Financial adviser
Business and Finance

How to become a financial adviser

You can get into this job through:

• a university course
• an apprenticeship
• working towards this role

University

You could start by doing a degree in:

• financial services
• business management
• accountancy

Once you finish your course you could apply to join a financial services company or bank as a trainee adviser.

University (Entry requirements)

You'll usually need:

• 2 to 3 A levels, or equivalent, for a degree

Apprenticeship

You could do a financial adviser higher apprenticeship or a financial services professional degree apprenticeship.

Apprenticeship (Entry requirements)

You'll usually need:

• 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) and A levels, or equivalent, for a higher or degree apprenticeship

Work

You could start as a financial services administrator or customer services adviser in a bank and work your way up.

To do this, you'll need to study for a level 4 qualification in financial advice recognised by the Financial Conduct Authority. These include:

• Chartered Insurance Institute Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning
• The London Institute of Banking & Finance Diploma for Financial Advisers
• Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment Investment Advice Diploma

More info

Registration

• you'll need to register as an 'approved person' by the Financial Conduct Authority

Further information

You can find more on working in financial services through The London Institute of Banking & Finance.

What it takes

Skills & Knowledge

You'll need:

• customer service skills for finding out customer needs
• knowledge of economics and accounting for understanding financial markets and products
• maths knowledge for creating financial plans
• the ability to sell products and services
• excellent verbal communication skills
• active listening skills
• business management skills for negotiating product rates
• to be thorough and pay attention to detail
• to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

Restriction & Requirements

You'll need to:

• pass enhanced background checks

What you'll do

Day to day

Your day-to-day tasks will include:

• talking to clients about their finances and plans
• researching financial products and explaining them simply and clearly
• negotiating with providers of financial products
• producing financial reports
• updating clients about their investments
• meeting performance and sales targets
• keeping up to date with new products and law changes

Working environment

You could work in an office, from home, at a client's home or in a contact centre.

Career path and progression

Career path & progression

If you work for a large financial organisation, you could specialise in one area of work like retirement planning. You could also move into management, recruiting and training new staff. With further specialised professional qualifications, you could become a director or partner in your firm. Another option is to move into compliance work, making sure your company is following industry guidelines.