Schwab has expanded its Registered Investment Advisor Talent Advantage Student Scholarship with 15 college students selected as this year’s recipients. Now in its fifth year, the program has grown from 12 annual winners in years past and has increased its awarded scholarship from $10,000 to $15,000 per student for the 2025–2026 academic year.
The scholarship also includes a one-on-one mentorship program, where students are paired with RIA advisors who custody their assets with Schwab. The program supports students with financial planning backgrounds towards pursuing careers in the RIA profession, as Schwab estimates the industry will require 70,000 new hires in the next 5 years to keep up with current growth rates.
“Our goal is for financial planning to be one of the most sought after professions, and for students to really understand what it means to work at an RIA, not just to think they need to go work at an investment bank or a wirehouse or an insurance company,” Lisa Salvi, head of business consulting and education for advisor services at Schwab, told InvestmentNews.
More than 600 students from 60 universities applied for this year’s scholarship program. Schwab has also given $30 million in grants to over 35 universities across 28 states to help establish CFP programs at those schools, Salvi said. “It's a really meaningful profession where you're really helping people, and you're part of their lives. And that really resonates with the younger generation, as does the competitive compensation that you can earn through the profession,” Salvi said of Schwab’s RIA career discussions on college campuses.
According to Schwab’s 2025 RIA Benchmarking Study, 74% of RIAs plan to hire in 2025 and more than a third of firms recruited top talent from colleges and universities. While Schwab anticipates expanded hiring needs among RIAs, the financial services giant is also contemplating how AI could “restructure” labor and advisor roles at certain firms.
“We are seeing advisors are adopting AI primarily right now for note taking capabilities and meeting prep, so some of the operational pieces,” said Salvi. “They are saving minutes of time, and typically that is some of the role a junior advisor or junior associate would take on. It hasn't resulted yet in saving an entire role, but it is restructuring some of the job responsibilities at certain firms.”
Schwab will additionally host 80 students at its annual IMPACT conference happening this November in Denver, where they’ll be able to connect with RIA industry professionals. The full list of this year’s Registered Investment Advisor Talent Advantage Student Scholarship winners are below:
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