- How do I enter an activity in the CE Diary?
- How do I carry forward excess CE credit in the CE Diary?
What is the purpose of the CE Program?
The CE Program was designed to provide a formal and credible means of recognizing our members’ ongoing commitment to lifelong learning. A top priority of this new program is to provide a framework that enables members to take charge of their own education, trusting them to self−select, shape, and tailor the program to meet their unique needs. This focus reflects our faith in a membership whose continuing educational activities far exceed the requirements typical for most mandatory programs. For more details on the program, read the CE Program Guidebook (PDF). For more details on the deliberation process, read the full CE position statement (PDF).
What are the CE Program recommendations?
In order to maintain and improve their professional competence, CFA Institute recommends members complete a minimum of 20 hours of CE activities, inclusive of a minimum of 2 hours in the content areas of Standards, Ethics, and Regulations, each calendar year.
CFA Institute offers a broad array of resources to assist members in their lifelong learning efforts, but members are free to select any activities from any provider that best suit their unique needs.
No, the program is voluntary. Members are free to choose whether or not to acknowledge their completion of continuing education activities.
Who is eligible to participate?
The program is open to all CFA Institute members who are in good standing.
Beginning in 2009 (for calendar year 2008 reporting), members can attest to completion of the recommended hours on a yearly basis as part of the online membership renewal process.
Documentation is not required for member participation in the CE Program; however, CFA Institute offers the online CE Diary for members as a convenient resource to track credits earned. Members who take advantage of this resource will provide valuable feedback on the efficacy of our products as well as inform future product development. The new program does not contain an audit provision, and member data stored in the CE Diary will be used by CFA Institute in aggregate form solely for the express purpose of product development/improvement.
Will I receive recognition for my participation?
CFA Institute recognizes our members who have demonstrated their commitment to “maintain and improve their professional competence” by attesting to completion of the minimum recommended hours on an annual basis. These CE Program participants will be recognized in the following ways:
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Certificates: Members will receive a certificate of participation for each year of program participation. If the participation year marks a “milestone” (5, 10, 15, 20, or 25 consecutive years of participation), the certificate will note this significant achievement. These certificates are suitable for framing and can be displayed in your office to demonstrate to your clients and employer alike your continued dedication to learning.
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Listing in CFA Institute Publications: A list of members marking significant milestones for a given calendar year will be published in one or more CFA Institute publications.
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Special Offers: Members will receive special offers and discounts for CFA Institute products each year they participate in the program.
How will I receive my CE certificate?
On−demand certificate printing is available for those individuals that attest to participating in the CE Program during the online membership renewal process. Follow step-by-step instructions (PDF) for printing your CE certificate.
If the participation year marks a “milestone” (5, 10, 15, 20, or 25 consecutive years of participation), you will receive a certificate that notes this significant achievement by mail in the month of September. These certificates are suitable for framing and can be displayed in your office to demonstrate to your clients and employer alike your continued dedication to learning.
How do I determine the types of activities that are eligible for CE credit?
Members have broad latitude in selecting activities that are individually appropriate, relevant, and valuable. Members can use the following criteria to determine eligibility of any CE activity in which they are engaged:
- The activity should be educational in nature and geared toward increasing the knowledge, skills, and abilities of an investment professional.
- The educational content should relate to one or more topics incorporated in the CFA Institute Global Body of Investment Knowledge (GBIK™). View our listing of broad topical areas.
The goal of the 2−hour recommended minimum in SER content is to ensure that members understand and stay current in the areas of ethics and professional conduct, standards, and laws and regulations relevant to investment professionals. As a reference, the following topics are all related to SER content and eligible for SER credit:
- Advocacy, Regulatory, and Legislative Issues
- Corporate Governance
- Ethics and Professional Standards
In order to fully serve our members, CFA Institute is committed to providing high−quality and accessible content in the SER topical areas and current content may be found on our dedicated SER resource page. As a member convenience, CFA Institute products eligible for SER credit will be noted as such.
What is the Approved−Provider Program?
CFA Institute is committed to providing a high−quality and comprehensive suite of lifelong learning products to meet our members’ diverse needs. Realizing that individual members’ needs, learning styles, and preferences differ, we have complemented our product offerings with the Approved−Provider Program. This program was designed to provide an expanded number and variety of relevant CE opportunities available to CFA Institute members at the local level through partnerships with member societies and select third−party organizations.
All third−party organizations are well−established and respected within the investment industry, offer educational programming and/or products relevant to the investment practitioner, and pledge to uphold our rigorous standards. Third−party participants in the Approved−Provider Program are admitted at either a provider− or program−level.
Provider−level participants offer both breadth and depth of relevant offerings and, as with our member societies, receive “blanket approval” of their full suite of educational offerings. Members can locate third−party provider−level participants in an online Provider Directory on our website. Provider−level participants are eligible to use the CFA Institute CE Approved Provider logo and the CE Qualified Activity logo in their advertisements.
Program−level participants have relevant educational offerings that are typically of a limited number or scope (niche topic, geographical area, etc.) and receive CE credit approval on a program−by−program basis. Program−level participants are eligible to use the CFA Institute CE Qualified Activity logo in their advertisements for all pre−qualified programs.
As a member convenience, CFA Institute will automatically populate members’ CE Diaries with applicable credit for programs offered and reported by participating member societies and third−party providers. Members will receive an e−mail notification when their online CE Diary has been updated. Participating providers must have member ID numbers to properly report attendance.
Members should check with their local society leadership to determine if they are active participants in the Approved−Provider Program.
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1 CE credit hour is equal to one hour (60 minutes) of educational activity.
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Credit hours can be earned in half−hour increments (rounded to the nearest half hour).
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SER credit is a subset (either in part or whole) of the total credit for an educational activity.
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Note: Credit earned for pre−qualified activities such as certain CFA Institute products, events, and volunteer activities and Approved−Provider Program offerings, is automatically populated in members’ CE Diaries.
Members can calculate credit hours earned by using either of the following methods:
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Clock Time: Actual time spent engaged in the educational activity is used to calculate credit.
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Recommended Reference Times: Member feedback has demonstrated a strong desire for a simple credit calculation process and demand for a reference list of recommended credit amounts for a variety of activities. As a member convenience, all eligible CFA Institute products will clearly note the recommended credit amount, including SER credit where applicable.
Recommended reference times for some other typical CE activities are listed below:
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Completing a university course |
20 credits |
| Earning a designation/certification in addition to the CFA charter | 20 credits |
| Generalist readings (books, articles, etc.) | 2 minutes per page |
| Highly technical/specialized readings (books, articles, etc.) | 4 minutes per page |
How do I enter an activity in the CE Diary?
Review (PDF) step-by-step instructions for entering an activity in the CE Diary.
How do I carry forward excess CE credit in the CE Diary?
Review (PDF) step-by-step instructions for carrying forward credit in the CE Diary.