Losing a $1,000 Bet

Sat 2-3-18

Subj:       Losing a $1,000 Bet

                After my accident last January which subsequently forced me to relinquish my place in the 2017 Certified Financial Planning (CFP) program at Oakland University which started last February, I spent the year with two main objectives – 1) Recover from my injury, 2) Make further preparations to enter the CFP.  The director of the OU program had told me last February that, despite my MBA and 37 years of financial management experience, I was not qualified to enter their program and should pursue my studies at an institution that offered an online self-paced option.  I was really quite put off by this in view of our previous discussions that if I completed the mentorship program which I did from May through September 2016 and then completed a subsequent internship, that I would then be sufficiently qualified. 

                Having completed those requirements with the exception that my mentor had not yet lined me up with an internship, it was with some disappointment and no small amount of disgust to learn that I was still deemed unqualified.  The second big shock came in April when I contacted my mentor to resurrect the search for an internship only to be told that he was leaving the program, leaving Michigan, and leaving his firm of 35 years to pursue “a new chapter in my life” (presumed translation: retirement) in Florida and would no longer be available either to work with me or even advise me. 

                Speak of feeling completely betrayed and abandoned.  I was genuinely counting on OU and that internship program to jumpstart my new career given the difficulties with age discrimination.  I was very much counting on OU to be able to point me towards firms that were actually looking for candidates my age (as I had been assured three years ago when I first became involved in the program) rather than me randomly contacting firms, 100% of which would claim they did not discriminate, 90% of which would discriminate.  I was going to be spinning my wheels a lot unless OU was willing to be an intermediary. 

                So being advised to go to another institution did not go over at all well with me.  I was no longer feeling at all favorable towards OU, in fact very much put off by the fact that I could not get accurate information from anybody there.  I was curious to talk to the director again to find out if I was still a candidate for internship, though I strongly suspected the answer would be no and, even if a yes, also suspected that I would just be given worthless leads without any vetting.  If that were the case, I would be better off just going my own way. 

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                Thus, by the end of the year I had pretty much decided that I would not attempt to return to Oakland University.  I had done a considerable amount of research regarding the online programs and though they looked suitable enough, I was put off by the lack of support they offered.  I am the kind of student who asks a lot of questions.  I was shocked to discover that both of the online schools that OU had recommended had a limit of just three 15-minute phone calls for each course to instructors to ask questions.  That was hardly adequate.  Both in undergraduate and graduate I routinely dropped in on my professors for 10 to 15 minutes before each class session to shoot questions at them, which they were always very happy to answer.  This was in addition to questions asked during class.  And it was this support system for having questions answered that put me on the Dean’s List at BU and the top ten percent of my class at USC. 

Perhaps for the online programs the material would prove to be self-explanatory and the need for questions would not be as crucial as I thought.  Still there was something about them that struck me as deficient so about three weeks ago I began rethinking OU.  After all, it would be providing live instructors to whom I could ask questions and the support of 15 to 20 fellow students with whom I would be sharing the experience for the next 14 months. 

It occurred to me a few weeks ago that it might actually be quite a good investment just to take the first course in February and March and see how it goes.  After all, my main concerns about the program being too intense or that I would find out that I wasn’t good at this stuff or, more to the point, didn’t even like it – all these could be answered very efficiently simply by taking the first course, especially since this year the first course was investments.  Though they did tell me last year that I lacked experience, I was still under the impression that completing the mentor program with a rave recommendation from my mentor solved that.  I even had a letter from the mentor singing my praises and stating his opinion that I would be a great success in the 14-month cohort.  

To find out for sure, it would cost $850 for the course and $150 for the textbooks.  So a gamble of $1,000 could finally set my mind at ease as to whether this was the right path for me.  Best case scenario: it turns out not only to be manageable but great and 14 months from now I become a Certified Financial Planner.  Worst case: it turns out disastrously so for the thousand dollars I get to find out that I belong on a different path; besides which I’ll also learn a lot about investments.  Either way, I win.  A thousand dollars is not a lot of money to get the answers to these crucial questions. 

