1. About the Association for Financial Professionals
AFP is a not-for-profit professional society committed to advancing the success of its finance members and their organizations through training, certification, and events.
Producers of the Certified Treasury Professional Designation (CTP) earned by 30,000 individuals across 54 countries.
AFP hosts the largest corporate finance conference in North America (6,500 attendees).

2. Certified Corporate Financial Planning & Analysis Professional
Launched in 2014.
Developed by FP&A corporate practitioners.
Over 3,500 enrollees from over 60 countries.
Nearly 1,000 certified FP&A professionals.
Participants from UVA, Capital One, Dominion Energy, Volkswagen, General Dynamics, Mars, Markel, and more.

3. Body of Knowledge Part 1- Financial Acumen (40% of Content):
Domain A- Strategy, business partnering, macroeconomics, Porter’s five forces, tax policy, value drivers, SWOT, risk management
Domain B- Cost of capital, NPV, IRR, rolling forecasts, financial reporting, FP&A project management/communication, cost allocation, CVP analysis, ratio analysis, elasticity
Part 2- Financial Analysis (60% of Content):
Domain A- Building & refining financial models, model consistency testing, variance/ratio/competitive analysis, budget variance analysis
Domain B- Cash flow, balance sheet, investment & sensitivity analysis, capital budgeting, revenue projections, Value at Risk, “what if” scenarios
Domain C- Financial functions, macros, pivot tables, v lookups, regression, expected value, standard deviation, utilizing BI systems and databases

4. Test Preparation Self study using FP&A learning system.
Learning system consists of printed material and online exercises.
Candidate typically spend about 100 hours preparing for both parts of the certification.

5. FP&A Credential Examination
FP&A Exam Composition
Assesses candidates’ mastery of required knowledge, skills and abilities to execute critical functions performed by FP&A practitioners.
Delivered annually, two 60-day windows: Feb/Mar (A Window) and Aug/Sep (B Window).
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ) and Task-Based Simulations (TBS - spreadsheet-based questions).
Administered at PearsonVue testing center.
Standardized test with multiple versions randomly administered.
Part
Number of Questions
Testing Time
Part I
110 MCQ + 15 TBS
3 hours
Part II
90MCQ TBS
4 hours
Certification Info:
Each part of the exam features two types of questions. The first being multiple choice and the second being Task Based Simulation questions.
Multiple Choice: You will be presented with questions to test your mastery of key concepts, critical skills and calculation exercises. There are four answer options to choose from, and you can use the External Work Sheet to help you figure out calculation answers.
Select your answer by clicking on the radio button next to your answer option choice.
Advance from question to question using the Next/Previous buttons.
You can flag any question for later review.
Once you finish Section 1 and move on to Section 2, you can’t return to it.
Task Based Simulation Questions: The FP&A exam utilizes a sample spreadsheet tool to perform task-based simulations. You will solve problems in a simulated worksheet.
This section requires manipulation of data in the worksheet.
Answers are scored in two ways: (1) numeric entries in a designated cell, (2) Text selection from a drop-down menu of options in a designated cell.
You can use the work area at the bottom of each exercise to help you come up with the answer. You can also use the External work sheet.
You navigate between simulation questions using the Next/Previous buttons.

6. FP&A Recertification 45 CE credits every 3 years.
50 minutes of education/training is equal to 1 CE credit.
AFP membership & events to earn credits.
Individuals can earn credits outside of AFP.
Double dip on credits.

7. UVA Employee Benefits
Shows mastery of core FP&A knowledge, principles and industry best practices. 
Further education and knowledge.
Raises your professional reputation among your staff and your peers. 
Expresses career long-term commitment through ongoing professional development.
Join AFP’s community of FP&A certified professionals.

8. Registering for the Exam
Submit application online-
Use UVA discount code FPA to save $181.
Register by May 11th to take advantage of early registration pricing for Aug/Sept window.