4620; FIR 4730
A.3 CFP Board's Disciplinary Rules and Procedures	FIR 4610; FIR 4620; FIR 4730
A.4 Function, purpose, and regulation of financial institutions	FIR 3410; FIR 3720
A.5 Financial services regulations and requirements	FIR 3410; FIR 3720
A.6 Consumer protection laws	FIR 4610; FIR 4620; FIR 3710
A.7 Fiduciary	FIR 4610; FIR 4620; FIR 3710

B. General Principles and Regulation Take any one course from EACH ROW	Course Number
B.1 Financial planning process	FIR4610; FIR 4620; FIR 4730
B.2 Financial statements	FIR 3410; ACCT 2010
B.3 Cash flow management	FIR 3410; ACCT 2010
B.4 Financing strategies	FIR 3410; ACCT 2010
B.5 Economic concepts	FIR 3410
B.6 Time value of money concepts and calculations	FIR 3410; FIR 3710
B.7 Client and planner attitudes, values, biases and behavioral finance	FIR 3410; FIR 3710
B.8 Principles of communication and counseling	FIR 4610; FIR 4620; MGMT 3510
B.9 Debt management	FIR 3310; FIR 3410

C. Education Planning Take any one course from EACH ROW	Course Number
C.1 Education needs analysis	FIR 3810; FIR 4870
C.2 Education savings vehicles	FIR 3810; FIR 4870
C.3 Financial aid	FIR 3810; FIR 4870
C.4 Gift/income tax strategies	FIR 4011; ACCT 3130
C.5 Education financing	FIR 3810; FIR 4870

D. Risk Management and Insurance Planning Take any one course from EACH ROW	Course Number
D.1 Principles of risk and insurance	FIR 3810; FIR 4870
D.2 Analysis and evaluation of risk exposures	FIR 3810; FIR 4870
D.3 Health insurance and health care cost management (individual)	FIR 3810; FIR 4870
D.4 Disability income insurance (individual)	FIR 3810; FIR 4870
D.5 Long?term care insurance (individual)	FIR 3810; FIR 4870
D.6 Annuities	FIR 3810; FIR 4870
D.7 Life insurance (individual)	FIR 3810; FIR 4870
D.8 Business uses of insurance	FIR 3810; FIR 4870
D.9 Insurance needs analysis	FIR 3810; FIR 4870
D.10 Insurance policy and company selection	FIR 3810; FIR 4870
D.11 Property and casualty insurance	FIR 3810; FIR 4870

E. Investment Planning Take any one course from EACH ROW	Course Number
E.1 Characteristics, uses and taxation of investment vehicles	FIR 3710; FIR 3720
E.2 Types of investment risk	FIR 3710; FIR 3720
E.3 Quantitative investment concepts	FIR 3710; FIR 3720
E.4 Measures of investment returns	FIR 3710; FIR 3720
E.5 Asset allocation and portfolio diversification	FIR 3710; FIR 3720
E.6 Bond and stock valuation concepts	FIR 3710; FIR 3720
E.7 Portfolio development and analysis	FIR 3710; FIR 3720
E.8 Investment strategies	FIR 3710; FIR 3720
E.9 Alternative investments	FIR 3710; FIR 3720

F. Tax Planning Take any one course from EACH ROW	Course Number
F.1 Fundamental tax law	ACCT 3510; FIR 3410
F.2 Income tax fundamentals and calculations	ACCT 3510
F.3 Characteristics and income taxation of business entities	ACCT 3510; FIR 3410
F.4 Income taxation of trusts and estates	FIR 4011
F.5 Alternative minimum tax (AMT)	ACCT 3510
F.6 Tax reduction/management techniques	ACCT 3510
F.7 Tax consequences of property transactions	ACCT 3510
F.8 Passive activity and at-risk rules	ACCT 3510
F.9 Tax implications of special circumstances	ACCT 3510
F.10 Charitable/philanthropic contributions and deductions	ACCT 3510; FIR 4011

G. Retirement Savings and Income Planning Take any one course from EACH ROW	Course Number
G.1 Retirement needs analysis	FIR 3410; FIR 4011
G.2 Social Security and Medicare	FIR 4011; FIR 4870
G.3 Medicaid	FIR 4011; FIR 4870
G.4 Types of retirement plans	FIR 4011; ACCT 3510
G.5 Qualified plan rules and options	FIR 4011; ACCT 3510
G.6 Other tax-advantaged retirement plans	FIR 4011; ACCT 3510
G.7 Regulatory considerations	FIR 4011
G.8 Key factors affecting plan selection for businesses	FIR 4011; ACCT 3510
G.9 Distribution rules and taxation	FIR 4011; ACCT 3510
G.10 Retirement income and distribution strategies	FIR 4011
G.11 Business succession planning	FIR 4011

H. Estate Planning Take any one course from EACH ROW	Course Number
H.1 Characteristics and consequences of property titling	FIR 3310; FIR 4011
H.2 Strategies to transfer property	FIR 3310; FIR 4011
H.3 Estate planning documents	FIR 3310; FIR 4011
H.4 Gift and estate tax compliance and tax calculation	FIR 4011; ACCT 3510
H.5 Sources for estate liquidity	FIR 4011
H.6 Types, features, and taxation of trusts	FIR 4011; ACCT 3130
H.7 Marital deduction	FIR 4011; ACCT 3130
H.8 Intra-family and other business transfer techniques	FIR 4011
H.8 Postmortem estate planning techniques	FIR 4011; ACCT 3130
H.10 Estate planning for non-traditional relationships	FIR 4011; ACCT 3130