Kaplan Professional graduates hit record numbers

Graduate Certificate in Financial Planning;
Graduate Diploma of Financial Planning; and
Master of Financial Planning.

Among the graduates, the youngest was 22 years old, while the oldest was 78 years old, 63.6% were male, and 36.4% were female. Additionally, 66.3% of the graduates were metropolitan-based, 33.3% were regional-based, and 0.4% were based overseas.

Overall, 3,000 advisers have graduated from Kaplan’s postgraduate financial planning qualifications since 2017, with thousands of advisers in the process of completing their postgraduate qualifications.

Kaplan CEO Brian Knight said he is proud of the advisers who have graduated despite the challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“They have achieved their postgraduate financial planning qualifications under challenging circumstances and have been able to successfully overcome any obstacles that may have come their way,” Knight said. “These advisers have put in dedication, sacrifice, and immense hard work for not only themselves and their loved ones but [also] for the betterment of their clients and profession.”

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Count Financial chief advice officer Andrew Kennedy said his licensee was committed to the ongoing professionalism of the adviser network and the financial advice industry.

“Kaplan Professional has played a key role in helping us achieve this objective, with their strong focus on technical matters, regulatory impacts, and ethical standards,” Kennedy added. “As a licensee, creating positive client outcomes is essential, so we invest heavily in the learning and development of our advisers to ensure more Australians can access quality advice.”

Craig Sankey, head of technical services & advice enablement at Industry Fund Services, added: “We are pleased to report that the uptake of study by our licensed advisers with Kaplan Professional has been tremendous, especially considering many had not studied for a long time, and we are already in a position where over two-thirds of our advisers have completed their education journey.”

Kaplan will hold graduation ceremonies to celebrate and recognise its 2020-2021 graduates in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, and Sydney in mid-May and early June.

It will also launch an “Alumni Advantage Program” in the coming weeks after feedback showed that advisers want to achieve a master’s degree or complete single subjects in specialist areas of interest and professional practice.