A.G. Edwards is not the first brokerage firm to encourage its brokers to continue their education, but the firm has come up with a novel twist: Its education program now serves as college credit.
On Monday, the firm will announce its new education program. Offered through the A.G. Edwards University training department, the new training courses are offered as real college credit—29 hours worth.
The firm cleared the classes with the American Council on Education (ACE), allowing them to help brokers who are interested to work toward undergraduate degrees with elective credits. The firm claims they are the first retail brokerage to have industry, professional development and management training courses recommended by the ACE for college credit.
“This is another important step toward our goal of having the best educated and best trained employees in the industry,” said A.G. Edwards CEO Robert Bagby in a statement. “Not only do employees earning their college degrees benefit from the convenience, but they stay up-to-date on industry trends and developments.”
The classes range from simple Series 7 requirement overviews to continuing skills classes like Effective Meeting Skills. When an AGE broker (or any employee) passes a class, the firm will contact the American Council on Education, which then submits the credits to the college or university the broker/employee is attending. If he qualifies, the credits are transferred over.
According to the firm, 800 A.G. Edwards employees are currently enrolled in undergraduate classes.
