How to become a financial advisor

Do you have excellent people skills with a head for numbers? Enjoy solving puzzles with an ambitious streak? You could be cut out for a career as a financial advisor.

In this guide we’ll look at the financial advisor career path, including:

• What’s a financial advisor?
• What’s the job of a financial advisor?
• Should I be a financial advisor?
• How to become a financial advisor.

'Enjoy solving puzzles? Have an ambitious streak? You might want to think about becoming a financial advisor. Find out how'

Tweet this to your followers

What is a financial advisor anyway?

Let’s start with the basics. A financial advisor gives advice to people and organisations to help them make decisions about their money. Their advice helps people save their money wisely and choose where to invest it.  

It’s an important role in the Banking & Finance Career Zone.

What’s the job of a financial advisor?  

Financial advisors (sometimes referred to as financial planners or wealth managers) have specialist knowledge about these financial products. So they’re able to give expert information about things like:

• Mortgages: an amount of money you borrow from a bank in order to buy a house)
• Pensions: the money you have after you retire.
• Insurance: payments you make to a company to protect you against damage or problems, for example travel insurance.

A big part of the job of a financial advisor is to research different products and services, and then

recommending the one that is the best for their “client” (the person or organisation buying the product or service).

Financial advisors follow very strict industry rules.

There are three types of financial advisor: “tied”, “multi-tied” or independent financial advisors (IFA).

1. Tied FAs usually work for banks, building societies or insurance companies and they only give advice about their company’s products.
2. Multi-tied work for more than one company, and the give info about their companies’ products.
3. IFAs give information and advice about all the different financial products out there.

The typical tasks of a financial advisor might include:

• Talking to clients about their money and what they’d like to do with it.
• Researching client’s financial situations.
• Researching financial products.
• Explaining these financial products in a clear way.
• Thinking about the different risks involved in the options they’re recommending to clients.
• Producing financial reports.
• Updating clients about how their investments are going.
• Keeping up to date with new products and any relevant laws.

What does a financial advisor earn?

Becoming a financial advisor will mean a starting salary is between £25,000 and £30,000. An experienced financial advisor can earn up to £50,000, while a very experienced one can make up to £90,000.

Should I be a financial advisor?

Answering that important question involves looking at some of the key skills and personal qualities required for the job:

• Strong maths abilities.
• IT and digital skills.
• Very good communication skills – a big part of the job is explaining different options to your clients.
• Analytical skills – lots of research and critical thinking is involved.
• Knack for negotiating.
• Good attention to detail for record-keeping and report-writing.
• Soft skills, including time management.
• Able to work in a team.
• Customer service skills.
• Motivated and hard-working.
• Adaptable. 

Sounds like me! So tell me how to become a financial advisor.

Becoming a financial advisor requires GCSEs at grade 4 or above in English and maths. Doing work experience will help show employers your dedication and interest in the financial advisor career path.

You don’t need a degree to become a financial advisor. You could apply for a higher level apprenticeship in providing financial advice. You’ll develop skills while working on the job and studying towards a professional qualification.

You'll also need a qualification in financial advice that's approved by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) — you can often get this while working.

Want to know what it's really like? Check out our interview with financial advisor Joe.