Students interested in this profession should enroll in any one of the professional financial planning courses available in Malaysia. Two of more popular courses include Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and Registered Financial Planner (RFP).
To register in this courses, SPM or equivalent is required. The courses will cover areas such as risk management and insurance planning, tax planning, investment planning, retirement planning and estate planning.
What will I do?
An estate planner assists clients in the accumulation, conservation and transfer of estate with a goal of helping clients maintain financial security for themselves and their family. An 'estate' in this context comprises the net assets of deceased person.
Opportunities in estate planning and related areas have grown over the past two decades in Malaysia. Typically estate planners are involved in :
- Designing and developing estate plans and drafting related legal documents (eg. will and trust).
- Administering estates and trusts.
- Developing strategies to reduce potential estate and gift taxes.
- Business succession planning.
- Insurance planning and retirement planning.
An estate planner's job combines professionalism and entrepreneurship. It requires a high level of social skills in addition to technological knowledge. The best part about this career is that you will have an opportunity to work as an entrepreneur and not necessarily remain as an employee.
Is it for me?
- Do you like to solve problems?
- Do you enjoy dealing with people?
- Do you possess good communication skills?
- Are you fluent in English and able to converse effectively in some local dialects?
- Do you have an entrepreneurial spirit and a drive for achievements and financial rewards?
- Do you believe in lifelong learning and in building a holistic knowledge base to advise people on personal financial issues?
How much will i earn?
Remuneration for estate planners in Malaysia is mainly performance-based and linked to the type of financial service provided. Estate planners have the potential to earn unlimited incomes, with attractive non-monetary incentives such as time flexibility and extensive training and support.
Who will employ me?
Employers will mainly come from financial service providers such as those involved in writing wills (eg. Rockwills), trust and estate planning, and personal financial planning.
[Source : doctorjob's courses NOW! Business edition, issue 58, 2009]