SAQA

All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source.

SOUTH AFRICAN QUALIFICATIONS AUTHORITY

REGISTERED QUALIFICATION:

Advanced Certificate in Financial Planning

SAQA QUAL ID	QUALIFICATION TITLE
102203	Advanced Certificate in Financial Planning
ORIGINATOR
Durban University of Technology
PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY			NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK
CHE - Council on Higher Education			HEQSF - Higher Education Qualifications Sub-framework
QUALIFICATION TYPE	FIELD		SUBFIELD
Advanced Certificate	Field 03 - Business, Commerce and Management Studies		Finance, Economics and Accounting
ABET BAND	MINIMUM CREDITS	PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL	NQF LEVEL	QUAL CLASS
Undefined	120	Not Applicable	NQF Level 06	Regular-Provider-ELOAC
REGISTRATION STATUS		SAQA DECISION NUMBER	REGISTRATION START DATE	REGISTRATION END DATE
Reregistered		EXCO 0821/24	2021-07-01	2027-06-30
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT		LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
2028-06-30		2031-06-30

In all of the tables in this document, both the pre-2009 NQF Level and the NQF Level is shown. In the text (purpose statements, qualification rules, etc), any references to NQF Levels are to the pre-2009 levels unless specifically stated otherwise.

This qualification does not replace any other qualification and is not replaced by any other qualification.

PURPOSE AND RATIONALE OF THE QUALIFICATION

Purpose:
This qualification was developed by taking into consideration both the mission of the university and faculty within which this qualification is placed.

This qualification will be offered by the Department of Financial Accounting.

The overall purpose of this qualification is to:

Promote the development of knowledge and skills that is required in the Financial Planning and Advisory industry.

Assist learners to achieve their full potential in the Financial Planning sector.

Enhance opportunities for both existing and prospective learners' career progression in this sector.

Provide opportunities for life-long learning for individuals in the Financial Planning industry.

Promote the professional development of the Financial Services Industry in ensuring the appropriate levels of qualification of financial advisors in line with the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services (FAIS) legislation and in line with Professional Development norms of The Financial Planning Institute of Southern Africa.

Rationale:
Within the context of a University of Technology, the existence of an entry level Financial Planning qualification is essential to achieve the goals of an industry where the consequences of non-compliance with legislation are far-reaching.

This qualification will ensure that learners are competent to practice as specialist financial planners in the financial planning environment as well as able to provide specialist professional financial planning services to a range of clients in business and to apply knowledge, skills and competence for personal advancement and gainful economic activity in a lucrative professional field.

The department has identified a niche in the market for this qualification and the need to be recognised as offering a qualification that is accredited by a professional body, in addition to the requirements of the Council on Higher Education (CHE). The Financial Planning Institute of Southern Africa (FPI) is the independent professional body for financial planners in South Africa.

A motivating factor in the design of this certificate is obtaining accreditation from FPI which will allow the graduates to write the professional competency examination for the Registered Financial Planner (RFP) professional designation. To this end, the curriculum has been aligned with the requirements of the FPI.

LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL):
RPL candidates will be considered for access on an individual, discretionary basis in alignment with the institution's RPL policy criteria.

In terms of the RPL policy, the process of recognizing prior learning involves:

Evidence based assessment of a candidate's application.

Assessing the evidence presented against the learning outcomes outlined in the curriculum of the programme.

Identifying what the candidate knows and can do.

Matching the candidate's skills, knowledge and experience to specific standards and associated assessment criteria of the programme or qualification.

Assessing the candidate against those standards.

Crediting the candidate for skills and knowledge built through formal, informal and non-formal learning that occurred in the past.

RPL process:

RPL evidence is presented primarily through the compilation of a portfolio of evidence.

The candidate is assisted by DUT's RPL support staff, by discussion of the criteria for determining relevant and appropriate evidence and the sufficiency of evidence; as well as guidance offered on the formatting and presentation of such evidence.

The complete portfolio of evidence is then presented for evaluation.

The RPL administrator will evaluate the candidate's formal, informal, nonformal and experiential learning together with the head of department.

A variety of methods are used to determine the relevance, depth and the extent of an applicant's level of prior learning.

The assessment plan must be appropriate and sufficiently rigorous to test if prior learning in relation to outcomes are in place.

The final review report highlights the evidence examined, the basis for the findings, the assessment process and final evaluation result.

The final review report and supporting evidence are submitted to Faculty board and Senate for ratification and approval.

Entry Requirements:
The minimum requirements for admission into the Advance Certificate are:

An appropriate Level 5 qualification.
Or

An appropriate Diploma, Level 6.
Or

An appropriate Bachelor's Degree, Level 7.
Or

National Certificate: Wealth Management, Level 5.
Or

Higher Certificate: Financial Planning, Level 5.

RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING?

QUALIFICATION RULES

This qualification comprises compulsory and elective modules at Level 6 totalling 120 Credits.

Compulsory Modules Level 6, 108 Credits:

Law for the Financial Planner, 20 Credits.

Financial Planning for individuals, 24 Credits.

Financial Planning for Corporates and Small, Medium and Micro-sized Enterprises (SMME's), 20 Credits.

Tax in financial Planning, 20 Credits.

Implementing Financial Planning (Case Study), 24 Credits.

Elective Modules Level 6, 12 Credits (Select one):

Trust Law, 12 Credits.

Practice management, 12 Credits.

EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES

1. Analyse the principles of financial planning, investment planning, planning for deceased estates and the law and taxation considerations applicable to financial planning.
2. Communicate effectively using verbal, non-verbal and written business communication forms in a workplace environment.
3. Apply knowledge of ethics and professional practice by conducting ethical behaviour in a workplace environment.
4. Evaluate risk and risk tolerance in the insurance and Financial Planning environment.

ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1:

Identify and categorise role players in the industry and explain the relationship between them.

Apply specialist technical knowledge to advise a client on risk, retirement, estate planning, health and investment scenarios.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 2:

Communicate financial solutions to the client in a manner that is understandable and is clear against the background of the requirements of the FAIS legislation.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 3:

Demonstrate an understanding of ethical behaviour and the way in which ethics inform a code of conduct in the financial planning sector.

Examine the relationship between ethics and compliance legislation against the background of client interaction, responsible business practice and the contribution to an ethical business environment in South Africa.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 4:

Identify the challenges and opportunities in the business environment in South Africa and propose ways of addressing these in a financial planning practice.

Analyse the financial standing of the client to identify needs and risks.

Propose insurance and investment solutions after applying specialised knowledge to satisfy the needs and wants identified.

Integrated Assessment:

Integrated Assessment will be applied.

INTERNATIONAL COMPARABILITY

The purpose is to ensure that the qualification/s and training offered in South Africa is nationally relevant and internationally comparable.

FAIS represent the financial planning standards in most parts of the world. Delivery of this qualification to the levels of these standards benchmarks this qualification to international best practices.

The Advanced Certificate is compared with and designed according to the requirements set by the Board for Certified Financial Planners; accordingly it addresses the required subject areas as required by the Board and the South African recognised institution the Financial Planners Institute (FPI).

The topics cover the major planning areas such as:
> General principles of financial planning.
> Insurance planning.
> Employee benefits planning.
> Investment planning.
> Income tax planning.
> Retirement planning.
> Estate planning.

Although education is a fundamental part of achieving Certified Financial Planning (CFP) affiliation, the fulfilment of the education requirement does not automatically equate to the preparedness to the CFP certification examination.

A perusal of various providers of financial planning qualifications (eg. Kaplan University, Florida State University), demonstrates that a number of international universities offer certificate and Diploma programmes in financial planning and generally focus on the above-mentioned major planning areas.

This qualification will be subject to regular review given the needs of the financial planning industry, which by definition is subject to trends and competition.

ARTICULATION OPTIONS

Horizontal articulation in the traditional sense is not applicable since no other Advanced Certificates are offered at DUT, currently. However, students may be able to apply for admission into the 2nd year of the Diploma in Accounting or the 2nd year of the proposed Diploma in Management Accounting or the 2nd year of the proposed Diploma in Taxation at DUT, if all progression and combination rules are met. Students may also apply to study in cognate fields and qualifications, in particular the AFP and FSA associated professional qualifications, offered at other Higher Education providers, if the candidates meet the entrance and/or credit articulation rules and requirements of the institution.

Vertical articulation may occur with the proposed Diploma in Financial Planning (NQF Level 6) or any similar offering at other institutions providing the candidate meets the entrance and/or credit articulation rules and requirements of the institution.

Diagonal articulation opportunities may also exist in cognate and related fields and qualifications offered at other Higher Education providers, if the candidates meet the entrance and/or credit articulation rules and requirements of the institution.

MODERATION OPTIONS

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CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS

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NOTES

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LEARNING PROGRAMMES RECORDED AGAINST THIS QUALIFICATION:

NONE

PROVIDERS CURRENTLY ACCREDITED TO OFFER THIS QUALIFICATION:

This information shows the current accreditations (i.e. those not past their accreditation end dates), and is the most complete record available to SAQA as of today. Some Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionaries have a lag in their recording systems for provider accreditation, in turn leading to a lag in notifying SAQA of all the providers that they have accredited to offer qualifications and unit standards, as well as any extensions to accreditation end dates. The relevant Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionary should be notified if a record appears to be missing from here.

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