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Jessica Darnbrough
The majority of brokers do not believe that a university degree should be the "minimum qualification" required to become a mortgage and finance broker in the future.
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At the MFAA conference in Brisbane earlier this month, president Joe Sirianni told delegates that educational standards would continue to rise in the industry and a university degree would be “the future”.
Mr Sirianni said raising the bar from Cert IV qualifications to a minimum Diploma level would increase the level of professionalism in the industry.
But while the industry unanimously agrees that greater education is a move in the right direction, it seems a majority believe a university degree is one step too far.
Over 71 per cent of the 614 respondents of a recent The Adviser straw poll disagree that a university degree should be the minimum qualification with just 28.3 per cent backing the MFAA's vision of future educational standards.
“A university degree is pushing the envelope a little bit,” Oxygen’s general manager James Green said.
“While I believe greater education will ultimately help increase professionalism in the industry, I believe a university degree will limit the number of new entrants we see coming in. And we desperately need new blood in this industry.”
But while Mr Green believes a university degree will act as a deterrent to new entrants, others believe the industry would struggle to cope with the higher educational standard.
Mortgage Choice’s chief executive officer Michael Russell said he supported greater education, but with licensing, and the transition from Cert IV to Diploma, brokers already have enough on their plate.
“I think Mr Sirianni was right when he said educational standards in the industry will continue to increase and evolve. A university degree may become the norm in the future, but it is not something the industry is ready for right now,” he said.
