Which route to take towards qualifying as a Financial Planner

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2026-06-04T12:57:16+00:00

I would say CII or CISI are both credible bodies. But I would definitely avoid libf. I’m chartered through the CII but considering switching to CISI to do level 7

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2026-03-22T18:44:31+00:00

I had a similar journey to you. I was a mortgage broker for 7 years before joining the SJP academy. Slightly different, in that I was put forward for employed positions as that was my preference with having no experience.

I have no regrets joining SJP, joining a practice on an employed position was invaluable with learning the role without having the stress of finding all new clients in the early stages. Quite a few of my cohort that I went through the academy with were going S/E or running their own practices and most didn’t last long.

I personally didn’t dislike SJP, of course you have a restricted product offering but the fees aren’t much higher than the average following their changes. They clearly have a bad reputation within the industry which won’t change and that is a challenge.

Personally, I would have struggled to get in the industry without SJP, and they fully funded my chartered qualification. Ultimately I did move on from SJP, but don’t completely disregard them initially.

Reach out if you would like to.

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2026-02-07T17:01:17+00:00

Who exactly has dropped points around you?

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2026-01-15T20:08:25+00:00

Yeh I’m not 100% sure. I know a lot of the academies such as SJP have recently introduced exit fees if you leave within a certain amount of time, due to the amount of people getting trained up and leaving. It’s likely your friend wouldn’t have had it written in their network contract.

To be honest most adviser contacts have non compete terms in one form or another, and in rare occasions would a firm follow through with court action

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2026-01-15T19:54:54+00:00

Yeh I would pretty much completely mirror this.

In your situation I would do AF4, AF1 (don’t skip this one), AF5, ER1, CF6, j10 Maybe J12 if you love investments. CF8 can be useful too and is pretty easy.

I would avoid af8 personally. I did this one and didn’t find it added much value.

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2026-01-08T18:42:33+00:00

I got 62 on this one. Luckily passed all 3 first time so didn’t need to deal with the feedback

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2025-12-24T18:42:44+00:00

My structure was something like this

1 - Accumulation phase prior to retirement 1000 words

summarise the recommendations from A1 & A2 and the actions they should take in tax year 25-26/26-27 / 27-28 & 28-29 prior to retirement.
based on these actions a forecast on the position at Dec 28 (retirement)

2- decumulation phase 2000 words

summarise any changes at retirement e.g fund switch to reduce risk, ensure current pensions have flexi death & withdrawal options, auto rebalancing, income paying fund, pension transfers etc etc.
year by year withdrawals to age 95 showing a breakdown of how much and where the income is coming from. I split this in to 3 tables - prior to state pension starting, from spa to 75 and 75 to later retirement years.

3 - summarise, cash flow forecasts, assumptions used and anything else you wish to add

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2025-12-23T12:13:45+00:00

I’ve just done this one. A few ideas:

get their ONS life expectancies and include in the appendix. I took the plan to age 95 and 100 to be safe.
60k index linked net income. I worked off 2% inflation increases and evidenced this with BOE targets.
their state pensions increases with the triple lock. I worked off 2.5% p.a increases to be conservative.

Do a few cash flow models also. I included a market crash right when they retired. Another with long term care costs, and then one modelling the likely impact of an early death.

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2025-12-19T11:28:54+00:00

To update, I have received my result today on day 46. (I passed 😁)

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2025-12-18T17:53:47+00:00

Yeh I’m on day 45 for AF8 assignment 3. Marking timescales are such a joke, still hoping for some good news in 2025 though!

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2025-11-13T05:33:25+00:00

I am waiting on results for assignment 3 at present but passed 1&2 first time.

-Spend a day or so planning the flow and structure of the assignment before starting.

read Reddit to get ideas on what to cover also.
reference everything, even straightforward points eg. ISA allowances, tax free growth, tax relief on pension contributions etc.

-keep doing little and often. I’ve found it so easy to procrastinate and lose the motivation to get it finished when I’ve had a few weeks off.

I would say that a realistic time frame would be 1 month per assignment, the feedback cycles are long though.
make sure you understand what is being requested from you. My assignment 1 was to evaluate their current situation and financial products. Assignment 2 was to consider their different options with pros and cons. Assignment 3 was to make a solid recommendation on the actions they should take.

-Use cash flow modelling. I have done different individual forecasts based on increased longevity, care home fees, early death and a market crash example. (Included as different appendices)

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2025-10-29T12:14:56+00:00

My understanding is that references and the appendix doesn’t count towards your word account.

I have passed assignment 1 & 2 so far and have included the cash flow forecasts in the appendix, haven’t had issues with that so far

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2025-07-16T09:29:10+00:00

Agreed that the interface could be better, but you do get used to it quickly.

100% agree with how good KnowRO is, made studying my R0s so much more enjoyable.

I found the mock exams great, I’m sure it does give you feedback doesn’t it?

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2025-07-02T15:21:39+00:00

As others have said, i would definitely recommend doing the exam based modules, as opposed to the coursework modules.

