Prepare to join the growing trust management field
- New program builds on UD’s expertise in trust management with the support of the Peak Trust Company, an industry leader in trust services
- Flexible online format — program takes place April 21–June 30
- Potential financial options available — Payment plan, scholarships and discounts including military, UD student/alum, 2 or more (group) and others.
Trust management is a field that serves people who are seeking assistance with personal and family estate planning, and with their philanthropic and financial goals. This new trust management professional certificate program is aimed at preparing professionals to join the growing field, which is currently experiencing a shortfall of qualified trust professionals.
Designed for any professional seeking a robust foundation of the knowledge required to work in the field of trust management, participants in this program will gain fundamental knowledge of trust law, fiduciary income taxation, individual income taxation, trust operations systems, trust compliance and trust investment management.
The course is intended for adult learners with prior formal education who are either looking to transition into the wealth management and trust administration field or seeking to advance their existing careers within the industry.
Upon completion of the program, students will be qualified to work as entry-level trust professionals anywhere in the U.S.
This program is made possible through the generosity of Peak Trust Company, and builds on the University of Delaware’s expertise in the field as one of only two universities in the country offering a trust management minor.
PROGRAM OUTLINE
Module One: Trust Law and Administration
- Introduction to trusts, parties, roles and responsibilities
- Trust creation, administration, modification, termination, distribution
- Trust liability, ethics, and risk management
- Module assessment: Students will analyze real-life trust scenarios and analyze a comprehensive estate plan using a hypothetical scenario. This will review the major points covered in the module and will include the cumulative final project.
Module Two: Trust Investments
- Trust investments, investment objectives, ethical consideration for trust investments
- Prudent investor rule, equity investments, portfolio management and construction, risk management of equity investments
- Private equity investments, unique asset investments, due diligence process for private equity and unique assets, tangible property, custody and safekeeping
- Module assessment: Students will prepare a final project that focuses on an equity analysis, private equity due diligence, and unique asset evaluation implementing an investment strategy for an existing trust relationship.
Module Three: Trust Taxation
- Trust and estate taxation, tax attributes, taxable trusts, classification of trusts for tax purposes
- Fiduciary tax accounting, distributable net income, undistributed net income, income distribution deduction, expense allocations, beneficiary K1 and income character
- Tax planning, compliance, and state income tax on trusts
- Module assessment: Students will be required to submit a final project analyzing a form 1041 and advising on a complex fiduciary tax scenario
Module Four: Trust Operations
- Establishing and funding trusts, account opening and set-up
- Trustee discretion, distributions, and beneficiary rights
- Trustee tax reporting, conflicts of interest, dispute resolution, and termination
- Annual reviews and fees
- Module assessment: Individual project analyzing trust administration scenarios including exercises of discretion, beneficiary distributions, and record keeping based upon a hypothetical family
Module Five: Trust Compliance
- Regulatory agencies, reporting requirements, annual reviews, onboarding, asset booking and valuation
- Record keeping, audits, data security, compliance and addressing deficiencies during audits
- Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), Know Your Customer (KYC)
- Module assessment: Complete culminating project to prepare an annual account review including tax analysis, fees, asset valuation
SUCCESSFUL PROGRAM COMPLETION — In order to earn the digital certificate of completion, each participant must:
- Complete all of the course modules
- Complete and pass all end-of-module assessments and activities
- Complete the final capstone project described in Module 5
- Grading: This course will use the standard UD grading scale, and each participant must earn a 70% or higher as their final grade in order to receive the digital certificate of completion
FACULTY
Jennifer Zelvin McCloskey is the director and lead faculty for the new Peak Trust Management Certificate. She is the director of and primary instructor in the University of Delaware’s Trust Management Minor offered in UD’s Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics.
REGISTRATION AND PROGRAM DETAILS
- SCHEDULE — April 21–June 30, 2025, combination of live-online plus self-paced learning modules:
- Six live-online virtual class sessions are scheduled noon-1 p.m. on the following Fridays (except for one Thursday), May 1 (Thursday), May 16, May 30, June 13, June 20, June 27. Active attendance and participation at the virtual live-online sessions is highly recommended for successful program completion. Sessions will be recorded for review.
- Additional self-paced modules contain online learning content presented in a flexible, interactive format, to be completed by participants on a self-paced basis.
- PRICE — $4,500. Payment plan, scholarships and discounts including military, UD student/alum/employee, 2 or more (group) and others may be available. (Only one discount or scholarship award can apply per registration.)
- CEUs — 3.0 CEUs (Continuing Education Units) or 30 contact hours
- Registration coming soon.
LEARN MORE — UD and Peak Trust Company collaborate to launch new professional program
The new Peak Trust Management Certificate will expand opportunities for students and meet an industry need
There are lots of well-paying trust management jobs, but companies are increasingly having trouble filling them. “We’re going to build on what we’ve already done to create an educational path that can reach a broader scope of people throughout the nation,” said UD’s Jennifer McCloskey. “There is a shortage of talent and qualified resources out there.” >> READ THE FULL ARTICLE
