Financial Advisor IAF: What does your day-to-day work look like?

Financial advisors spend a significant part of their working time talking to clients. These can take place at the financial advisor's workplace, e.g. in a bank or insurance company, or on the financial advisor's own premises, e.g. if he or she runs an agency or his or her own fiduciary office. However, the financial advisor often combines the meeting with a personal visit to the client, where he can also gain a personal impression of the client's life and living situation.

For new customers, the first step is to take a comprehensive inventory of their life situation, financial goals and wishes as well as possible changes and further development of their professional and personal circumstances. On this basis, the financial advisor develops concrete proposals on how the client can optimize their financial situation or achieve their goals. This may relate to questions of asset management, the financing of specific projects, occupational or private pension provision and the tax situation.

In the next step, the proposals are discussed and adapted together with the client until an optimal solution is found, which the financial advisor then implements. After that, his or her task essentially consists of regularly reviewing the solutions found and maintaining personal contact with the client. If there are changes in the client's professional or private situation, the financial advisor will analyze the situation again and check whether adjustments are necessary.

Target group and skills: Who is the Financial Advisor IAF training course suitable for? What qualities and skills are required?

The Financial Advisor IAF training course is aimed at the following target groups:

• People who work in banks, insurance companies or other financial institutions and advise people on financial matters
• Persons who advise and support private individuals in financial matters as part of a self-employed activity
• Career changers in the financial sector who would like to acquire the skills needed to work in fund sales and insurance brokerage

The following personal qualities and skills are required to be able to perform the job successfully:

• Communicative, open personality
• Ambition, commitment and determination
• High social competence and ability to work in a team
• Good manners
• Sense of responsibility
• Ability to deal with conflict

Requirements for admission to the Financial Advisor IAF training course:

In order to be admitted to the Financial Advisor IAF training course, the following conditions must be met:

• Apprenticeship qualification with federal certificate of proficiency (EFZ) or equivalent qualification* and at least one year of professional experience after graduation

Or

• At least five years of professional experience

Proof of professional experience must be provided by the start of the examination.

* The following are considered equivalent qualifications:

• Diploma from a federally recognized business school
• Matura
• Certificate of completion of a teacher training seminar
• Diploma from a higher business and administration school (HWV)
• Federal diploma of a higher commercial examination
• University degree
• Qualification "Insurance broker VBV"

Subject matter and content of the training

Schools that offer preparatory courses for the Financial Advisor IAF exam follow the guidelines of the Interessengemeinschaft Ausbildung im Finanzbereich (IAF) when compiling the course material.

The following topics are covered in five modules in the IAF financial advisory training course:

• Module 1: Assets (incl. FIDLEG)Direct financial instruments, collective investment schemes, investment advice, taxes, legal norms for client advisors
• Module 2: Pension provision (personal and social insurance)Specialist knowledge (basics of the Swiss three-pillar concept, etc.), taxes, pension advice
• Module 3: Insurance (property and asset insurance)Expertise, insurance advice
• Module 4: Real estateExpertise, taxes, financial advice
• Module 5: Basic knowledge of financial adviceThis module is not examined separately, but is integrated into modules 1-4. Basic knowledge includes the following areas: taxes, legal topics for financial clients, legal topics for financial advisors (general legal topics, law in the area of combating money laundering, investments and pensions and insurance)

By the way:

Modules 1-5 are part of the course to become a financial planner with a federal certificate. This means that you have already completed the first of two stages leading to the federal certificate.

Costs and financing of further training

Depending on the provider, duration and format of the course, the costs of the Financial Advisor IAF training vary slightly. On average, you can expect to pay these amounts:

• Course feesbetween CHF 8'900.- and CHF 9'100.-
  Note: Members of the Kaufmännischer Verband receive a 10% discount on the course costs.
  In addition: If you continue after completing the "Finanzberater IAF / Finanzberaterin IAF" course up to the "Finanzplaner / Finanzplanerin" professional examination, you will receive around 50% of the course costs back from the federal government on application (regardless of the examination result). You will find a helpful link to this in the answers.
• Examination fee:CHF 2'100.-. If modules are completed individually: For each written module: CHF 400 and for the oral examination: CHF 500 (as of March 2024).
  The examination fee is set by the IAF. It is paid by the candidate after admission has been confirmed.
• Extra costsSome schools do not include the costs for enrolment fees, teaching materials, training documents, simulation exams, school diplomas, etc. in the course fees. Please contact the provider of your choice directly to find out what additional costs you can expect for the IAF financial consulting course.

Duration of study, number of teaching hours, training options, teaching format and learning effort

• DurationThe Financial Advisor IAF training course is modular and designed to be taken part-time. It usually lasts 1.5-2 semesters (depending on the provider and course offered).
• Number of lessonsThe training comprises between 240 and 270 lessons.
• Lesson timesWhen the lessons take place is decided by the schools themselves. Lessons are often offered on two afternoons or evenings per week and/or on Saturdays.
• Teaching formatsThe course is offered by many schools both in classroom teaching and in an online format (online teaching, hybrid teaching, blended learning). Please contact the school of your choice directly to find out which teaching formats are offered.Hereyou will find a good overview of the advantages and disadvantages of the different teaching methods.
• Learning effortThanks to the in-service training concept, you can apply and deepen your knowledge immediately in practice. Nevertheless, you should allow sufficient time for preparation and follow-up of the lessons and for self-study - how much depends on your previous knowledge, working style and learning speed. We recommend that you allow at least 4-6 hours per week as a precaution.

Degree, diploma and title

The IAF Financial Advisor examination takes place once or twice a year, provided that a sufficient number of valid applications have been submitted in accordance with the invitation to tender. It can be taken in German, French or Italian; at least 10 valid applications must be submitted for the respective official language.

Candidates are notified at least 14 days before the start of the examination. The invitation includes the examination program (with details of the place and time of the examination as well as permitted aids) and the list of experts.

The subject examination covers the following modules:

• Module 1: Assets (incl. FIDLEG): written, 90 minutes
• Module 2: Pension provision (personal and social insurance), written, 90 minutes
• Module 3: Insurance (property and asset insurance), written, 90 minutes
• Module 4: Real estate, written, 90 minutes
• Module 5: Financial advice, oral, 30 minutes

Diploma and title

Graduates of the professional examination receive the IAF certificate and are entitled to use the title "dipl. Finanzberater IAF / dipl. Finanzberaterin IAF".