The master's degree and graduate certificate in family financial planning are a double bonus:

• Provide opportunities for graduate education
• Prepare you to take the Certified Financial Planner exam.

Certificate Program
Earn a graduate certificate in Financial Planning which is designed for students who want graduate coursework that meets the educational requirement to sit for the CFP® Certification Examination but who do not need a master's degree.

Master's Degree Program
Earn a master's degree in Child, Youth and Family Studies with a specialization in the area of family financial planning. Most students complete the masters program in three years while working a full-time job. Students in this specialization enhance personal financial knowledge, complete a master's degree or a certificate program and develop competencies that can lead to the Certified Financial Planner designation by the CFP International Board of Standards.

Great Plains IDEA Program
This program is part of the Great Plains Interactive Distance Education Alliance (Great Plains IDEA), a consortium of eleven universities offering fully online graduate programs.

Each university brings a unique strength to the multi-institution academic programs.

You apply, and are admitted at one university; enroll in all your courses at that university; and, graduate or receive a certificate from that university. However, your online courses are taught by the best faculty in the discipline from several universities.

Masters Degree
This masters degree program consists of 42 semester credit hours as outlined below. Students typically complete the program in three years while employed full time. Students who participate in full-time study can shorten the time from matriculation to degree completion.

Graduate Certificate
Certificate requires 18 credit hours. The courses required for the certificate are indicated with an asterisk in the course sequence below.

• Fundamentals of Family Financial Planning* (offered through Kansas State University)
  
  
• Insurance Planning for Families* (offered through UNL)
  
  
• Investing for the Family’s Future* (offered through Iowa State University)
  
  
• Personal Income Taxation* (offered through the University of Missouri)
  
  
• Retirement Planning, Employee Benefits and the Family* (offered through UNL)
  
  
• Estate Planning for Families* (offered through Montana State University)
  
  
• Family Economics (offered through South Dakota State University)
  
  
• Financial Counseling (offered through North Dakota State University)
  
  
• Professional Practices in Financial Planning (offered through Kansas State University)
  
  
• Financial Planning Case Studies(offered through Kansas State University)
  
  
• Housing/Real Estate (offered through Oklahoma State University or Iowa State University)
  
  
• Family Systems (offered through Oklahoma State University or North Dakota State University)
  
  
• Practicum in Family Financial Planning (6 credits)

For course descriptions, please visit the Great Plains IDEA site.

High speed Internet connection is required. Check the Graduate Distance Catalog to learn the specific requirements for your program.

Some distance courses have supplemental materials on videos or CDs and others may require phone conferencing. You will interact with the professor and other students through e-mail, phone conferencing, and Blackboard.

Blackboard™ Requirements and Browser Configurations:
To effectively use Blackboard the Javascript and cookies on your computer must be enabled. Some content for features may require additional software. Pop-up blockers should be disabled for Blackboard (My.UNL). The browsers below are officially supported.

• Internet Explorer: 7.0 or higher
• Firefox: 2.0 or higher
• Safari: 2.0 or higher

Older versions of the above or alternative browsers (such as Mozilla and Opera) may be compatible, but some features might not be available. To download the latest browsers, click the “help” button in Blackboard (My.UNL) and access the Downloads area.

Operating Systems:
Microsoft® Windows® 2000 and up, or Mac OS X, 10.2 and up are strongly recommended. Older operating systems (Microsoft® Windows® 98SE/ME, MacOS 8/9) or alternative platforms (Linux) are compatible, but may not have full functionality. Blackboard (My.UNL) is not currently compatible with handheld devices or Web-enabled phones.

Department of Child, Youth and Family Studies

• Online Application for Graduate Admission
  Students applying for the graduate certificate should select Non-Degree, Post-baccalaureate status on the Graduate Studies application.
• $45 non-refundable application processing fee
• Two (2) sets of official transcripts
• If your native language is not English: verification of English proficiency
• If you are not a US citizen and you expect to hold an F or J visa: financial resource information
  
  

  Send to: Office of Graduate Studies
  University of Nebraska-Lincoln
  1100 Seaton Hall
  P.O. Box 880619
  Lincoln, NE 68588-0619

• Minimum TOEFL:  Paper-550  Internet-80
• Three letters of recommendation
• Department intent form (M.S.)
• Professional goals statement
• Resume or vitae
  
  

  Send to: Department of Child, Youth and Family Studies
  University of Nebraska-Lincoln           
  Graduate Support Services
  135 Mabel Lee Hall
  Lincoln NE 68588-0236

• Fall Semester - April 15
• Spring Semester - October 15
• Summer Semester - January 15

Your application is reviewed only after all materials are received. It is recommended that you submit all materials six weeks prior to the deadlines.

College of Education and Human Sciences
Department of Child, Youth and Family Studies
ATTN: Lisa King
135 Mabel Lee Hall
Lincoln NE 68588-0236
Phone: (402) 472-7787
Fax: (402) 472-9170
E-mail: lking2@unl.edu
Web: http://cehs.unl.edu/cyaf/grad/ffp.shtml