ISF® Certification Scheme
Over $37 trillion in assets under management claim to incorporate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations into their investing strategy. Despite the difficulties of working with incomplete data sets, portfolio managers must assess the impact of a company’s ESG aspects with skill. Furthermore, investors and regulators must manage growing skepticism of ESG claims, attempting to distinguish the green from the greenwash. They’re caught in a conundrum, having to satisfy growing shareholder demand for returns on sustainable and value-driven portfolios while competing against benchmark funds that solely look at short-term performance.
The ISF® certification scheme for Financial Professionals is an amazing interaction between IASE’s renowned financial competence with the innovative ESG research undertaken by the prominent IASE faculty. As a result, investment professionals now have a powerful, actionable toolkit for implementing, measuring, modeling, and optimizing ESG-asset integration in their portfolios for long-term value creation.
ISF® Certification Scheme
Becoming a ISF® holder is a defining moment for many ESG professionals and exemplifies the possession of solid ESG knowledge as well as its application in the real world. We outline everything you need to know to prepare for the ISF® Programme, so you can feel confident when enrolling.
Who is this certification for?
ISF® Certification is for people who work in or want to work in financial services jobs like investment managers, wealth managers, financial advisors, insurance agents, accountants, finance managers, and treasurers.
Benefits of Certification?
IASE’s multi-level, competency-based ISF® Certification Programme recognises ESG professionals’ knowledge and skills while also promoting their lifelong ESG career advancement.
ISF® Certification Levels
The IASE multi-level competency-based ESG certification programmes recognise your knowledge and skills while also assisting you in your lifelong ESG career advancement. Each level has its own set of eligibility requirements and competency-based assessment (i.e., board exam) that is aligned with the syllabus.
The IASE multi-level competency-based ISF® Certification Programme recognise your knowledge and skills while also assisting you in your lifelong ESG career advancement. Each level has its own set of eligibility requirements and competency-based assessment (i.e., board exam) that is aligned with the IASE syllabus.
Individuals’ competencies will grow and develop as they advance in their careers. At each key milestone, the individual will have developed or gained a new level of competency that can be recognised, allowing for a clear distinction between certification levels. The certification level encourages ESG professionals to seek advancement through specific learning and development to help them reach the level they want.
IASE certification programmes will assess and measure an individual’s competencies at any given level, ensuring that both the ESG professional and the employer are aware of what is expected at each level.
| LEVELS | DESCRIPTION | CERTIFICATION |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Recognises individuals entering the ESG field | ISF® ADVISOR |
| Level 2 | Recognises ESG professionals who have at least 2 years of ESG experience. | ISF® SPECIALIST |
| Level 3 | Requirements to be announced soon | ISF® EXPERT |
Individuals’ competencies will grow and develop as they advance in their careers. At each key milestone, the individual will have developed or gained a new level of competency that can be recognised, allowing for a clear distinction between certification levels. The certification level encourages ESG professionals to seek advancement through specific learning and development to help them reach the level they want.
IASE certification programmes will assess and measure an individual’s competencies at any given level, ensuring that both the ESG professional and the employer are aware of what is expected at each level.
| LEVELS | DESCRIPTION | CERTIFICATION |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Recognises individuals entering the ESG field | ISF® ADVISOR |
| Level 2 | Recognises ESG professionals who have at least 2 years of ESG experience. | ISF® SPECIALIST |
| Level 3 | Requirements to be announced soon | ISF® EXPERT |
Eligibility Requirements for ISF® Certification
The ISF® Programme has three distinct level of expertise, each with its board exam and credential. In combination, they represent career progression pathways. These are ISF® Advisor, ISF® Specialist and ISF® Expert.
Passing the corresponding board exam for each level requires obtaining the corresponding ISF® designation.
Please note that you can take all ISF® Program exams in the following languages: English, French, German, Italian, Korean, Portuguese, and Spanish.
Learn more about the ISF® board exams, pass marks, schedules, and costs here.
Note: Obtaining the ISF® Level 1 certification is not a requirement for registering to write the ISF® Level 2 board exam. In other words, being an ISF® Advisor (Level 1) is not a requirement to register for the ISF® Level 2 board exam.
To be awarded the ISF® certification as the respective levels, a candidate must have the following minimum qualification requirements:
- ISF® Level 1 – EQF Level 3 (equivalent of a high school/matric/Grade 12/Standard 10 diploma/qualification)
- ISF® Level 2 – EQF Level 4-5 (equivalent of a 3-year post high school qualification through a tertiary institution, such as university degree)
- ISF® Level 3 – EQF Level 6-7 (or NQF Level 7-8 in a South African context)
To be awarded the ISF® certification as the respective levels, a candidate must have the following minimum prior experience requirements:
- ISF® Level 1 – previous professional work experience in the field of ESG and/or Sustainability NOT required.
- ISF® Level 2 – 2 years of previous professional work experience in the field of ESG and/or Sustainability required. Candidate to submit a detailed CV for consideration as part of the board exam registration process.
- ISF® Level 3 – Still to be determined. The ISF® Level III program is yet to be launched.
To be awarded the ISF® certification as the respective levels, all candidates must:
- Agree to abide IASE’s By-Laws, Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility, and Disciplinary Regulations as amended by the Institute from time to time.
- Never have been convicted of a criminal offence.
- Never have had a final sanction imposed on him/her by a court, regulator, or any other lawful authority for a serious offence.
- Never have been disqualified under any law or expelled by any professional association from practicing a specific profession.
- Never have faced any other similar remedial action/s related to professional conduct or unethical practice/s.
Candidates who have met all the above minimum requirements can apply to be awarded the official ISF® professional designation. The current application fee can be found here.
IASE shall officially award all successful candidates the rights and privileges of using the ISF® professional designation for the level applied for. Candidates can then proudly communicate their hard-earned accomplishment publicly, including appending their designation to their names (eg Jane Doe ISF®) on their business cards, email signature, or LinkedIn profile.
In addition, the names of all successful applicants shall then be added to IASE’s public directory of ESG professionals in the world.
Visit our detailed list of benefits of becoming an ISF® holder.
General requirements
In addition to the above specific requirements, candidates must also meet the following general requirements to be awarded the ISF® Certification
- Candidate must be a minimum of 16 years old at the time of applying for certification
All of our board exams are available as online remote proctored exams, which require a desktop or laptop computer, an internet connection, a working webcam, and a microphone.
Register for ISF® Board Exams
ISF® Level 1 Board Exam
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ISF® Level 2 Board Exam
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ISF® Level 3 Board Exam
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