Financial advisors meet with clients and counsel them on their finances. This could mean sitting down and creating budgets, firming up retirement plans or giving advice about investing. Financial advisors can also invest a client’s funds and meet with them regularly to discuss their investments. Some are also licensed to sell insurance. Many times, financial advisors help plan a safe, comfortable future for their clients, but they’re also called upon when the unexpected occurs – perhaps an aging parent suddenly requires a live-in nurse, a couple plans on divorcing or a child needs to transfer to an expensive private school. Financial advisors may step in and make sense of these fiscal troubles and create a plan for moving forward.

It’s an exciting time to be a financial advisor, since several decades ago, the position didn’t really exist. You were either a stockbroker or a community banker or even in insurance sales, according to James Kinney, a certified financial planner and founder of the New Jersey-based Financial Pathways. Now, however, financial advisors perform all these roles, from small independent practices to big investment firms.

"As a larger portion of the industry shifts away from the banks, brokers and insurance companies, additional opportunities have opened," says Eric Schaefer of the Virginia-based wealth management, investment management and financial planning firm Evermay Wealth Management. "As this transition takes place, many advisors have gone independent or created ensemble relationships in new businesses. These new businesses need young, energetic and driven professionals to leverage the time of senior advisors and provide for the future continuity of the business."

Schaefer explains, "Good financial advisors and good teachers tend to have a lot of traits in common." He points out that advisors must be able to listen to their clients, explain complex ideas in easy-to-understand ways and be able to sympathize with their clients.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 12.8% employment growth for financial advisors between 2022 and 2032. In that period, an estimated 42,000 jobs should open up.

To be a financial advisor, you need financial expertise and a desire to help people. Here’s how to get started:

1. Earn a bachelor’s degree. Financial advisors often study finance, accounting or another business-related major to prepare for this job, but you can choose from a broad range of degrees. Increasingly, universities have begun offering financial planning degrees, too.
2. Train on the job. Financial advisors spend a lot of time on the job learning from experienced senior advisors, particularly on how to develop and grow their client base.
3. Become licensed. The Certified Financial Planner Certification Examination is required to become a CFP – a distinction that looks good to employers and clients. You’ll need a bachelor’s degree and you must meet other education and work experience requirements to take the exam.
4. Get an advanced degree. Many financial advisors pursue a master’s degree. Areas of study may include finance or business administration. Obtaining an advanced degree can help financial advisors move into more senior-level roles.

You can also acquire other designations if you want to specialize in a certain area of financial planning. For instance, you can complete the necessary coursework and exam to acquire the Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist designation. And if you plan on buying or selling stocks or selling insurance, you’ll need to procure specific licenses for that, too.

This job takes more than education and certifications, though. You’ll need the ability to navigate complex client relationships. "My colleagues and I agree that 80% of our job is psychology, and only 20% is financial. I know successful owners of financial advisory firms that specifically recruit psychology majors for this reason," Schaefer says. "Though a business or economics degree will better prepare a professional to take industry exams or explain financial products, the ability to understand the core concerns and goals of a client or prospective client is much more valuable."