Certification Courses
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Become NGPF Certified in specific personal finance topics for FREE!
Certification Courses are NGPF’s most in-depth professional development format. Each course combines 9 hours of live virtual sessions focused on a core personal finance content area with a 1-hour exam. The content follows the flow of NGPF Semester Course but uses different resources so your content knowledge deepens without feeling redundant. These courses are 100% free.
WHY TAKE A CERTIFICATION COURSE?
Become more confident, qualified, and ready for the classroom
Boost your resume and earn digital badges to add to your email
Receive NGPF Academy credits and swag
Achieve the NGPF Distinguished Educator award when you complete 6 or more certifications
Most states that track professional development accept them for state CEUs
NGPF CERTIFICATION AT A GLANCE
WEEK 1-2 | Attend two 2-hour virtual sessions each week. [Note: Holidays may impact scheduling] |
WEEK 3 | Attend a 1-hour virtual session and a 1-hour optional review session. |
EXAM |
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Register for the upcoming cohort:
NEED TO MAKE UP A SESSION OR WANT TO ATTEND A REVIEW SESSION?
Click here to register for individual sessions to make-up missed sessions from a PREVIOUS cohort or to attend a review session before the next exam window.
COHORT #34
 | SESSIONSJun 5 - 22 |
 | REGISTRATIONOPEN |
 | EXAM WINDOWJun 23 - 30 |
Course topics offered:
Banking & Budgeting
Career
Insurance
Investing
9am - 11am PT / 12pm - 2pm ET
During this course, participants will cover essential strategies and tools for successfully banking and budgeting. Throughout the 5 session course, sessions will focus on Online Banking, Overdraft Fees, Budgeting Strategies, Savings Accounts, and more!
WEEK 1
SESSION 1
Mon, Jun 5
Checking Accounts, Overdraft Protection Fees, Unbanked and Underbanked, Online and Mobile Banking
SESSION 2
Wed, Jun 7
Why is Saving Important?, Types of Savings Accounts
WEEK 2
SESSION 3
Mon, Jun 12
Peer-to-Peer Payment Apps, Budgeting Strategies
SESSION 4
Wed, Jun 14
Budgeting for Transportation and Housing
WEEK 3
SESSION 5
Wed, Jun 21
The Gig Economy
EXAM
WINDOW
Jun 23 - 30
In this course, participants will learn up to the minute trends regarding 21st century careers, including how to prepare for in-person and virtual interviews, curating a successful LinkedIn profile, finding a career path for success, and more!
WEEK 1
SESSION 1
Mon, Jun 5
Career Landscape, 21st Century Resumes
SESSION 2
Wed, Jun 7
Online Networking, Alternatives to 4-year College
WEEK 2
SESSION 3
Mon, Jun 12
The Productive Gap Year, Joining the Military, Virtual Interviews
SESSION 4
Wed, Jun 14
The Gig Economy, Automation, Soft Skills
WEEK 3
SESSION 5
Wed, Jun 21
Job Offers and Benefits
EXAM
WINDOW
Jun 23 - 30
This course emphasizes vocabulary, content knowledge and NGPF resources for Investing instructional use. Participants will build the foundational understanding of: the value of investing early and often, compounding returns, stocks and bonds, and more!
WEEK 1
SESSION 1
Tues, Jun 6
Compounding, Stock
SESSION 2
Thurs, Jun 8
Measuring Performance, Bonds
WEEK 2
SESSION 3
Tues, Jun 13
Behavioral Economics, Intro to Index and Mutual Funds
SESSION 4
Thurs, Jun 15
ETFs and Target Date Funds, Retirement Investing
WEEK 3
SESSION 5
Tues, Jun 20
Robo-Advising and Current Events
EXAM
WINDOW
Jun 23 - 30
This course will cover many facets of insurance from renters insurance, to homeowners insurance, to health insurance. Educators will walk away with a working knowledge of insurance types and forms.
WEEK 1
SESSION 1
Tues, Jun 6
What is insurance?, Renters Insurance
SESSION 2
Thurs, Jun 8
Homeowners Insurance, Auto Insurance
WEEK 2
SESSION 3
Tues, Jun 13
Health Insurance
SESSION 4
Thurs, Jun 15
Disability Insurance, Life Insurance
WEEK 3
SESSION 5
Tues, Jun 20
Other Types of Insurance
EXAM
WINDOW
Jun 23 - 30
COHORT #35
| SESSIONSJun 26 - Jul 13 |
| REGISTRATIONOPEN |
| EXAM WINDOWJul 14 - 21 |
Course topics offered:
Behavioral Economics
Cryptocurrency Basics
Paying for College
Psychology of Money
In this course, participants will investigate the financial aid process. Sessions will focus on college pricing, the role of the FAFSA, financial aid, 529 college savings plans, student loans, financial aid offers, student loan repayment, and more!
CERTIFICATION COURSE SCHEDULE
| WEEK 1 | ||
| Session 1 | Mon, June 26 | College Basics & Budgets, College Exploration Process |
| Session 2 | Wed, June 28 | FAFSA Basics |
| WEEK 2 | ||
| Session 3 | Wed, July 5 | College Savings Plans & Free Money, Student Loans |
| WEEK 3 | ||
| Session 4 | Mon, July 10 | Financial Aid Packages, Loan Repayment |
| Session 5 | Wed, July 12 | Alternatives to 4-year Colleges + Current Events |
| EXAM WINDOW JULY 14-21 | ||
Educators will walk away with real-life examples of these biases along with ideas on how to overcome them. This content knowledge will prove helpful in educators' lives while also increasing their confidence to teach the unit.
