Four out of 10 Financial Planners enter the profession after graduate-level education, according to research by the Personal Finance Society and the Chartered Insurance Institute.

After graduate-entry, changing careers was the most common source of new recruits to financial services with 47% revealing they moved to Financial Planning from a different job or profession.

Family connections were next most popular with 9% coming from this route and 8% joining the professions from apprenticeship or trainee schemes.

The PFS and CII carried out a poll on career entry in July with almost 2,000 members taking part (1,949) - see table below. 

The professional bodies said the poll suggested that "lots of young graduates" see Financial Planning and insurance as promising sectors to start their careers. 

Four out of 10 financial advisers said they had entered the profession straight after they completed their education, selecting financial services as their chosen career. 

The PFS and CII said that financial advisers who changed career were also a benefit to the profession as they were able to use their own personal experiences and lessons learnt to help their clients succeed financially. 

Sian Fisher, CEO of the CII, said: “When I meet insurance professionals and financial advisers they often say ‘it’s not the career we thought we’d have but we love doing it’. 

“As a profession we must do more to attract a diverse pool of talent and help point those thinking of a career in the sector in the right direction. Apprenticeship schemes, such as our own Aspire programme, are fantastic opportunities for individuals wanting to start a career in financial services and they also help to ensure a diverse pool of talent. 

“The City is often accused of nepotism and still being an ‘old boys club’, so it’s very positive to see less than one in 10 insurance and personal finance professionals entered the sector due to a family connection. These old school connotations associated with the professions can be detrimental and it’s a really encouraging statistic that shows the growth of the (other) sectors.” 

Source: PFS/CII poll