The determination as to whether an individual has a relevant degree under the new Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority (FASEA) education guidelines for financial planners currently remains unclear.
Kaplan Professional head of operations Sally Greener brought this issue to light when questioned about it at today’s SMSF Association Sydney Local Community Christmas Lunch.
“We’ve actually personally approached FASEA and said can we have confirmation as to who would confirm an individual has a relevant degree. Who does that? Do we do that as the education provider? Does the licensee do that? Does FASEA do that?” Greener said.
“It’s crucial because it means [having to complete] four subjects as opposed to seven subjects.
“Unfortunately, I don’t have that confirmation for you.”
She revealed practitioners are already trying to determine what their educational standing under the FASEA requirements is and Kaplan Professional has been doing its best to be proactive on the subject.
“We’re on the front foot [regarding this matter] at the moment and I can tell you we’ve reviewed 2000 to 2500 transcripts to date just to give people some guidance,” she said.
“We want to help people and say ‘as far as the information we currently have, this is the box you fit in’.”
In response to a question about the price advisers could expect to pay for additional education they would have to undertake to comply with the FASEA obligations, she said it was up to the individual education provider to determine.
“We’re always looking at what our education providers are doing and [they are charging] anywhere between $1500 or $2000 to $4500 a unit and that’s dependent on the institution and the delivery model,” she noted.
As such, she suggested financial advisers should budget for about $2000 per education unit as a minimum.
