He said: “I had been interested in becoming a financial adviser ever since I attended my first finance industry workshop under the Financial Skills Partnership’s preparation for the RO1 exam.
“After listening to the FSP members and guest financial adviser John Parrot talk about how influential an adviser can be in helping clients manage their wealth and building up a relationship of trust, I realised that I wanted to go down that career path.
“As an individual, I am motivated by helping others. I have very good listening skills and am adept at problem solving. I enjoy interacting with others and have been able to develop that during my time working in customer service based roles.
“Improving myself academically and in my career is very important to me. However, another big motivation for me was that not only would I be helping my clients to improve their quality of life, I would also be improving my own – the potential earnings for a financial adviser are high, and gives you the chance to work your own hours. Last but not least, I enjoy wearing suits and looking sharp!
“I originally completed my first exam, RO1, through the FSP , but then I received an email from them letting me know about the Financial Adviser School (FAS) and the funding it could offer for scholarship places. I replied letting them know of my interest.
“A couple of days later I received a call regarding the recruitment process and the required conference type presentation interview. The presentation interview was followed by a traditional based interview after which I was told I would receive a call within the following 24 hours if I was successful.
“A couple of hours later, I received a call with an offer of a scholarship place on the programme - and I immediately accepted.
“I am due to begin RO5 shortly. I recently received the miniature ‘Key-Facts’ booklet on RO5, so have also been spending my time getting to grips as well as an idea of what it’s about before receiving the main book.
“As well as this, even though I have already passed RO1, I still attend the virtual classrooms as it is a helpful step forward in giving me insight into what is expected when we begin RO5. I would wholeheartedly recommend considering a career in financial advice if you have an interest in finance and helping others.”