Master of Financial Planning

2020 Deakin University Handbook

Note: You are seeing the 2020 view of this course information. These details may no longer be current. [Go to the current version]

Year	2020 course information
Award granted	Master of Financial Planning
Course Map	This course map is for new students commencing from Trimester 1 2020. This course map is for new students commencing from Trimester 2 2020. This course map is for new students commencing from Trimester 3 2020. Course maps for commencement in previous years are available on the Course Maps webpage or please contact a Student Adviser in Student Central.
Campus	Offered at Burwood (Melbourne)
Cloud Campus	Yes
Duration	1.5 years full-time or part-time equivalent
Deakin course code	M769
Approval status	This course is approved by the University under the Higher Education Standards Framework.
Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) recognition	The award conferred upon completion is recognised in the Australian Qualifications Framework at Level 9.
Please note: This course is only available for part-time study in Trimester 3

Course sub-headings

Course overview

Designed to meet the requirements of Australia’s new financial planning standards body, the Master of Financial Planning trains you to provide innovative financial planning solutions by combining ethical decision-making with modern financial advice strategies.

The finance industry is changing. Ready to secure your future with a degree that meets new requirements while empowering you to build a more successful career?

Recent changes to the Australian finance industry require financial planners to meet new education standards set by the Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority (FASEA). What does this mean for current and aspiring financial planners? If you want to provide financial advice beyond 2026, you’ll need to complete a FASEA-approved course like Deakin’s Master of Financial Planning.

But this course is more than just a pathway towards becoming a registered financial planner. You’ll take your financial planning skills and knowledge to new levels, allowing you to provide better solutions for your clients and making you more valuable to employers.

Broaden your understanding of investment management in relation to different asset classes and get hands-on experience constructing, managing and evaluating portfolios using the key principles of modern portfolio theory. Apply, analyse and relate these principles throughout projects that simulate real industry scenarios, better preparing you for tomorrow’s financial planning challenges.

You’ll be introduced to superannuation and retirement planning, focusing on current trends and the framework in which the industry operates. Take your knowledge even further by examining issues relating to:

superannuation contributions
the different types of superannuation funds
rules relating to the taxation and accessing of benefits
alternative retirement income stream products
strategies designed to enhance superannuation
retirement income benefits.

The Master of Financial Planning teaches you how to apply advanced principles to meet client needs and the technical skills needed to utilise the latest digital tools. Importantly, it also places a strong emphasis on the professional responsibilities of the modern financial planner, both in an ethical and compliance sense. Industry reforms have created an increased demand for ethical decision-makers, putting Deakin graduates in a strong position to stand out from the pack.

Better still, you’ll be learning alongside industry-active teachers who are leaders in the field. Build relationships with your teachers. Get constructive feedback on industry expectations. Take your career forward.

Indicative student workload

As a student in the Faculty of Business and Law, you can expect to participate in a range of teaching activities each week. This could include classes, seminars, practicals and online interaction. You can refer to the individual unit details in the course structure for more information. You will also need to study and complete assessment tasks in your own time.

Professional recognition

The Master of Financial Planning is a FASEA-approved course, for the purposes of the approved degree pathway making it a recognised pathway towards becoming a registered financial planner.

Graduates will satisfy the education standards prescribed by FASEA to be able to provide financial advice in Australia, subject to meeting other registration requirements prescribed by FASEA (including completion of a Professional Year for Provisional Relevant Providers and passing a National Adviser Exam).

Deakin University has entered into a partnership with the Financial Planning Association (FPA) to embed the CFP® Certification Program into the Master of Financial Planning.

Students who complete the final unit of the Financial Planning Association of Australia (FPA)’s CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® (CFP®) Certification Program as their elective option within the Master of Financial Planning will meet the education requirements to obtain this professional designation upon graduating.

Once the industry experience requirements of the CFP® Certification Program have been satisfied, students will be eligible to apply for the CFP® designation.

Graduates will be eligible for entry into the Fellow Chartered Financial Practitioner (FChFP) designation offered by the Association of Financial Advisers (AFA). Completing the Master of Financial Planning provides advanced standing into this program.

Students who successfully complete MAA747 Administration of Trusts and Estates as their elective unit with the Master of Financial Planning will meet the Australian educational requirements of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP).

The MFP also allows students to meet the education requirements of the Tax Agent Services Act (TASA) as a tax (financial) adviser following completion of Principles of Income Tax Law and Business Law units approved by the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB).

_{Note: Students should consult with the Financial Planning Association or the Association of Financial Advisers and their websites for confirmation of professional recognition and to ensure that they are not required to undertake additional units.}

Career opportunities

From 1 January 2019, FASEA’s new education standards come into place and, by 1 January 2024, all financial planners will need an approved qualification. These reforms have created an increased demand for registered financial planners with a high-level understanding of what it means to provide responsible advise.

The Master of Financial Planning is approved by FASEA, ensuring Deakin students graduate with the right qualification and skills to take advantage of this demand.

Whether you’re currently working in the industry or looking to move into a financial planning role, you’ll be prepared to excel in a variety of positions, including:

financial adviser
insurance adviser
business development manager
superannuation consultant
portfolio analyst
personal financial planner
investment banker
paraplanner
claims administrator
compliance manager
risk adviser

Participation requirements

Units in this course may have participation requirements that include compulsory placements, work-based training, community-based learning or collaborative research training arrangements.

Placement can occur at any time, including during the standard holiday breaks listed here: https://www.deakin.edu.au/courses/key-dates.

Reasonable adjustments to participation and other course requirements will be made for students with a disability. Click here for more information.

Mandatory student checks

Units which contain work integrated learning, a community placement or interaction with the community may require a police check, working with children check or other check. These requirements will be detailed in unit guides upon enrolment.

