National Association of College Funding Advisors

Name

National Association of College Funding Advisors

Legal name

National Association of College Funding Advisors

Website

https://mynacfa.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Financial Advisor Training and Certification

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Educational Support Services (61171), Educational Services (611)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Financial Services & Insurance (FINRA, CFP, IAR, Insurance CE) (EDAAALAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Financial Aid Administration & Packaging (EDALAJAA), Scholarship, Financial Aid & FAFSA Support Platforms (EDAFAMAF), Financial Literacy, Debt Counseling & Default Prevention (EDALAJAK)

Keywords

• Financial advisor training
• College funding planning
• Certification programs
• Insurance marketing organization
• Financial professional membership

Headquarters

HQ city

Troy

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Membership/Subscription Fees: NACFA generates revenue through membership fees charged to financial advisors who join the organization for training, certification, and access to college funding resources and tools. Advisors pay to become certified NACFA members and gain access to the training platform, Mastery program, teleconferences, and live conferences.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

NACFA provides a training and certification platform for financial advisors who specialize in college funding planning. Its core deliverable is an 8-week certification program with a proprietary Mastery program and six training modules covering college funding fundamentals, supported by monthly teleconferences, twice-yearly live conferences, and a member forum for ongoing peer collaboration. Certified advisors then use NACFA-provided fact-finders, planning software, and presentation formats to help client families design step-by-step plans to fund college costs without sacrificing retirement or homeownership goals.

Product overview

NACFA (National Association of College Funding Advisors) operates as a membership-based training and certification platform for financial professionals specializing in college funding planning. The core offering consists of an 8-week certification program including a proprietary Mastery program and six training modules covering college funding fundamentals. Members gain access to monthly teleconferences and quarterly live training conferences. The platform also includes a phpBB-based member forum for peer discussions and resource sharing across topics including marketing, appointments, presentations, and business planning.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• NACFA Advisor Certification Program

Quantifiable outcome

• A properly-designed college funding plan can save families tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights1 record

Direct peers

• College Aid Pro: College Aid Pro provides financial advisors with software and training to deliver college funding planning services to clients. It is the most direct comparable to NACFA: both sell tools, training, and a planning methodology to financial professionals serving college-bound families.
• Saving for College: Saving for College is a leading consumer information resource for 529 plans and college savings strategies. While primarily consumer-facing, it competes for the same end-client attention that NACFA-trained advisors serve, making it an indirect but adjacent peer in the college funding space.
• Edvisors Network: Edvisors provides information, tools, and resources for college funding and student loan planning. It overlaps with NACFA's content domain (financial aid, 529 plans, student loans) and serves an overlapping audience of families and advisors researching college funding options.
• College Coach (Bright Horizons): College Coach provides college admissions and financial aid counseling directly to families, employing former admissions officers. While NACFA trains advisors who then serve families, both operate in the same college funding/financial advising niche with overlapping content around FAFSA, EFC, and college savings strategies.
• National Marketing Alliance (NMA): NMA is an insurance marketing organization that provides product access, training, and support to independent financial professionals. It is structurally analogous to NACFA as an IMO delivering training and product access to its member advisors, though less specialized in college funding.

Emerging players

• Commonbond (now Chimdi) / College Funding Services: Chimdi (formerly Commonbond) is a student loan refinance and college funding technology platform that provides tools for both families and advisors. It serves an overlapping audience with NACFA's end clients, particularly around student debt strategy and college payment planning.
• Smart College Funding: Smart College Funding is a smaller consultancy that helps families with college financial planning, including financial aid strategies. It competes for the same end-client families that NACFA-trained advisors serve, operating as an emerging direct competitor in the same college funding niche.

Broad incumbents

• Integrity Marketing Group: Integrity is one of the largest insurance marketing organizations (IMOs) in the US, distributing insurance and annuity products through independent agents. NACFA is described as an IMO, placing it in the same category as Integrity but at a much smaller scale and with a niche college-funding specialty.
• American College of Financial Services: The American College is a long-established provider of financial services professional education, designations (CFP, CLU, ChFC), and continuing education. It competes with NACFA in selling training/credentials to financial advisors, though it is a much broader and more institutional player.
• Kaplan Financial Education: Kaplan Financial provides exam prep and continuing education for financial professionals (Series 7, CFP, insurance licensing). It is a broader incumbent in the same advisor-training market that NACFA targets, with substantially greater scale and digital infrastructure.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nacfa

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about National Association of College Funding Advisors