The CFP Board of Standards has launched a scholarship program designed to support women who are setting out to become CFP planners.
The Cary Carbonaro Women & Wealth Career Changer Scholarship was made possible through a $125,000 gift from Carbonaro, an award-winning personal finance expert with more than 25 years experience in wealth management, the board said in a press release.
“Cary has been a champion for women her entire career, as a financial planner, mentor, author and industry leader,” CFP Board CEO K. Dane Snowden said in a prepared statement. “We are grateful for her generosity and commitment to opening doors for women who are ready to make financial planning their next chapter. More women in this profession means more Americans have access to competent, ethical financial advice.”
The scholarship will provide financial support “to women who identify as career changers—individuals who have never worked in the financial services ecosystem. Eligible candidates must also demonstrate financial need,” the board said.
The scholarship will award up to $5,000 to students who are seeking to complete a certificate-level CFP Board Registered Program, the board said. Applications will be reviewed by a scholarship panel comprised of CFP® professionals.
Carbonaro currently serves as managing director and “Women and Wealth Ambassador” at Ashton Thomas Private Wealth, a unit of Arax Investment Partners.
She is the author of “Women and Wealth: A Playbook to Empower Clients and Unlock Their Fortune,” a guide for advisors looking to serve female clients, and “The Money Queen’s Guide for Women Who Want to Build Wealth and Banish Fear,” the board said. She has served as a CFP Board ambassador for over a decade and is frequent keynote speaker at wealth management events and conferences, the board added.
Cary co-created the Women & Wealth Masterclass, a CE-eligible course to help financial planners better understand and serve women clients, the board said.
“Both my own experience and the data show that the financial planning profession offers exactly the qualities many women career changers are seeking,” said Carbonaro said in a prepared statement. “I’m proud to be a CFP® professional, and proud to help welcome more women into the profession.”
The scholarship is part of a broad initiative by the CFP Board to support the involvement of women in the financial planning profession. “CFP Board hosts CFP® Pro Career studios, live, multi-day events where participants get a closer look at the profession, learning from CFP professionals who successfully changed careers, as well as getting insights from employers on what they look for in career changer talent,” the board said. “CFP Board also recently hosted its first virtual career fair focused exclusively on career changers, with nearly 200 attendees.”