Alternative exits

Graduate Certificate of Financial Planning (M569)
Graduate Diploma of Financial Planning (M669)

Fees and charges

Fees and charges vary depending on your course, your fee category and the year you started. To find out about the fees and charges that apply to you, visit the Current students fees website.

Course Learning Outcomes

Graduate Learning Outcome	Course Learning Outcome
Discipline specific knowledge and capabilities	Apply an advanced and integrated knowledge about the financial planning development process for clients requiring financial planning advice of varying degrees of complexity and contexts.
Communication	Demonstrate advanced interpersonal and networking skills to communicate persuasively with clients to gather and interpret personal data and transmit knowledge to clients through the preparation and presentation of financial plans including financial goal achievement and risk minimisation.
Digital literacy	Select and apply appropriate digital technology to find, use, manage and persuasively disseminate complex wealth creation and risk minimisation knowledge and ideas to both clients and professional colleagues.
Critical thinking	Systematically and critically analyse, synthesise, evaluate and transform a range of complex information on wealth creation and risk minimisation to create personalised and contextualised financial plans for clients.
Problem solving	With creativity and autonomy, systematically develop strategies for wealth creation and risk minimisation for individuals by critically evaluating methods of inquiry, action planning and/or problem solving thereby generating innovative and contextualised solutions for financial goal achievement.
Self-management	Demonstrate advanced skills to work and learn independently, for taking responsibility for continuing professional development, personal actions and to critically reflect and analyse own personal motivations, aspirations and actions.
Teamwork	Lead and be accountable for the strategic management of group or team learning and outputs, demonstrating initiative in professional contexts and the ability to actively facilitate a positive team environment and to be open to working with and learning from others from different disciplines and backgrounds
Global citizenship	Engage ethically, professionally and productively in work, professional and the global contexts including with diverse communities and cultures, in a manner reflective of a critical understanding of ethical principles, a systematic knowledge of professional codes of conduct and an understanding of various worldviews and the complexity of elements important to members of other cultures.

Course rules

The Master of Financial Planning is typically a 12 credit point course but this is dependent on your entry point. The exact number of credit points you study depends on how much credit you receive as recognition of prior learning (RPL) - your professional experience and previous qualifications - which can save you time and money, but may be limited by the FASEA education standards.

To complete the Master of Financial Planning, students must attain a total of 12 credit points consisting of 11 credit points of core units and 1 credit points of elective units chosen from a specified list, plus completion of the compulsory 0-credit point units, MAI010 Academic Integrity and MAA071 Pre-Term: Getting to Grips with Postgraduate Study. Most units (think of units as 'subjects') are equal to 1 credit point.

Students are introduced to research tools and techniques in core units of the course where they learn analytic skills and the practical application of those skills in professional contexts. They must also complete advanced level units and a capstone unit that require them to integrate the skills learnt over their course of study and produce applied pieces of research with reference to prevailing literature.
Students are required to meet the University’s academic progress and conduct requirements.

Course structure

Compulsory 0-credit point units

To be completed in the first trimester of study:-

MAI010

Academic Integrity (0 credit points)

MAA071

Pre-Term: Getting to Grips with Postgraduate Study (0 credit points)

Course structure

Elective units

Plus a 1 credit point elective unit from:

MAA747

Administration of Trusts and Estates ^*

MAF702

Financial Markets

MMP713

Property and Real Estate Context

MPA701

Accounting

MWL715

Industry Based Learning

MWL718

Internship

*Students who successfully complete MAA747 Administration of Trusts and Estates as their elective unit with the Master of Financial Planning will meet the Australian educational requirements of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP).

Or another postgraduate unit with prior written approval of the Course Director

When considering elective units, students are advised that Deakin University has entered into a partnership with the Financial Planning Association (FPA) to embed the CFP® Certification Program into the Master of Financial Planning.
This means that students may be eligible to enrol into the CFP® Certification Unit as their elective unit option (completion of eight core units* and Course Director approval is required). Students will undertake the CFP® Certification unit through the FPA and upon successful completion, will be able to apply for Recognition of Prior Learning to count towards their elective unit (with Course Director approval).

*eight core units required to be completed:

MAA745 Financial Planning and Economic Fundamentals, MAA700 Estate Planning and Risk Management Strategies, MAA719 Superannuation and Retirement Planning, MLC714/MLI714 Financial Advice Regulations, MAA769/MAI769 Ethics for Financial Services, MLC703 Principles of Income Tax Law, MAA727 Financial Planning Development, MAF707 Investments and Portfolio Management

Course structure

Core units

MAA700

Estate Planning and Risk Management Strategies

MAA719

Superannuation and Retirement Planning

MAI728/MAA728

Financial Behaviour and Decision Making ^*

MAA745

Financial Planning and Economic Fundamentals

MAA753

Professional Research and Analysis

MAI769/MAA769

Ethics for Financial Services ^*

MAF707

Investments and Portfolio Management

MLC703

Principles of Income Tax Law

MLC707

Business Law

MLI714/MLC714

Financial Advice Regulation ^*

^*MAI and MLI codes denote Intensive versions of the units.

Core Capstone Unit:

MAA727

Financial Planning Development

Work experience

This course provides students the opportunity to complete one or more elective work integrated learning units.

More information: WIL Programs

Other course information

Course duration - additional information
Course duration may be affected by delays in completing course requirements, such as accessing or completing work placements.

Further information

Student Central can help you with course planning, choosing the right units and explaining course rules and requirements.

Contact Student Central

Research and research-related study

This course includes 1 credit point equivalent research-related study [MAA753 Professional Research and Analysis] in addition to associated learning embedded across a number of units where student achievement is demonstrated in specific assessment tasks.