According to ACFPE, the Accredited Financial Counselor (AFC) certification provides you with the knowledge and experience to meet individuals and families where they are, help them build a strong financial foundation, realize their goals and achieve lasting financial well-being. AFCPE®️ is a national nonprofit organization and the nationally recognized leader in financial counseling, coaching and education.
Volunteer with Women's Money Matters and boost your professional growth. Learn how your volunteer hours with us can help you achieve your career goals through various certifications.
Accredited Financial Counseling (AFC) Certification
How Can WMM Help You Achieve AFC Certification?
Eligible Volunteer Activities include volunteer presenting and coaching hours which apply towards your AFCPE Certification at a bonus rate of 1.5x as you are working under the guidance of Accredited Financial Counselors (AFC®️) on our team.
How Do I Start?
- Sign up on AFCPE
- Join WMM as a Coach Get in touch with us at [email protected]
- Track Volunteer Hours (Example Calculation: If you spend 1.5 hours in a workshop, 1 hour in a 1:1 session, and 30 minutes researching, that totals 3 hours for the week. With the bonus rate, this equates to 4.5 experience hours).
- Submit hours to Women’s Money Matters for Verification
Additional Resources and Submission
- Certification Rules: Refer to the AFCPE certification rules for final guidance on what is considered an experience hour. The AFC Experience Guide is available at AFCPE.org.
Submission: Once your volunteer hours are complete you will submit your approval forms, along with an itemized list of hours, a brief description, and the relevant AFC Experience Category, to our AFC Certified team.
Support and Contact
If you’re interested in learning more about how the AFC self-paced financial education certification can advance your professional development, view the AFCPE website.
Still not sure? Register on the AFCPE website for a free AFC Info Session to get all the information you need to make your decision. You can also always reach out to the Women’s Money Matters Team to better understand how your volunteer hours can contribute, please reach out to us. We are here to support you in your professional development and are excited to see our volunteers advancing their expertise in financial counseling.
Certified Financial Professional (CFP) Certification
What is Certified Financial Planner (CFP) Certification?
Certified Financial Planners (CFP®) is a formal recognition of expertise in the areas of financial planning, taxes, insurance, estate planning, and retirement saving.
Owned and awarded by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc., the designation is awarded to individuals who successfully complete the CFP Board’s initial exams and requirements, then continue ongoing annual education programs to sustain their skills and certification.
The “4 E’s” of CFP® certification equip you to provide comprehensive advice to your clients, so you can help them achieve confidence today and a more secure tomorrow. These include Exam, Education, Experience, & Ethics. You can read more about these 4 components in details at CFP.org.
Through Women’s Money Matters Volunteering you can earn hours that count towards your 6,000 Experience Hours requirement.
How Can WMM Help You Achieve CFP Certification?
According to the CFP Board, the experience requirement prepares you to provide personal financial planning to the public without supervision. You can fulfill the experience requirement either before or after you take the exam. You need to complete either 6,000 hours of professional experience related to the financial planning process, or 4,000 hours of apprenticeship experience that meets additional requirements.
Qualifying experience includes activities involving the delivery of financial planning services to individual clients. Whether you engage with clients directly, supervise or support the financial planning process, teach financial planning-related courses or participate in internships or the FPA Residency Program, there are many ways to complete the experience requirement.
At Women’s Money Matters we are always in the need for financial presenters and coach volunteers for our ongoing financial wellness workshops.
What Counts as "Experience" Hours?
Many Women’s Money Matters volunteer duties qualify under CFP guidelines, including serving as a 1 on 1 volunteer coach to a “client” or teaching one of our financial wellness workshop topics. Read more about experience reporting details here.
How Do I Start?
- Learn more about the CFP Certification guidelines and see what path and timeline looks best for you.
- Contact WMM to learn about how your skills align with our ongoing volunteer program needs at [email protected].
- After completed, report your experience can be reported to CFP Board at any time through the online Experience Reporting Profile available in your CFP Board account by clicking on the Experience section of the CFP® Certification Tracker.
- In response to the CFP Board, Women’s Money Matters’ Supervisor/Qualified Attester will complete an attestation so you can receive credit for your hours.
Additional Resources and Submission
- Certification Rules: Refer to the CFP website or contact for more information.
- Submission: Log into your CFP Board account and report your experience hours through the Experience Reporting Profile.
- Experience must be completed within 10 years before and/or 5 years after successful completion of the CFP® exam. If a start date for an experience entry falls outside of the 10-year lookback window, you will need to add additional experience within the appropriate timeline. If you have made progress with completing your experience but you need more time past your 5-year deadline, you have the option to submit a Policy Exception Request Form for an extension of up to 3 years.
Support and Contact
Don’t let cost of testing and education deter you from this opportunity, the CFP Board Center for Financial Planning offers scholarships for coursework and for the CFP® exam.
Contact [email protected] for more information.
Pro Bono CFP Volunteering
What Is Pro Bono Volunteering for CFP Professionals?
The Certified Financial Planners (CFP®) Board of Directors has approved a resolution encouraging CFP® professionals to engage in pro bono financial planning. CFP Board recommends a minimum of 20 hours of pro bono service per year and urges firms to support these efforts. To recognize dedicated CFP® professionals, pro bono badges will be awarded for completing 20+, 60+, or 100+ hours of service.
What Counts as Pro Bono Volunteering?
The CFP Board and FFP define pro bono financial planning as free, no-strings attached financial advice or guidance provided by or in conjunction with a CFP® professional volunteer for people who cannot afford a financial planner. Pro bono services can be delivered through either one-on-one or small group, interactive sessions
How Do I Start?
- Attend FFP’s Free Training Course: This FREE one-hour online course is designed to equip financial planners with the skills and techniques to meet the specific needs of lower-income individuals and families. The course is approved for one CE credit by CFP Board. Advisors can also access FFP’s free skill-building webinars on various pro bono topics here.
- Contact Women’s Money Matters: See how your skills align with what our community needs and schedule your volunteering by emailing us at [email protected] or visiting our website for a volunteer application.
- Report your Pro Bono Hours: Log into your CFP.net account and report your volunteer hours to CFP Board (up to 2 years prior).
Support and Contact
If you have any questions as to the many activities that qualify as pro bono, contact [email protected].
See CFP.net for an up to date Compliance FAQ prepared by FFP and it’s pro bono compliance advisor, MarketCounsel, that will help answer any questions your compliance department may have.
Please note that the certifying governing body determines what qualifies as ‘experience hours.’ While we are here to support you, we recommend visiting the certifying body’s website for detailed information and to confirm which hours meet their criteria. You will maintain the relationship with the certifying body, and while we support this process, we are not involved in the final decision-making beyond approving the hours you have confirmed meet their standards.
