Earn your Credit Union Certified Financial Counselor (CUCFC) designation through the REAL Solutions Enhanced Financial Counseling Certification Program (FiCEP)!

The Mississippi Credit Union Association & the Louisiana Credit Union League are pleased to partner with REAL Solutions and CUNA to offer this unique financial counseling training program for credit union staff, which combines the affordability and convenience of a self-study program with the group hands-on learning and networking of an off-site CUNA School available at convenient locations in in Louisiana and Mississippi.

This program will enable all credit union staff to become more confident in helping members build a stronger financial future. Individuals who successfully complete the program and exams will earn their Credit Union Certified Financial Counselor (CUCFC) designation.

Participants will join together for bi-weekly group webinars to help you stay on track and ask questions as you study each module. In-person group training sessions will be held in Louisiana and Mississippi for Part I & Part II (during the weeks of March 25 and June 4) providing hands-on training with experienced counselors, as well as the opportunity to network, share best practices, and prepare for exams. Participants will be able to test as a group or individually. Special training and coaching will be provided to help you develop a detailed vision and plan for financial counseling at your credit union.

2013 CUCFC Training Schedule

• Orientation Webinar: Wednesday, January 23 at 10:00 a.m.

FiCEP Part I Guided Self-Study Webinars & Group Training

• Introduction to Financial Counseling (Wed, Feb 6)
• Financial Counseling Essentials (Wed, Feb 20)
• Special Issues in Financial Counseling (Wed, Mar 6)
• Using Communication Skills During Financial Counseling (Wed, Mar 20)
• Part 1 Group Training Session: Week of Mar 25 from 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

FiCEP Part II Guided Self-Study Webinars & Group Training

• Taxes, Insurance, and Investments (Wed, Apr 10)
• Controlling Living Expenses and Understanding Consumer Credit (Wed, Apr 24)
• Matching Values to Money (Wed, May 8th)
• Retirement and Special Issues (Wed, May 22nd)
• Part 2 Group Training Session: Week of June 4 from 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

What’s Included
9 webinars, books and exams (8 modules), and two in-person workshops.

Educational Investment
Your educational investment will not exceed $950 per person.  The actual cost will be determined by the number of students that enroll.  Please contact Tom McWilliams for details.

Register
Get the registration from here.  Questions? Please contact Tom McWilliams, MSCUA Senior Vice President.  Registrations must be received by Thursday, Jan 24, 2013.

Comments from recent Mississippi FiCEP graduates:

“I really enjoyed the class and the course materials and presenters. I feel the material discussed was very pertinent to a large portion of our member base today.”

“It helped me learn to recognize when it was time for the member to seek outside assistance, where they could obtain it and what I could do to help.”

“I appreciated the mix of self study, webinar reviews, proctored group testing, and face-to-face trainer-lead sessions. The pace of the course was perfect for me as it provided ample time to study and complete the course in a reasonable time frame.”

“Providing our members the expertise of Certified Financial Counselors, gives our members confidence that we are providing them expert financial assistance. I don’t believe other FIs provide this type of service. When more members find out that we have this expertise, I believe they will think of us first when seeking financial services.”

“We will be enhancing our member education workshops to include some of the information we learned in the class and we are planning to send other employees through the class to better assist our members.”

“I feel FiCEP sets me and my credit union apart because I have the confidence to make real life recommendations to members who are struggling with their finances and also help members before they get to point of needing a financial counselor.”