Dive Brief:

• Wake Forest University will open a professional hub for financial services and fintech in uptown Charlotte, it announced Feb. 28. The program comes via a partnership with Kaplan, an education services company.
• The program is designed for working professionals and will offer industry certifications and designations, the school said.
• The school is launching these options "to support the ongoing professional development of individuals and organizations in the growing financial services and fintech sectors," Todd Johnson, the university’s vice president, said in a statement.

Dive Insight:

The number of jobs in the financial service industry is increasing, according to S&P Global, with particularly large growth in the Charlotte, North Carolina, area.

But turnover is a problem in the industry, 2019 research from ENGAGE revealed. Among other things, surveyed workers said they place great value on potential for growth — something Wake Forests’ program aims to provide.

Others are taking different but related approaches. For example, BMO Capital Markets, New York Life and PGIM, Prudential's global investment management businesses, make use of a return-to-work program. Qualified applicants are those who have five years' experience in the financial services industry and who have been out of the full-time workforce for at least two years. Participants receive a re-entry opportunity at one of three sponsoring companies, support for relevant coursework or certifications and mentoring.

Also known as "returnships," these offerings may be particularly useful for an industry that reportedly struggles to move women into leadership roles.