Job Outlook Bright For Future Financial Planners
Picking a major is one of the toughest aspects of going to college. You want to pick not only something that you will be interested in, but something that will provide you with a secure future.
Unsure about your major or maybe unsatisfied with your field? Why not give financial planning a try?
The job growth rate for financial advisors is expected to be 32 percent by 2020, which is more than double the rate for all other occupations, according to this press release.
In order to encourage more students to pursue financial planning careers and to help more schools develop programs that can educate future advisors, TD Ameritrade Institutional will provide $1.25 million over 10 years through its NextGen Scholarship and Grant Program, now in its second year.
“With efforts like the NextGen Scholarship and Grant program, we can help fill the pipeline with individuals willing to lead our industry and continue the important work of caring for investors and their families,” said Tom Nally, president, TD Ameritrade Institutional.
The following ten students received $5,000 to help them pursue a bachelor’s degree in financial planning, and to celebrate their achievement, were invited to New York City as guests of TD Ameritrade Institutional for a visit to Wall Street:
Mariah Bausch—Kansas State University
Peter Blehl—William Paterson University
Kwame Boakye—University of Akron
Anne Marie Ihling—Virginia Polytechnic Institute
Timi Jorgensen—Utah Valley University
Lauren Loucks—Utah Valley University
Patrick Portman—Western Kentucky University
Tyler Quatraro—University of Oregon
Trent Strang—Olivet College
Catherine Traylor—Louisiana State University
The students walked the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange and rang the closing bell to raise awareness of the career opportunities in financial planning.
Financial planning is not only a fast growing career, but it can also be both personally and financially rewarding for new entrants. The median total compensation for two such financial planning careers, Support Advisor and Associate Advisor, is $58,000 and $83,000 a year respectively.
“For students who may be worried about their job prospects, we encourage them to consider a career in financial planning,” said Richard S. Brown, chief executive of JNBA Financial Advisors and a member of TD Ameritrade Institutional Next Generation Advisory Board.
“Serving as a financial planner offers terrific opportunities in a fast-growing business but also the chance to truly help others live better lives.”
TD Ameritrade Institutional wants to support establishing and emerging financial planning education programs through its NextGen Grant Program, as across the country, fewer than 90 schools offer financial planning degrees.
The 2014 grants went to the University of Georgia and Texas A&M University to help support the development of innovative programs that increase the ranks of talented scholars entering the industry and help ensure graduates are better prepared to succeed in the workplace.
With its $50,000 established-program grant, the University of Georgia will use its money to build a Financial Communication and Training Lab, where students can strengthen their networking, communication, marketing and other workplace skills so that they are more likely to be successful. The award also comes with mentors for students, in the form of local financial professionals.
With a first ever $25,000 award designed to help schools with emerging programs, Texas A&M intends to launch a bachelor’s degree in financial planning program, expanding on an Extended Learning program offered to graduate students and career-changers. In addition, grant money will be used to develop recruiting materials to attract students with an added focus on women and minorities.
Job prospects are high for financial planners. Make your future a little brighter by looking into the TD Ameritrade Institutional NextGen Scholarship and Grant program for 2015.