CERTIFICATION COURSE SCHEDULE
| WEEK 1 | |||
| Session 1 | Mon, June 26 | Experiments, Cognitive Biases | |
| Session 2 | Wed, June 28 | Loss Aversion, Endowment Effect | |
| WEEK 2 | |||
| Session 3 | Wed, July 5 | Financial FOMO and Marketing Applications | |
| WEEK 3 | |||
| Session 4 | Mon, July 10 | Overconfidence, Confirmation Bias | |
| Session 5 | Wed, July 12 | Hedonic Adaptation | |
| EXAM WINDOW JULY 14-21 | |||
Sessions will cover many topics including the pros and cons of Bitcoin, to the current state of crypto, and more. Educators will gain an understanding of what cryptocurrency is, how it works, and arguments for and against its widespread adoption.
CERTIFICATION COURSE SCHEDULE
| WEEK 1 | |||
| Session 1 | Tues, June 27 | The History of Money and Cryptography | |
| Session 2 | Thurs, June 29 | The Pros/Cons of Bitcoin | |
| WEEK 2 | |||
| Session 3 | Thurs, July 6 | Ethereum + Smart Contracts, Exploring Altcoins | |
| WEEK 3 | |||
| Session 4 | Tues, July 11 | The Metaverse, NFTs + DeFi, Getting Started with Crypto | |
| Session 5 | Thurs, July 13 | Unpacking Scams and Fraud | |
| EXAM WINDOW JULY 14-21 | |||
We will be using Morgan Housel’s Psychology of Money as the foundational text. This course incorporates key concepts from the book and extends them with videos, articles and podcasts.
CERTIFICATION COURSE SCHEDULE
| WEEK 1 | |||
| Session 1 | Tues, June 27 | Our Attitudes Around Money, Hedonic Adaptation | |
| Session 2 | Thurs, June 29 | The Power of Compounding, Keys to Financial Survival | |
| WEEK 2 | |||
| Session 3 | Thurs, July 6 | Being Rich vs Being Wealthy, Savings vs Spending Rates | |
| WEEK 3 | |||
| Session 4 | Tues, July 11 | Surprises in Financial Plans, Challenges in Financial Planning and Stock Market Volatility | |
| Session 5 | Thurs, July 13 | Podcast interview with Morgan Housel, author of the Psychology of Money | |
| EXAM WINDOW JULY 14-21 | |||
COHORT #36
| SESSIONSJul 17 - Aug 3 |
| REGISTRATIONOPEN |
| EXAM WINDOWAug 4 - 11 |
Course topics offered:
Advanced Investing
Consumer Skills
Credit
Taxes
In this course, participants will walk through the major aspects of credit, loans, and debt management. We will also focus on the complexities of the United States crediting system, common pitfalls, and current trends!
CERTIFICATION COURSE SCHEDULE
| WEEK 1 | |||
| Session 1 | On-Demand | Credit Essentials, Debt Fundamentals | |
| Session 2 | Wed, July 19 | Credit Cards, Personal Loans and Predatory Lending | |
| WEEK 2 | |||
| Session 3 | Mon, July 24 | Trends in Consumer Credit, Auto Loans | |
| Session 4 | Wed, July 26 | Mortgages, Credit Reports & Scores | |
| WEEK 3 | |||
| Session 5 | Mon, July 31 | Identity Theft and Current Trends | |
| EXAM WINDOW AUG 4-11 | |||
CERTIFICATION COURSE SCHEDULE
| WEEK 1 | |||
| Session 1 | Mon, July 17 | Session Details will be shared closer to the cohort start date | |
| Session 2 | Wed, July 19 | ||
| WEEK 2 | |||
| Session 3 | Mon, July 24 | ||
| Session 4 | Wed, July 26 | ||
| WEEK 3 | |||
| Session 5 | Mon, July 31 | ||
| EXAM WINDOW AUG 4-11 | |||
In this course, participants examine the lives of modern consumers. We explore targeted advertising, social media influencers, deceptive web design elements, advanced scams, fraud threats, fake product reviews, and more!
CERTIFICATION COURSE SCHEDULE
| WEEK 1 | |||
| Session 1 | Tues, July 18 | How Social Media Influences Spending | |
| Session 2 | Thurs, July 20 | Big Data & Targeted Advertising, Dark Patterns | |
| WEEK 2 | |||
| Session 3 | Tues, July 25 | Comparison Shopping Skills, How eCommerce Business Models Affect Budgeting | |
| Session 4 | Thurs, July 27 | Second Hand Savvy, Scams, Fraud, and Identity Theft | |
| WEEK 3 | |||
| Session 5 | Tues, Aug 1 | Consumer Ethics | |
| EXAM WINDOW AUG 4-11 | |||
This course emphasizes vocabulary, content knowledge and NGPF resources for in Investing instructional use. Participants will build the foundational understanding of: the value of investing early and often, compound returns, and more.
CERTIFICATION COURSE SCHEDULE
| WEEK 1 | |||
| Session 1 | Tues, July 18 | Asset Allocation, Target Date Funds | |
| Session 2 | Thurs, July 20 | Behavioral Finance, Bond Funds | |
| WEEK 2 | |||
| Session 3 | Tues, July 25 | Investing Pitfalls, Regulation of the Financial Markets | |
| Session 4 | On-Demand | Investing Internationally, What Research Teaches Us | |
| WEEK 3 | |||
| Session 5 | Tues, Aug 1 | Hot Topics in Investing | |
| EXAM WINDOW AUG 4-11 | |||
