The Intermediate Certificate in Personal Finance (ICPF) has been designed for people who are, or will shortly be, starting on a period of life when they can no longer depend on others for their financial provision.
In particular, students will learn about the legal and practical constraints on the sources and uses of money; the methods of organising their money through detailed personal budgeting; the considered use of appropriate bank and building society accounts and the concept and consequences of foreign exchange.
View overall information about the qualification.
The course is divided into two units:
There are no entry requirements for the ifs School of Finance level 2 Intermediate Certificate in Personal Finance, although it is recommended that students complete the Foundation Certificate first.
ICPF is incorporated into the National Qualifications Framework as a vocationally related qualification at level 2.
The recommended guided learning for ICPF is 90 hours.
The ifs provides a comprehensive learning support package for tutors and students including:
The ifs also runs tutor development days across the country, providing advice, guidance and an opportunity to share best practice and expertise.
View sample learning material, sample Topic 1: Currencies
View a specimen paper for Unit One: Personal Financial Encounters
Unit One: Personal Financial Encounters - Justification and answer sheet
All units are paper-based examinations.
Unit One and Two are assessed by a single 30-minute objective test that will comprise 30 questions; 15 stand-alone multiple choice questions and five sets of stimulus, each with three associated questions.
Paper three is assessed by a single 60-minute objective test that will comprise 20 questions; two sets of stimulus material, each with ten associated questions. Each question is worth two marks
There are 100 marks available for the whole qualification. A pass must be achieved in all three units to gain the award ie 15 marks in Unit One and Two and 10 marks in Paper Three.
For the Intermediate Certificate in Personal Finance the grades are:
Registration fee is £36.00 per student (this includes one examination entry per unit and an examination entry for the synoptic assessment, paper 3 Personal Finance Management (PFM); access to online study material and an empty binder). Students can retake any examination for a fee of £12.00.
The ifs level 2 Intermediate Certificate in Personal Finance is delivered at schools and colleges across the UK.
If you are a tutor wanting to add ICPF to your curriculum, please register your interest here and the financial capability team will contact you.
If you are a student and would like to study ICPF, ask your school or college.
Examination Officers who are ready to register a cohort of students for the Intermediate Certificate in Personal Finance should download and complete the attached spreadsheet and then send it by email to fca@ifslearning.ac.uk.
