Certified Financial Planning Certification Education

Criteria & Eligibility

• A bachelor’s degree is required to enroll in this professional education program.
• The program is open to anyone seeking to become a CFP®. Current Loras undergraduate students are advised to pursue the Financial Planning minor so they can pursue the required coursework while earning their undergraduate degree.

Online Application

• Please create an account and apply online. There is no application fee.
  • In the Student Profile section within the application itself, select “Professional Development” as the Student Type, then select “Certified Financial Planning Certification Education” as the Academic Program.
  • Please note that you do not have to upload anything to the Materials section of the application.

Application Deadlines

Students may begin the CFP® Certification Education coursework in either January, March, May, July, September, or November of each year. Loras offers rolling admissions for this program, but the application and official college transcript(s) should ideally be submitted at least one month prior to the start of your desired session.

All Official Transcripts

• For a transcript to be considered official, it must be mailed in a sealed envelope from that institution’s
• Registrar’s Office directly to Loras College Graduate Admissions. (Transcript “issued to student” as well as faxed and copied transcripts will not be considered official).
  • All official transcripts can be mailed to: Loras College Graduate Admissions, Attn: Megan Henderson, 1450 Alta Vista Street, Dubuque, IA 52001
• Official electronic transcripts ordered through a service such as Credential Services or National Student
  Clearinghouse are also acceptable.
• Please have your transcripts sent immediately after you have submitted your online application.

Enrollment Process

• Immediately after our receipt of your application and official college transcript(s), you will be notified in your
  online Applicant Status Portal of your next steps. You will be asked to pay a $100 confirmation deposit to confirm your spot in the program.
• The Loras Registrar’s Office will then register you for the courses.
• You will be assigned an academic advisor (Loras faculty member) to advise and guide you through the
  program.
• Please note that federal financial aid is not available for this program.

Fundamentals of Financial Planning & Insurance
The program’s first course begins with a presentation of the basics that will form the foundation of knowledge students need as working financial services professionals. The financial planning process, as well as the legal, ethical, and regulatory issues affecting financial planners and time value of money concepts are covered. The course continues with a discussion of the principles of risk management and insurance, allowing the student to identify a client’s risk exposure and select appropriate risk management techniques.

Investment Planning
The investment course is designed to provide students with an introduction to modern portfolio theory, measuring risk and return, portfolio development and analysis, asset allocation and portfolio diversification, along with equity and bond valuation and derivatives.

Income Tax Planning
This course is designed to provide students with an introduction to individual income tax fundamentals and the calculation of income tax. In addition, the tax issues surrounding business entities, disposition of property and tax basis are discussed. Students are introduced to the alternative minimum tax (AMT), passive activity rules, charitable contributions and tax minimization strategies.

Retirement Planning & Employee Benefits
This course will provide students with a fundamental introduction to retirement planning and employee benefits, including public and private retirement plans as well as group and fringe benefits. Specifically, the course will cover the public retirement plans including Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid as well as the private plans including both defined benefit and defined contribution plans. In addition, the course will provide students with an understanding of the regulatory provisions associated with the installation, administration and termination of retirement plans and with the specific characteristics of the various plans available including qualified, non-qualified and other tax advantaged plans. Finally, the course will detail employee group and fringe benefits and the taxation of these benefit plans, and also the issues that individuals face in retirement.

Estate Planning
The estate planning course begins with the estate planning process and the basic documents needed for an estate plan such as a will, durable power of attorney for healthcare and an advanced medical directive. The course continues with a discussion regarding property ownership, assets that pass through and around the probate process, gift and estate taxes and planning techniques to reduce an individual’s tax liability.

Capstone Course
This project-based course will require students to synthesize and apply elements of comprehensive financial planning, to perform all functions of the financial planning process and to apply the CFP Board’s practice standards.

Virtual Classroom

• The cost of the entire CFP Certification Education program—all 6 courses in the Virtual Classroom format—is $7,195. This includes textbooks, which will be mailed to you.
• The cost of each individual CFP Certification Education course for students taking just a few courses in the Virtual Classroom format is $1,000 per course—except for the Capstone course which is $925. Textbooks are not included and must be ordered and purchased separately. The Capstone course textbook is included in the course fee and will also be mailed.

Self-Paced

• The cost of each individual CFP Certification Education course for students doing all or just a few courses in the Self-Paced format is $600 per course—except for the Capstone course which is $925. Textbooks are not included and your are responsible for ordering and purchasing separately—except for the Capstone course which is included in your course fee.

Payment

You have two options for program payment, regardless of if you are doing the Virtual Classroom format or the self-paced format:

1. Utilize tuition reimbursement from their employer via completion of Loras’s Employer Tuition Reimbursement form.
2. Self-pay your entire program balance before the first day of class.

If you wish to utilize tuition reimbursement from their employer must complete Loras’ Employer Tuition Reimbursement form before the first day of their first class. You will still be issued regular billing statements from Loras, but will be exempt from any service charges and will be exempt from having to make full payment until after the end of each class (or until after program completion for CFP Certification or Cybersecurity Bootcamp students).

You or your employers are welcome to make payments directly to Loras along the way if they would like, but it is not required. If the employer reimbursement criteria are not met and/or reimbursement is denied, you must bring you account current immediately before any future registration will be permitted. Your balance must be paid in full within thirty days of the last day of each term (or within thirty days of program completion), and prior to Loras issuing your certificate of completion.

Students who do not complete Loras’s ETR form must self-pay their entire program balance before the first day of class. Students who fail to make payment for the program by that date will be asked to remit payment or be removed from the program.

Withdrawals/Refunds

Students who withdraw from the Certified Financial Planning Certification Education program will receive a full refund up to five days after the first day of the start of the session. Please note that the confirmation deposit and credit card convenience fees, if applicable, are not refundable. Students who drop out on day six of the session or anytime thereafter will receive no refund and will be financially responsible for the full cost of the program.

Financial Aid

Please note that federal and institutional aid is not available for this program. However, students are able to utilize employer tuition reimbursement and private loans.