[Anonymous]

Hi,

so as I am (hopefully) coming to an end of my cpa exam studying, I am looking ahead to credentials that may help me out in my career. I currently work in tax and the thought of one day opening my own firm certainly sounds very appealing. Because of this, I have begun reading into the CFP exam and the benefits brought by earning this credential.

I just wanted to hear from the A71 community on what your thoughts are of someone being both a CPA and a CFP ? Worth it? Or should I look else where.

[Anonymous]

I personally don't see the benefit in getting your CFP…I would go for something like the CFA which is much more prestigious.

[soyanks]

If you work in tax and wish to open up your own practice (in tax) in the future, better choice would be MST. A good MST program allows you to specialize in high net-worth individual wealth planning, which is very helpful if you have your own practice. You will gain knowledge in variety of areas (partnership taxation – because most small business and mid size clients are LLP and LLC; estate planning; etc etc)

You can always pursue CFP later when you would actually need it.

FAR - 86
REG - 85
BEC - 90
AUD - 84

[Tux]

I know someone who has a CFA and he does not recommend pursuing that.
Apparently, it's only used for a very niche market, like working on Wall Street or something. He doesn't feel like he's benefiting from his CFA certification. It's ridiculously hard and takes a long time to get it.

I, too, plan to specialize in tax and open my own business. I am also considering the CFP in the future, but I don't know much about it.

I'm surprised that the MST was recommended for starting your own firm. IMO, masters degrees are more valuable when looking for a job and working for someone else vs. starting your own business.

My thinking is that, if you start your own firm, you need to think of who you plan to provide services too and what credentials will they be looking for. Who is your target market?
As mentioned, I would think that high net worth individuals is a great market to focus on. If that's who you want to service, then google other businesses that do financial planning for that market and see what credentials they have.

However, if you plan to target the general population, some credentials that are important for the high net worth market might be overkill for the general public.

FAR - 86 - 2/27/14
AUD - 75 - 5/29/14
BEC - 80 - 8/31/14
REG - 89 - 2/27/15
Praise Jesus! I'm done!!

Study resources:
Becker
Wiley test bank

[Anonymous]

Yea, I don't think the CFA would be a good choice for myself. Don't get me wrong, while I understand it is probably the most respected designation in finance, I have no intentions of becoming a financial analyst.

The MST is certainly on the table.

Great response Tux, that's exactly what I was getting at. As an accountant in a small accounting firm, you are often looked at to be the guiding voice on many aspects, not just accounting & tax. I think it would be beneficial to have a designation that provides more of a background to the financial (and tax) planning side of things, such as the CFP.

I'll continue to research and post up any information I find relevant to having both the CPA & CFP.

[ridiqls]

I read that the CFP is very oriented to sales types jobs, as this most financial advisor/wealth management positions, which is what I didn't like. i guess if you're out on your own there is always an element of sales and marketing but with commission based systems, it is more so. If you're a CFP and fee based, then it could help in addition to your CPA. Depends on your market too, most regular folk don't know that CPAs do financial planning. Everyone i talk to think a CPA is a tax person. CFP title can help particularly for those actively looking for some help with their planning.

[Anonymous]

It is worth it. It is the most widely known financial planning credential by the general public. Unlike a license a designation is only as important as the public is aware. The downside is that yearly dues can be expensive. Passing the CFP allows you to apply for the CPA-PFS Personal Financial Specialist designation also so you get two respected designations with one test.

I wouldn't say it is sales oriented. It seems to target the fee-based or AUM community. The ChFC has its base in the life insurance industry so it seems to be more oriented at the commissioned based sales types.

The CFP is moving towards the universal minimum standard for advisor competence.

[Anonymous]

I'm curious if you go for your CFP how would you satisfy the experience requirement? With CPA it is relatively easy now since you no longer have to work in public accounting or directly for a CPA but CFP looks quite a bit more challenging to obtain. I'm interested in CFP because I enjoy financial planning and analysis, at least for my own finances, but I wouldn't be willing to take an internship or entry-level job to obtain the 6,000 CFP experience requirement.

[Anonymous]

You can obtain your experience through personal delivery to the client. As long as it is applicable to one of the elements of financial planning. I think if most CPA's take a good look at their experience they already satisfy it.

[Author]

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