New fraternity for aspiring planners seeks to build paths into field

After launching its first chapter, a professional fraternity for aspiring financial advisors is starting affiliated groups of planning students at five of the best known college planning programs.

The co-ed Mu Nu Upsilon Fraternity, which uses the abbreviation "MNY" for short, started its nascent chapter this past fall at the University of South Florida. It's now working to establish footholds at Texas Tech University, University of Georgia, Kansas State University, Arizona State University and University of North Florida. The organization is also seeking to raise $100,000 to provide scholarships of $5,000 each to 20 college planning students.

With a focus on undergraduates and graduate students in personal financial planning programs around the country or considering them, MNY is seeking to "get more people under the tent" in the profession and through existing college networks such as the "student communities" of the Financial Planning Association at South Florida and a few dozen other institutions, said MNY founder Mac Gardner, a fintech entrepreneur and 20-year industry veteran.

"Because financial literacy is not taught in schools, it's just not something that they're even aware of in itself, much less as a career path," Gardner said. "That's a core message of MNY Fraternity, is to provide education to the community. If you are not someone who came from that in the family, you may not hear about it."

Practice and client management

Interns can be a challenge. 5 tips for future financial planners and advisory firms

March 10, 2023 9:28 PM

The demographics of certified financial planners display why many advisors and wealth management firms view scholarships and other outreach to young people and career changers as essential to the future of the profession. Fewer than 29% of CFPs are younger than 40 years old, less than a quarter are women and under 5% are Black or Hispanic, according to the CFP Board, which has collaborated with firms on a variety of scholarship programs over the years. The organization started a new one in March aimed at female college planning students.

Other resources for those seeking to break into the profession include the Externship online training program, the BLatinX Internship and the annual Diversitas symposium hosted by The University of Akron's planning program, according to advisor Dominique Henderson, whose Jumpstart Coaching Lab helps aspiring planners get into the field as well.

Young people and career changers considering a move into planning should "definitely start with their 'why,'" Henderson said in an email.  

"The marketing machine for 'financial services' can be terribly confusing," he said. "I often tell my clients to have a real good grip on why they want to enter the industry. This leads them to the next steps (talking to a current professional, joining a program, etc.)."

MNY Fraternity

Gardner was one of the initial board members when Tampa-based South Florida began offering planning as a major through its Muma College of Business in 2017. The university has an FPA chapter, and an investment club has turned into the largest student-led group on campus, according to Gardner, MNY Vice President Tyler Lesnick and MNY President Gianfranco Esposito Luis. As members of a wealth management division in the investment club, Lesnick and Esposito Luis partnered with Gardner to get the first MNY chapter off the ground.

"We've already had people coming to us and saying, 'We want to change majors,'" Esposito Luis, a graduate MBA student, said in an interview. "One of my family members works as a financial advisor. If you don't have that kind of experience or exposure, it's really hard to get into the profession."

The fraternity aims to clarify how planning works and why people suggesting that the process boils down to sales of insurance and investment products have it wrong, said Lesnick, a planning major who will start his third year next fall.

"When I see people who are not aware of the program, some of them have preconceived notions about what it actually is, and then there are others who don't even know that the university offers it," he said.

MNY Fraternity

In addition to Lesnick and Esposito Luis, Treasurer Galo Rebelo is also part of the leadership of the inaugural "USF Alpha Chapter." South Florida faculty members Bob Tiller and Robin Snell, along with Tampa-area advisors Jodi Perez of Independent Financial Services and Raymond James, and Kevin O'Connell of Northwestern Mutual, are on MNY's board. Five events each year, respectively, focusing on investments, insurance, banking, taxes and estate planning, will form the boilerplate models for more groups at other schools in the future.

Any advisors seeking to establish student or mentor chapters at a school in their area or who otherwise would like to get involved in MNY Fraternity should contact the group and start building networks with students in their region, Gardner said.

"They know their stuff," he said. "They're part of something that we believe is going to be transformative. We want them to really drive what this thing does."