In cooperation with the Association for Financial Counseling and Planning Education and the National Military Family Association, the FINRA Investor Education Foundation is training a corps of military spouses to provide financial counseling and education within the military community.

Recipients of the Military Spouse Fellowship must commit to not only completing the courses of study, but also working or volunteering in the financial counseling field serving the military for up to two years. The accreditation can take as many as 18 months to complete. Upon successful completion of the program coursework, testing and experience requirements, spouses are awarded the Accredited Financial Counselor designation from the AFCPE.

The program receives thousands of applicants each year, but accepts only 200 fellows. To date, more than 100 spouses have completed the accreditation program.

The program is open to spouses of active duty or retired Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Army or Air National Guard or reserve component service members as well as spouses of US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration professionals.

The fellowship is unique in that it not only strengthens the personal financial counseling services available for military Families, but also helps military spouses achieve career goals and aspirations by enhancing job-related marketability.

More information is available at www.saveandinvest.org, www.nmfa.org, and www.afcpe.org.