The CISI, the professional body for Certified Financial Planners, and the young planner support group NextGen Planners, have launched a joint scholarship scheme to encourage new Financial Planning talent.

The initial pilot will see the creation of 20 scholarships, worth £6,000 each.

The scholarships will be funded by the CISI and NextGen Planners.

The scheme will include the CISI Financial Planning and Advice unit which includes exam entry and training support from the NextGen Planners Training Contract.

The scholarship will take candidates to the CISI Level 4 Diploma qualification and put them on the path towards full Financial Planner certification. 

The two bodies say the move will, “support new talent joining the Financial Planning profession.”

The CISI’s Sally Plant, assistant director of Financial Planning and education development at the CISI, said: “We need to keep working to attract new talent from the next generation.  We continue to innovate our offer and create new ways to engage with this young community, enabling students to see it, feel it and become the future of Financial Planning.  

“These scholarships provide a pathway for those interested in joining the community and in addition to the CISI Educational Trust Awards, provide a means for those enthused students to grab an opportunity with both hands.”  

Applications for the scholarship programme will open on 5 October at the CHANGE Festival, a joint conference in Liverpool organised by the CISI and NextGen Planners which is expected to see more than 150 graduates and 200 planners take part in a day of technical sessions combined with streams exploring topics of the future. 

Following the CHANGE Festival, students, second careerists and people seeking work will be able to apply online until the end of November, with the scholarship programme starting in January. 

Adam Owen, head of content at NextGen Planners, said: "With a value in excess of £6,000 per scholarship, this new programme will go a long way to removing one of the biggest barriers to entry to our profession. As with everything we do at NextGen Planners, we want this to be a catalyst for people who may never have thought about a career in Financial Planning so that we can see a broader cross section of talent joining the profession.” 

The City of London-based CISI has 45,000 members in over 100 countries.

Further information on the scheme is available by emailing: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.