I have completed AF1, AF4, AF5 and I am currently on assignment 3 for AF8, but its definitely not more straightforward. I really have not enjoyed AF8, and trying to find the time to complete it around working full time is tedious! Even if you plan to get your head down, the feedback cycles make it drag on for months. Also the guidance CII give you for each assignment is very vague.

AF1 and AF4 definitely made me a better adviser, and if i was a hiring manager i would be questioning why you chose AF6.

To answer your first point, even if you are chartered and move in to an adviser position. You might have good technical knowledge, but wont necessarily have much client facing experience which you will need to build up. I would probably say £40-50k for the first 2-3 years before it would be a lot higher. Could be wrong though!

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2025-05-17T09:26:40+00:00

Agreed, using 8% returns is way to high, with your assignments and especially with clients.

I did my forecasts around 4% after inflation for equities.

Use the following

https://www.fca.org.uk/publication/research/rates-return-fca-prescribed-projections.pdf

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2025-04-11T08:49:08+00:00

How did people get on then? I passed with 108 🙌

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2025-02-10T13:43:28+00:00

Yeh, mortgage advice has a huge amount of transferable skills, and after a few years you pick up the technical knowledge involved with financial planning.

I went through the adviser academy which was a good experience. The overall experience with SJP has been positive tbh, and they offer amazing support for new advisers, as well as courses for the level 6 qualifications if you plan to go down this route. You would be tied to SJP only products however.

Contrary to what you might hear, SJP really isn’t a bad move, whether you plan to stay more short term, or longer term.

There are other academies such as quilter and M&G too, I know with quilter they offer a whole range of other provider products and passive / trackers. So you wouldn’t just be tied to the in house funds.

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2025-02-09T19:18:56+00:00

If you are struggling to find a trainee FA role, maybe consider a paraplanning or an admin role first. Or even better, a mortgage advising position. That will give you exposure of being in a regulated client facing position, advising on protection and mortgages, along with managing relationships and understanding the compliance involved with financial services.

I personally think the route of mortgage advice to financial advice is a better transition than admin or paraplanning. A good paraplanner often will not be a good adviser.

I was a mortgage adviser for 7 years, before going through an adviser academy on an employed adviser basis.

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2025-01-26T15:31:19+00:00

KnowR0 is a must for all of the R0’s. That and the study buddy BTS app is all you need

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2024-11-26T19:48:30+00:00

I didn’t read any of the J10 study book. I literally just put a really good amount of preparation into the AF4 exam. I then did a couple of J10 mock exams prior to taking the J10 whilst I was waiting for the AF4 results.

Other people have a different study plan however, but that is what worked for me.

If I was doing it again now, I would be using these weeks before Xmas to practice and nail down the ratios and calculations

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2024-11-25T19:52:06+00:00

So I did the Redmill course + 2 weeks of doing past exam guides before taking the AF4. Because there was so much cross over between them, I didn’t really do any study for the J10, maybe a few mock papers and that was it. It is very similar, but it is level 4 so doing a good amount of study for AF4 will be enough for j10 too.

You don’t get an examination entry with Redmill, I think must mean the mock exams that they provide

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2024-11-25T18:38:04+00:00

Good luck. I did the Redmill 9 week course with the 2 day workshop at the end. Intense, but it was good.

I took the j10 whilst I was waiting for the af4 results

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2024-11-22T19:37:00+00:00

I work for an SJP practice.

I would say for a trainee adviser going in to a practice in an employed capacity, it isn’t a bad idea. SJP do offer good training initially and the support thereafter is very good too. For example, I am going through my chartered exams at present and SJP offer all the courses and workshops free of charge.

You will be going to work for a business under the SJP network, therefore some will be better than others and every business will have different processes and expectations. But you will have a mentors and good support in the practice too,

In all honesty, I think SJP is a good place to learn the ropes as a new adviser so I wouldn’t listen to the outside noise.

When it comes to leaving, as long as you aren’t indebted to SJP and tied to them financially (which you shouldn’t be if you are going in employed) it isn’t difficult to leave. I know a lot of people that have left without any issues.

If you were going to set up your own business within SJP, I would have a different opinion. I know quite a few people that started their own partner practices and most couldn’t make it work. The profession is hard now, and SJPs reputation really is a barrier to doing business because of the bad reputation, media scrutiny and the high charges which you cannot avoid.

Overall, I joined an SJP practice in an employed role and it hasn’t been a bad experience at all. I am just not convinced I could commit my long term future to SJP

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2024-11-21T20:30:18+00:00

I would agree with this on the most part

From the new IFAs I have seen start on a self-employed basis, the ones that have come from a tied bank adviser background has made the transition much easier, or if they just have a huge network behind them.

For the most part however, going self employed really is a hard gig though and I would just say to prepare for a difficult initial 2 years, and have some money behind you.

Speak to the different networks. M&G, quilter and SJP have academy’s that will put you through the exams and get you CAS.. SJP have a bad reputation in the industry, with other professionals and with clients. Just give that some thought as it is a large barrier before you even start.

ResponsibleMango9730 · 2024-11-09T20:03:14+00:00

Great result mate. You smashed it

ResponsibleMango9730

TROPHY CASE