Having made the decision, I actually for the first time started feeling very excited about starting the investment class on Wednesday.  Sunday night I registered online, paid the tuition and ordered the two textbooks.  On Tuesday, I received a detailed syllabus from the instructor along with the first assignment that would be due already when we come to the first class session on Wednesday.  As of Tuesday, there were 25 students registered for the class.  These were the 25 people I’d be spending the next 14 months with.  It was going to be a good program this year. 

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I’ve mentioned that I spent five months in 2016 taking the introductory course from my mentor.  We covered two very large textbooks in that class which was basically a condensed version of the entire 14 month program which itself is a condensed version of the original two-year program.  It was fascinating and I loved every bit of it except that we were covering 150-200 pages of technical material for each 45 minute session.  This was very intense, there was only time for one or two questions (when I had a dozen or more) and scarcely time to do any more than the most superficial overview of the material.  What’s more is that there was an exam at the beginning of each session on the material that was assigned but not yet covered.  The exam was very detailed so it was quite necessary to study all 200 pages very thoroughly to pass the exam; and did I mention that we were under threat of expulsion if we failed two exams?  Thus there was a certain amount of stress in each session.   (Now I know I need not have had any stress at all for now I know it would have not made a bit of difference.  They never had any intention of admitting me to the program.) 

But Tom, my mentor and instructor, was very amiable towards me; I got the impression very quickly that he was only looking for evidence of a commitment and that I would be passing as long as I was making an effort.  Besides, the only real objective was to pass the course as a prerequisite for acceptance to the intern program.  I could tough it out for five months to get into that program. 

Tom also assured me that the regular academic program would not be nearly as rigorous or intense, that we would be covering far less material for each session, the sessions would be 3 hours long and there would be ample time for questions.  Thus I was shocked last February when I signed up for the taxation class only to receive a textbook that was 1600 pages long (plus 1200 more pages of supplemental material) and a syllabus that had us covering about 300 pages per week.  Covering so much in so little time, the instructor was also quite candid with me that there would be little time for questions.  It appeared I had once again been given bum information.  The regular program was going to be even more intense than the introductory course.   

When on this past Tuesday I saw the preview of the investments textbook and received the course syllabus, I was quite relieved.  The book was only about 400 pages long and per the syllabus we would be assigned about 40 pages per week.  That seemed quite manageable.  In the intro course, we were assigned between 100 and 200 problems to do for each session.  For this course, we were being assigned about 30 problems each week.  That seemed entirely manageable. 

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Then, on Wednesday, the tables were rather abruptly turned.  I received an email from the program director who noted that she had seen my name on the registration list and was now telling me in very direct language that I was not qualified for the program.  When I first inquired five years ago, a high school diploma and working towards a bachelor’s was all that was required for admission.  Three years ago they were now recommending (but not requiring) two years of experience in the financial services industry for admission.  Two years ago it became more of a requirement but the intro course and internship was touted as a suitable substitute for the two years of experience.  Last year they made clear that they did not consider my successful completion of the intro course to be adequate preparation; but they also said that there were students in the program that also did not have experience and, though they were struggling much harder than the professionals, they were at least allowed to be in and complete the program. 

Wednesday’s email from the director stated a very different scenario.  Now they are saying that the candidates are expected to already have both insurance and stock broker’s licenses.  You are expected to already know how to analyze and select securities for your clients.  There is another item of curiosity in their statement that “students are required to be active in the industry and planning to challenge the CFP Examination.”  I don’t know what they mean by “challenge the exam” but the Financial Planning Association of America, the national governing body that oversees all the CFP curricula and credentialing, also uses that term but with a very specific definition.  To the FPA, “challenge” means petitioning the FPA to demonstrate that you are soooo knowledgeable in the topics that you can be excused from taking the national exam.  Is that what the OU CFP has evolved into, a program that will allow candidates to qualify to be exempted from taking the national exam?  Thus, I am being warned that if I insist on joining the program and taking the investments class that they will be watching me to see if I am able to keep up and, if they determine I am not, they will be expelling me.  No refunds. 

