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Firm FAQ's
How will you screen candidates?
We’ve partnered with Advisor Business Solutions to assist with the matching process. They will screen every candidate and conduct an interview with each firm to discover their specific needs. The process is similar to hiring a recruiting firm for a permanent hire. Each participating firm will receive a cross-section of candidates to interview for the best fit. The participating firm will be responsible for interviewing each candidate and conducting a background check on the intern you select.
What does the timeline look like?
Applications open on October 1 and close on December 31st. The matching process starts on January 2, 2024. Our goal is to have everyone matched and offers extended by the end of March.
Why fee-only and fee-based financial planning focused RIA's?
The goal of the BLX Internship Program is to make sure that interns get exposure to real financial planning. Requiring firms to have a focus on financial planning improves our chances of achieving this.
What does it cost to participate as a firm?
In order to provide a high-quality matching process and ensure the financial stability of the BLX program, we ask that participating firms contribute financially. Contribution levels are based on firm size and the number of interns firms are looking to place. The contribution levels range from $1,500 - $10,000+.
When will the internship officially start?
The formal kickoff date aligns with a normal summer internship schedule. After interns are hired by a firm, it is up to the two parties to decide on the best start date.
Why not open this program up to other minorities or populations?
Given the backdrop of George Floyd’s death and in the spirit of the Black Lives Matter movement, we believe now is the time to take action focusing on the Black and Latinx populations. The stats are staggering. According to the CFP Board and the US Census Bureau, only 4.9% of CFPs are Black or Latinx, while these groups make up over 32.5% of the demographics of the US.
In future years, we hope to expand the scope of this program to include other groups. We can apply the “X” of “BLX” to include other marginalized groups.
How do you source candidates?
We partner with a variety of schools, professional organizations, career centers, and job fairs. We have relationships with financial planning organizations such as FPA NexGen, NAPFA, Quad-A, and ALPFA just to name a few. We have relationships with CFP® credential granting universities. We also post on job boards such as the CFP® board's website, LinkedIn, Handshake, etc.