Certificate in Financial Planning: any major, and transfers
Advising one-pager · students outside Gatton's business majors, and transfer students · 2026-27 catalog
Download the printable PDF Updated 2026-09-17
What it is
Financial planners help people manage money across investments, taxes, retirement, insurance, and estates. Personal financial advisors earned a median of $105,070 in 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The six courses satisfy the education requirement for CFP® certification; the exam, experience, and ethics requirements complete it. Open to any major, and full-time on-campus undergraduates add it in myGPS at no additional tuition. Every course requires 60 completed credit hours: most students start as juniors, and students with AP or dual credit can often start as sophomores.
The six courses
| Area | Course | Offered | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fundamentals | FIN 350 | Fall, spring | |
| Tax | ACC 357 | Fall only | ACC 407 also counts, but only for Accounting majors and double majors |
| Investment | FIN 357 | Spring only | FIN 410 also counts but requires finance and accounting prerequisites |
| Estate | ACC 457 | Fall, spring | Its tax prerequisite is waived for certificate students |
| Retirement | FIN 358 | Fall only | No alternate course |
| Capstone | FIN 359 | Fall, spring | Taken last |
In most majors outside Gatton all six are free electives, and every one is 300- or 400-level, so they also count toward upper-division hours.
Plan it once the student reaches 60 hours
| Start | Semester 1 | Semester 2 | Semester 3 | Semester 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall start | FIN 350, ACC 357 | FIN 357
, ACC 457 | FIN 358
| FIN 359 |
| Spring start | FIN 350, FIN 357 | ACC 357
, FIN 358 | ACC 457 | FIN 359 |
| Faster, fall start | FIN 350, ACC 357, FIN 358 | FIN 357
, ACC 457 | FIN 359 |
Roadmap course Counts for roadmap and major ✓ Major requirement UK Core, electives Italic = recommended One term only
Transfer students
- Arriving with 60 or more hours? A transfer student can start the certificate in the first semester at UK.
- Completed CFP coursework at another CFP Board Registered Program? Talk with the program director before registering.
Three things to know
- 1.
- Any major, no extra tuition. Six upper-division electives, 18 credit hours, open to students in every college.
- 2.
- Take FIN 358 in a fall, and never leave it for last. It has no second term and no substitute, so a student who starts in senior spring, or reaches that term without it, cannot finish before graduating (Executive Education afterward costs $895 a course).
- 3.
- Follow the row for the starting term. ACC 357 runs only in fall and FIN 357 only in spring, so the order matters more than the pace.
After the certificate
- Students can sit for the CFP exam as soon as their completion is reported. The experience requirement (6,000 hours, or 4,000 through an apprenticeship) and the bachelor’s degree can both be finished after the exam.
- Licenses depend on the job: Series 65 or 66 for RIA roles; SIE, Series 7, and 63 or 66 for broker-dealers; state life and health for insurance. We recommend the SIE for every student: it needs no sponsoring firm and is not required for the CFP.
- Get involved: the Finance Society’s Financial Planning Pathway.
To add the certificate: talk with an advisor, then myUK → myGPS → My Program of Study → Request a Major Change → Add a Major, and search for Financial Planning.
Details: gatton.uky.edu/certificate-financial-planning, or use the link at the top.
Terms. Free elective: any course the student chooses that counts toward graduation hours. Upper-division: courses numbered 300 and above. SIE: Securities Industry
Essentials, FINRA’s entry-level exam.
Director: Will Gerken, CFP®, will.gerken@uky.edu ⋅ Sequences follow the program’s recommended pacing; the catalog year a student entered under
governs.
A general guide, not official advising. Compiled from publicly posted UK catalog and curriculum pages; requirements change and no warranty is given. Confirm your plan with your academic advisor and your myUK GPS degree audit.
Which sheet? Wealth management or financial planning: CFP. Investment research or portfolio management: CFA. Investment banking or private equity: Investment Banking. Real estate lending, investment, or development: Real Estate. Students can combine them. All sheets: willgerken.com/roadmaps