McCombs Wealth Management Center launches with support from Charles Schwab Foundation

The new Wealth Management Center and Wealth Management Program at the McCombs School of Business have received support from Schwab Advisor Services, in partnership with Charles Schwab Foundation. The company has pledged a three-year grant to the new center, which includes the Charles Schwab Foundation Financial Planning Lab and the Charles Schwab Foundation Wealth Management conference room. The center is aimed at educating the next generation of wealth management leaders at The University of Texas at Austin. 

“It’s a fascinating time in the money management and wealth management business, and there’s no school like us training the leaders of that industry for tomorrow,” said McCombs Interim Dean Lillian Mills. “That’s a market opportunity that we see as being great for our students.”

A broad goal of the Wealth Management Center is to address the changing needs in the wealth and money management industry. It is estimated that scores of baby boomers will face a $4.1 trillion dollar “retirement gap” in the coming years, increasing the demand and need for financial planning services and registered investment advisors.

These initiatives will connect students with tools and resources that will not only educate them, but will also help them to build industry partnerships, facilitate community outreach, and foster leading academic and applied research. The center will offer financial literacy classes and workshops to high school and college students, as well as to targeted affiliated industries.

“There are clear indications of market demand,” said Ramesh Rao, director of the McCombs Wealth Management Program. “The new program helps students, including more women and minority students, add value to wealth management firms and their clients upon graduation.”

Undergraduates can take classes in business law, capital markets, estate planning, risk management, fundamental taxation, actuarial science, and social cognitive consumer research. The new curriculum for the Wealth Management Minor was shaped with heavy input from industry professionals and McCombs faculty.

“At Schwab, we know financial education and related career opportunities can change students’ lives, and we are excited to work with the McCombs School of Business to bring the Wealth Management Center to life,” said Bernie Clark, executive vice president and head of Schwab Advisor Services.

The Wealth Management Center at Texas McCombs is distinguished by the following features:

• The program will be housed in top-ranked business school at a prestigious research university.
• It will offer rigorous, formal classes, with lectures and experiential learning opportunities.
• UT students will start with a foundation of strong business training that will be complemented with hard and soft skill training relevant to the industry.

About the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin

Texas McCombs is a premier business school at a world-class public research university. We are a community that fosters lifelong engagement with our students and alumni. We cultivate principled leaders and develop ideas that will advance our economy, improve lives, strengthen our communities, and create new knowledge for future generations. Through high-quality instruction, experiential learning, and the pursuit of relevant, groundbreaking research, we are shaping those who will shape tomorrow and solve our most challenging problems.

For more information about the McCombs Wealth Management Minor or the Wealth Management Center, click here.

For more information, contact: Catenya McHenry, [email protected]