usefulness of CSC without a degree/diploma

[unowned]

Hello folks,

I've been trying to steer a friend of mine along a career path, but am not sure what to tell him. My friend has been working in customer service for one of the big canadian banks for the last several years and has little or no intention of pursuing an undergraduate or college degree. Without a degree or diploma, how far can you get with a CSC certification alone? I've always been a firm believer that a bachelor's degree is the bare minimum to get anywhere in corporate (north) america, but have never had the facts to back it up.

[dandy2008]

Hello folks,

I've been trying to steer a friend of mine along a career path, but am not sure what to tell him. My friend has been working in customer service for one of the big canadian banks for the last several years and has little or no intention of pursuing an undergraduate or college degree. Without a degree or diploma, how far can you get with a CSC certification alone? I've always been a firm believer that a bachelor's degree is the bare minimum to get anywhere in corporate (north) america, but have never had the facts to back it up.

If you friend knows how to sell, then he will be fine.

[unowned]

i dont think his ambitions lie with being a csr with the rest of his life however, what are the possible career routes he can take intra-company?

[UrbanPoet]

i dont think his ambitions lie with being a csr with the rest of his life however, what are the possible career routes he can take intra-company?

He could always be a financial service rep, financial planner and move up to branch manager.

[ItemFinder]

He could always be a financial service rep, financial planner and move up to branch manager.
Not likely. You're the rule, not the exception.

[monty613]

if your friend can sell he will be fine. most banks value internal experience/tenure once you have your foot in the door. he could always look for a job in the bank's back office/operations.

disagree with the previous poster - it's pretty easy to get into a sales position in the bank with customer service experience under your belt (i work for a big bank, never in retail though)

[unowned]

so with a csc alone, he could end up working for nesbitt burns...say an investment advisory role?

[Takami]

so with a csc alone, he could end up working for nesbitt burns...say an investment advisory role?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Certified_Financial_Planner

If your friend wants to become an investment adviser, a CFP might help him/her, although nowadays, you need a degree to be enrolled. A degree these days is equivalent to a high school diploma 30 years ago. Almost everyone who are fighting for IA positions these days have both sales experience + a degree. Not to say that your friend will not be able to it, but its just that there are 100's of CSR WITH a degree who are trying to become an IA as well.


To earn the CFP designation, candidates must meet several requirements -- the first of which is the educational requirement, which requires candidates to have a bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited U.S. college or university. [1] As a first step to the present CFP certification criteria, students must master[2] a list of nearly 100 topics on integrated financial planning.[3] The topics cover major planning areas such as:

* General Principles of Finance and Financial Planning
* Insurance Planning
* Employee Benefits Planning
* Investment and Securities Planning
* State and Federal Income Tax Planning
* Estate Tax, Gift Tax, and Transfer Tax Planning
* Asset Protection Planning
* Retirement Planning
* Estate Planning

To master the education requirement, students are now required to have at least a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited U.S. college or university plus additional course training in the above listed topic areas in order to meet the first requirement to sit for the 10 hour examination.[4]

Individuals holding professional designations pre-approved by the CFP Board (like PhDs in business and economics, attorneys, Certified Public Accountants (CPA), Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), Chartered Accountants (CA), Chartered Wealth Managers (AAFM), Chartered Life Underwritters (CLU), and Chartered Financial Analysts (CFA)) are entitled to register for and take the exam without having to complete the education requirements by using the CFP-board's challenge status.

International degrees may be substituted for a U.S. degree if they receive equivalency from a third-party organization.

[norgos]

from what i've seen, CSRs who can climb higher within the company take side classes like business certificates and such.