You could do a college course which would teach you some of the skills and knowledge you need to be a paraplanner.

Relevant subjects include:

• Level 3 Certificate In Regulated Financial Services Operations
• T Level in Finance
• Level 4 Diploma in Financial Planning

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

• 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, for a level 3 course
• 1 or 2 A levels, a level 3 diploma or relevant experience for a level 4 or level 5 course

• 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths for a T Level

You could do a Paraplanner and Financial Planner Level 4 Higher Apprenticeship.

This will take around 2 years to complete and will include a mix of learning on the job and studying at college.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

• 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) and A levels, or equivalent, for a higher or degree apprenticeship

You could join a company as a trainee and learn on the job.

Your employer might want you to do qualification while you train, such as the CISI level 4 Certificate in Paraplanning.

You'll need:

• customer service skills
• knowledge of economics and accounting
• maths knowledge
• to be thorough and pay attention to detail
• sensitivity and understanding
• persistence and determination
• analytical thinking skills
• excellent verbal communication skills
• to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

As a paraplanner, you'll:

• prepare and write finance reports
• research financial funds and products
• provide admin support to financial advisers
• put together cash flow analysis
• keep client records up to date

You could work at a client's business, in an office or remotely.