The online certificate in financial planning is an 18-credit program of study with six required courses offered in a time frame comparable to a traditional semester schedule, with fixed start and end dates. Successful completion of the online certificate satisfies the entire education coursework requirement for CFP® certification, and prepares students to take the CFP® Certification Examination. The education and examination components are two of the core prerequisites to obtain full CFP® certification.
Course List - Undergraduate Certificate in Financial Planning
| Title | Abbreviation | Description | Credits |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Principles of Taxation I OR
Principles of Taxation |
ACCTG 405 OR
ACCTG 310 |
Elements of tax policy and tax-planning concepts for personal and business decision making; with emphasis on taxation of individuals.
Study of income determination concepts for individuals and corporations, impact of taxation on decisions, elementary research techniques, and ethical standards. Prerequisite: ACCTG 211 or FIN 301
|
3 credits |
| Personal Financial Planning | FIN 330 | Developing financial plans including cash budgets, credit purchases, investments, and insurance. Third semester standing or permission of instructor. |
3 credits |
| Investment and Portfolio Analysis | FIN 420 | Investment and risk, types of security investments, sources of investment information, the broker, the stock market, portfolio management. Prerequisite: FIN 301 |
3 credits |
| Estate Planning | FIN 430 | Liquidity planning, titling and transfer of property, trusts, federal unified tax system, gifting, incapacity planning, legal documents. Prerequisites: FIN 330 and ACCTG 405 |
3 credits |
| Retirement Planning | FIN 450 | Retirement planning: qualified and non-qualified plans, characteristics, provisions, regulations administration, application approach with case studies. | 3 credits |
| Financial Planning Capstone | FIN 491 | Critical thinking and decision-making about personal financial planning topics in the context of the financial planning process. Prerequisites: completion of first 15 credits of the certificate curriculum |
3 credits |
Course Availability
If you're ready to see when your courses will be offered, visit our public LionPATH course search (opens in new window) to start planning ahead.