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CFP Certification Courses, Northwestern University School of Professional Studies - Northwestern School of Professional Studies

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Program Courses

CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Certification Education Program

Program Courses

On-Campus Program Courses and Class Schedule

Complete the certificate in 14 to 18 months by: 
  • Taking more than one course at a time at least once during the program such as Income Tax, Estate or Retirement Planning. (Taking more than two courses per term is not recommended.)
  • Taking the Introduction and Investment course by themselves (i.e. do not double up).
  • Taking the Financial Plan Development and Presentation course by itself at the end of the program. (Per CFP Board no exceptions will be made.)

Program Schedule:
Courses are held according to the schedule below, but may be subject to change.

Registration tips:

  • Click on a course link to register.  
  • To see the dates and prices for multiple courses, filter by term.

Annual Schedule

FALL WINTER SPRING SUMMER
300-0 Intro to Financial Planning X   X
301-0 Insurance Planning   X   X
312-0 Investment Planning X   X
313-0 Income Tax Planning X X
314-0 Retirement Planning and Employee Benefits X X
315-0 Estate Planning X X

320-0 Financial Plan Development and Presentation (Capstone) *Only offered during the Fall and Spring terms. Please plan your schedule with this in mind.

 X X

Sample Course Plans

Standard

Fall Start

YEAR 1

YEAR 2
FALL Intro Estate
WINTER Insurance Retirement
SPRING Income Tax Financial Plan
SUMMER Investment [July Exam]

Spring Start

YEAR 1

YEAR 2
SPRING Intro Estate
SUMMER Insurance Retirement
FALL Income Tax Financial Plan
WINTER Investment [March Exam]

Accelerated

Fall Start

YEAR 1

YEAR 2
FALL Intro Financial Plan
WINTER Insurance + Retirement [March Exam]
SPRING Income Tax + Estate

SUMMER Investment

Spring Start

YEAR 1

YEAR 2
SPRING Intro Financial Plan
SUMMER Insurance + Retirement [July Exam]
FALL Income Tax + Estate

WINTER Investment

To limit our community's exposure to COVID-19, the spring quarter will now commence on April 4. Online courses may have adjusted dates, but will otherwise run as usual. On-campus courses will be conducted remotely until April 27; University leaders will decide by April 17 whether to continue remote teaching or to return to in-person instruction on April 27. Updated information for affected courses can be found in the scheduling notes area under the course description.


Program Course ID Course Title / Description Fall 2024 Winter 2025
CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERFN_EXTND 300-0Intro to Financial Planning

Chicago Campus
W
6 – 9 p.m.
Canale, Thomas

CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERFN_EXTND 301-0Insurance Planning

Chicago Campus
W
5:45 – 9 p.m.
Wener, Tammy

Hartz, Jacob

CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERFN_EXTND 312-0Investment Planning

Chicago Campus
Th
6 – 9:15 p.m.
Arnold, Warren

CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERFN_EXTND 313-0Income Tax Planning

Chicago Campus
W
5:45 – 9 p.m.
Zacher, James

CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERFN_EXTND 314-0Retirement Planning and Employee Benefits

Chicago Campus
M
5:45 – 9 p.m.
Williams, Charles

CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERFN_EXTND 315-0Estate Planning

Chicago Campus
Tu
5:45 – 9 p.m.
Coffey, Linda

CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERFN_EXTND 320-0Financial Plan Development and Presentation

Chicago Campus
M
6 – 9 p.m.
Arnold, Warren
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