At Timeline, our mission is to help millions of people plan, invest, and retire with confidence. But delivering on that promise means thinking beyond platforms and portfolios. It means investing in people, especially the next generation of financial planners who will guide clients through life’s most important decisions.
That’s why we’re proud to be a founding supporter of Coventry University’s Financial Planning Scholarship Competition. This bold initiative is designed to raise awareness of financial planning as a career, improve access to education, and inspire a more diverse and dynamic future for our profession.
Building a Brighter Future for Financial Advice
The UK financial planning industry is at a crossroads. As demand for advice grows and experienced advisers retire, we face a pressing challenge: how do we bring more talented, values-driven people into the profession?
This competition is part of the answer.
Open to sixth-form and college students across the UK, it gives young people a meaningful introduction to financial planning. Students are challenged to solve real-world client scenarios, think critically about long-term planning, and present their recommendations just like practising advisers.
The top entrant receives a fully funded scholarship to Coventry’s BSc in Global Financial Planning - one of the UK’s only university-level programmes with Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) accreditation. That’s a life-changing opportunity for someone with the ambition and ability, but not necessarily the resources, to pursue a career in this field.
Timeline’s Role
Thanks to Brett Davidson at FP Advance for kicking off this initiative with the University of Coventry, we’re now more involved than ever! At Timeline, we’re not just financial supporters - we’re active participants in building the future we want to see. Our involvement includes:
- - Funding a full three-year scholarship plus a summer internship at Timeline
- - Providing mentorship and insight into the modern financial planning profession
- - Encouraging our network of firms to get involved and champion the initiative
- - Raising the profile of financial planning as a vibrant, meaningful career path
We’re proud of this investment in the long-term success of financial advice, the industry we love, and the clients we serve.
A Personal Connection
Our CEO and Founder, Abraham Okusanya, is a proud Coventry University alumnus. His journey from international student to one of the most forward-thinking voices in UK financial planning embodies exactly what this competition makes possible:
“This is about levelling the playing field. Giving more people, from all walks of life, a chance to enter the profession - and build lives of meaning and purpose through financial planning. I couldn’t be prouder to support it.”
Creating a Movement
With support from Coventry University, Young Enterprise, FP Advance, Timeline and others in the wealth management community, this competition is already gaining momentum. Hundreds of students are engaging with the programme - many of them discovering for the first time that financial planning is a career they can aspire to.
This is how we create meaningful change: by opening doors, offering support, and building a profession that’s ready for the future.
Get Involved
If you believe in a brighter future for financial advice, here’s how you can help:
- Share the competition with schools, students, and your network
- Mentor a student or volunteer as a judge
- Support the initiative through your business or personal network
Together, we can create a profession that’s more accessible, more resilient, and ready to serve the millions who rely on it.
