Candidates vying for Certified Financial Planner (CFP) certification can now apply for and receive $1,500 in scholarships to support their endeavour.

Girish Agrawal, Calgary-based CFP professional and principal at Agrawal Associates Private Wealth Management, set up the bursary initiative calling it the Tara Agrawal Financial Planning Scholarships, after his mother.

“In an effort to promote more diversity in the profession, these scholarships are also designed to provide individuals from under-represented communities across Canada greater opportunity to pursue careers in financial planning,” says Agrawal in an interview published on FP Canada’s website.

Agrawal says he hopes the approximately 17,500 CFP professionals Canada-wide will contribute to the program to further his plans for funding six yearly scholarships in the amount of $5,000 each. 

Shortly thereafter, FP Canada announced the results of the May sitting for the CFP exam, in which 406 candidates wrote the exam.

Out of those who were writing for the first-time, 80 per cent passed.

FP Canada also surveyed candidates to understand their motivations for writing the exam. The results revealed that 81 per cent of all candidates wrote the exam to enhance their skills and better serve their clients. A total of 36 per cent did so to obtain credentials allowing them to use the ‘financial planner’ title under the Title Protection Act. A third reason, for 33 per cent of exam writers, was that their employer required the credentials as a condition of employment.