You can find original article here WealthManagement. Subscribe to our free daily WealthManagement newsletters.

The CFP Board is reviewing whether to retain the bachelor’s degree requirement for certification by forming a new working group to make recommendations to the organization’s board.

The Board announced the Academic Pathways & Standards Working Group, along with the CFP Board’s updated Competency Standards, in January. The group will conduct “a careful analysis” of the bachelor’s requirement, including whether it reflects current practices and trends, and reflects needs in the financial planning profession.

According to CFP Board CEO K. Dane Snowden (who succeeded Kevin Keller as the organization’s leader earlier this month), “strong competency standards are essential” to the certification’s credibility.

“That credibility matters±to the profession, to Americans and to every CFP professional,” he said. “Reviews like this help keep our standards aligned with the expectations and needs of the families CFP professionals serve.”

According to the Board, the working group will make its recommendation to the Board of Directors on whether the requirement should be kept or changed, and the Board will review and revise the recommendation if necessary. Any proposed change will go out for public comment before the Board makes a final decision, and no final decision is expected this year.

The working group includes former CFP Board Chairs Jack Brod and Kamilia Elliot (also a board member for Savant Wealth Management and CEO of Collective Wealth Partners, respectively).

Other members include Anthony Battle, an assistant director of planning and retirement with Principal Securities; Brett Esselburn, the head of advisory and investment consulting with Equitable Advisors; Bonnie Harper, a vice president and private wealth consultant for Raymond James; and Edward Jones Financial Planning Director Jason Kelly.

Additionally, the group includes Phuong Long, the program director for the financial planning program at Boston University; Janney Montgomery Scott Head of Wealth Planning Martin Schamis; Demetra Sullivan, a regional market executive with Charles Schwab; and Denise Streeter, an associate professor at Howard University’s School of Business.

In an interview marking the start of his tenure leading the CFP Board, Snowden told Wealth Management last week that the newly-revealed competency standards were top of mind for him. He particularly cited changes to the continuing education requirements, which he expects will be in place by the first or second quarter of 2027.

Among the CE-related changes is an increase to 40 hours over a two-year cycle, up from 30 hours in the same period. Up to five hours may be devoted to practice management, with a separate, mandatory two-hour ethics requirement. However, 10 CE hours may carry over between cycles (an increase from none currently). 

Additionally, the CFP Board may designate mandatory CE topics “in response to significant changes in laws, tax codes or regulations affecting the financial planning profession as determined by the board of directors,” a shift from certificants selecting CE requirements solely from personal topics.

According to Snowden, getting “the implementation done correctly and efficiently” is a “key focus” for year one.