Needless to say, all the ill will I had been feeling towards Oakland University throughout last year was now back with a vengeance.  On Wednesday I sent a letter to the instructor pleading my case, summarizing my very extensive background in finance, and asking him directly if I will be allowed to take his class.  Since the director has already stated her position, I doubt this instructor will go against it.  He has not yet replied.   

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Given this rather untidy reception, I have decided to withdraw from the program as I see no rationale for staying where I am not wanted.  So I have lost this thousand dollar bet as I will not be getting an answer to my concerns about whether I belong in this profession.  However, all is not lost.  I will be getting a refund of the $850 tuition and I could also be getting a refund for the textbooks except that, for the relatively modest $150 investment, I think I will keep the textbooks.  I have the course syllabus; I can teach myself the course.  I think by the time I finish with these books I will know whether this is what I want to do. 

Instead of gambling a thousand dollars, I will only be gambling $150 dollars.  If the answer is yes (and I very much suspect it will be), the online courses are suddenly looking much better.  In fact Boston University has a CFP program that is only $800 dollars more than OU, offers the option of both online study and to Skype live classes, you get four months to complete each course (though since it is self-paced, you can complete them sooner), access to instructors for asking questions, and a database of thousands of practice questions to help prepare for the national exam.  The American College also has an impressive program but it is about $1500 more than BU. 

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I’m no longer waiting on Oakland.  I’m taking the bull by the horns and moving forward.  So these past couple of days I’ve formulated a new plan.  First, take the next couple months to teach myself the investments course.  If that goes well, I will immediately sign up to take the online IRS courses to become a tax preparer.  There are three courses, each requires about 70 hours of online study after which you go to a testing center to complete a 3-hour exam.  You can take all three courses at once or one at a time.   Once I’ve completed the three courses and three exams, I will start work as a tax preparer whilst I begin the online CFP. 

Two years as a tax preparer is considered eligible experience for receiving the CFP credential.  Taxes are something I’m very comfortable with.  It is a rules-based profession where you are applying the book to client problems, calculating the numbers and entering them onto spreadsheets and forms.  This is what I did for 8 years as a financial analyst in aerospace.  This is what I have done for 37 years managing finances in my other enterprises. 

After that, there are any number of additional online tax courses and finance licenses I can test for to elevate my expertise and qualify for even better professional positions.  OU has done me a considerable service by kicking me to the curb where I must now go off on my own, something I probably should have done three years ago except that I had no idea that they would not deliver on a single promise they had made. 

And this business of needing both a license to sell insurance and a stock broker’s license just to be admitted to the CFP is really quite ridiculous.  What is the point of the classes if you’re expected to already know all this stuff?  I know a ton of financial professionals and nearly all of them have one or the other but very few have both.  If you’re going to be an insurance agent, why would you need a stock broker’s license?  If you’re going to sell stocks, why would you need an insurance license?  This is just another example of OU feeding me bum information. 

But I don’t regret it.  I learned a ton from Tom in the intro course and because of the accident I really wasn’t in a position to do much of anything last year anyway.  I will run with this under my own power and I may even get there in better shape than the OU route.  As for the age discrimination, I’m going to deal with that the same way I have dealt with every other challenge in my lifetime.  You put one foot in front of the other and just keep going until you accomplish the objective. 

The OU program begins Wednesday.  Wouldn’t it be interesting if I manage to complete my studies before they wrap up in March of next year?  It will be one step at a time. 

Addendum:           Sunday 2-4-18

                I have now received the email from the investments course instructor.  It was very amiably worded but as I suspected he took the same position as the director.  The final line said it all:  “It is advised that you do not take this program as you do not meet the requirements.”  Boston, here I come!