Personal financial advisor: degree, licenses for what you sell, optional CFP
Advisors typically need a bachelor's degree and more than a year of on-the-job training. Selling securities or insurance, or giving specific investment advice, takes licenses that depend on the products; CFP certification is voluntary.
For: People who like numbers and people equally, can build trust, and are persistent about finding clients.
Route 1: Degree → firm training → product licenses Typical
Employers usually do not require a specific major; business, social science and mathematics are common.
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Start here
High school diploma
BLS
Personal Financial Advisors — How to Become OneU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OOH)- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
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About 4 years
Bachelor's degree
Courses in investments, taxes, estate planning and risk management may help.
BLS
Personal Financial Advisors — How to Become OneU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OOH)- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
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1+ year
On-the-job training under senior advisors
BLS
Personal Financial Advisors — How to Become OneU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OOH)- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
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Exam gate
Licenses for the products you sell
Advisors who directly buy or sell stocks, bonds or insurance policies, or give specific investment advice, may need a combination of licenses that varies with the products they sell.
BLS
Personal Financial Advisors — How to Become OneU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OOH)- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
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License
State or SEC registration
Advisors in small firms that manage clients' investments register with state regulators; in large firms, with the SEC.
BLS
Personal Financial Advisors — How to Become OneU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OOH)- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
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Goal
Personal financial advisor
BLS
Personal Financial Advisors — Summary (Quick Facts)U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OOH)- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
Route 2: Investment adviser representative: Series 65 or 66 Giving investment advice
Passing a NASAA exam is normally a prerequisite for a state license before a broker-dealer agent or investment adviser representative can work with investors.
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Start here
Working for an advisory firm
NASAA
NASAA Exams (Series 63, 65 and 66)North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA)- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
nasaa.org blocks visitors from India; read from the Internet Archive capture of 31 Aug 2026.
View source -
Exam gate
Series 65 (investment adviser law)
130 scored questions in 180 minutes; pass with 92 correct; $187.
FINRA
Series 65 — Uniform Investment Adviser Law ExamFinancial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), for NASAA- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
Read from the Internet Archive capture of 28 Sep 2026 (finra.org blocks automated reads).
View source -
Exam gate
Series 66 with the Series 7
The Series 66 counts as the Series 63 and Series 65 together, but an adviser representative registering on it must also hold a valid Series 7.
NASAA
NASAA Exams (Series 63, 65 and 66)North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA)- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
nasaa.org blocks visitors from India; read from the Internet Archive capture of 31 Aug 2026.
View source -
Goal
Registered investment adviser representative
NASAA
NASAA Exams (Series 63, 65 and 66)North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA)- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
nasaa.org blocks visitors from India; read from the Internet Archive capture of 31 Aug 2026.
View source
Route 3: CFP certification Voluntary, 18–24 months
CFP Board's four requirements: education, exam, experience and ethics.
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Start here
CFP Board Registered Program coursework
Average 12 to 18 months; it must come before the exam.
CFP Board
The CFP® Certification ProcessCFP Board- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
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Degree
Bachelor's degree in any discipline
You have 5 years from passing the exam to finish it.
CFP Board
The CFP® Certification ProcessCFP Board- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
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Experience
Qualifying financial planning work
Before or after the exam.
CFP Board
The CFP® Certification ProcessCFP Board- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
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Ethics
Ethics declaration and background check
CFP Board
The CFP® Certification ProcessCFP Board- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
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Goal
CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER professional
CFP Board
The CFP® Certification ProcessCFP Board- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
Licenses, registrations and certifications
Each one is marked: a state or federal license is the law, a registration through an employer comes with the job, and a voluntary certification is one employers may ask for.
- SIE + Series 7
FINRA, through a sponsoring member firm · Registration through an employer - The General Securities Representative registration, for selling securities such as corporate and municipal securities, investment company securities and variable annuities.
FINRA
Series 7 — General Securities Representative ExamFinancial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA)- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
finra.org answers automated reads with a Cloudflare check; read from the Internet Archive capture of 16 Oct 2026.
View source - Series 63
NASAA exam, given by FINRA · Exam for a state license - The state law test for broker-dealer agents: 60 scored questions in 75 minutes, 43 correct to pass, $147.
FINRA
Series 63 — Uniform Securities Agent State Law ExamFinancial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), for NASAA- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
Read from the Internet Archive capture of 16 Jun 2026 (finra.org blocks automated reads).
View source - Series 65 or Series 66
NASAA exams, given by FINRA · Exam for a state license - Series 65 is for investment adviser representatives. Passing the Series 66 counts as passing the 63 and 65, but registering as an adviser representative on it also needs a valid Series 7.
NASAA
NASAA Exams (Series 63, 65 and 66)North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA)- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
nasaa.org blocks visitors from India; read from the Internet Archive capture of 31 Aug 2026.
View source - State insurance license
State licensing authorities · State license - Needed to sell insurance policies.
BLS
Personal Financial Advisors — How to Become OneU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OOH)- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
- CFP certification
CFP Board · Voluntary - Coursework, exam, a bachelor's degree, experience and ethics. Certifications may enhance an advisor's reputation and help bring in clients.
CFP Board
The CFP® Certification ProcessCFP Board- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
State rules
Licenses depend on the products an advisor sells. Advisors in small firms that manage clients' investments register with state regulators; those in large firms register with the SEC. BLS
View source
Dates and rules to re-check
These change by season or by law. Checked 20 Oct 2026.
- From 4 January 2027 the wait after a third failed attempt at a NASAA exam (Series 63, 65 or 66) in two years drops from 180 to 60 days, for exam windows opened from that date.
NASAA
NASAA Exam FAQsNorth American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA)- Checked
- 20 Oct 2026
Read from the Internet Archive capture of 4 Oct 2026.
View source
Where to go next
Every career page in this cluster: entry, license, BLS pay and outlook.
What the job is, BLS pay and job outlook, and how to become one.