Griffith University student Crystal Palliser saw in her own family how important financial advice could be and is now driven by a desire to help others.

“The most interesting part of being a financial adviser is being able to help people and build their wealth,” she says.

“I can see now that my parents are nearing retirement that they could have benefitted from financial advice when they were younger and been better prepared.”

Crystal’s was among the top entries in the Semester 1 round of the AMP University Challenge, a national competition which seeks to give students experience of what it’s like to be a financial planner and identify top talent among the upcoming generation of advisers.

Semester 2 of the competition is now open for entries and the top 5 entries across both semesters will be selected to compete in the October finals at AMP in Sydney.

The second-year student is studying a Bachelor of Commerce majoring in Finance and Financial Planning and is doing well enough that she will finish her degree early.

Pictured: Crystal Palliser

Crystal entered the AMP University Challenge because she saw it as a valuable opportunity to apply what she was learning in her studies to a practical challenge.

“I thought it would be a really good experience to write an advice strategy paper for a client in a competitive environment,” she says.

Entrants have to devise a financial strategy for two hypothetical clients and show convincingly why the strategy is in their best interests.

Crystal says she was careful to consider the advantages and disadvantages of different strategies for the clients in her paper so she could show why the one she eventually chose was the best option for them.

“I knew there would be quite a few people entering so I didn’t have great expectations,” Crystal says.

“But now I’m really looking forward to the results in October.”

Enter at ampuniversitychallenge.com.au