GARP membership, is it any good?

[Hend Abuenein]

Hello people,

I just got a notification from GARP that my membership is expiring in a month, and am wondering about renewing it.

For those of you who have earned their FRM certificate, what good is it retaining and renewing the GARP membership?
Is it obligatory to be a member in order to be able to use the FRM acronyms with your name?
Aside from the continuous education program and the newsletters they provide, have you found the membership annual cost justified?

Please share you thoughts.
Thank you

 

[Jas]

So far as I recall, it is NOT obligatory to be a member in order to be able to use the FRM acronyms with your name.

As to the value of membership, I do not see more value than the magazine that they give or the CPE points. The GARP chapters in my country (India) are hardly active (they have not even bothered to make contact with me after I got certified). The chapters are present only in two cities and the networking events are far and few in between and they are not open to conduct these events at other cities despite repeated requests.

 

[Aleksander Hansen]

Is it obligatory to be a member in order to be able to use the FRM acronyms with your name?

No, it is not mandatory to continue to be a GARP individual member in order to continue using your FRM designation.
As GARP states:
Do I need to be an Individual (paid) Member in order to use the FRM designation? GARP does not currently require you to be an Individual Member to use your FRM designation. However, we do encourage you to maintain your Individual GARP Membership in order to utilize all the benefits available to you.

In other words, they are more than happy to accept your money even though you're not sitting the exam.

 

[sleepybird]

I also got the letter stating that it will automatically charge me in November.
You do need to be a paid member in order to sit for the exam, am I correct?
If we don't pay in November, do they have the right not to grade our exams?
Thanks.

 

[sleepybird]

Nevermind. The website also says membership is NOT a requirement to sit for the exam.

Do I have to be a member of GARP to sit for the FRM Exam? No. Membership is not required to sit for the FRM Exams. However, you will be automatically provided with complimentary membership privileges as an Individual Member of GARP for one year upon paid enrollment in the FRM Program. Your membership can automatically be renewed if you agreed to do so at the time of your registration. For an overview of Individual Membership benefits
http://www.garp.org/frm/faqs/more-faqs.aspx#GARP Membership and the FRM

 

[Jas]

One year membership is automatically included in the enrollment fees. After that it becomes a person's choice.

Unfortunately I spent lots of dollars for 3 years not knowing this rule (this was even before I enrolled for the exam). And the GARP people did not bother to send the GARP Risk Review (that was the name of the magazine is those old days) regularly or on time. And complaints used to go unheard. Perhaps we did not have the GARP facebook page nor did I know philanthropic people like David Harper back then.

Thank you David, for this wonderful forum, where you address issues beyond the dispersion of knowledge.

 

[Hend Abuenein]

What about the webcasts they do? did you ever join any of them? I attended one last year about Basel III but found it a repetition of the FRM part 2 curriculum about the same subject. Don't know if other subjects are worth attending.

 

[sleepybird]

I also always thought paid membership is mandatory to sit for the exam.
I just started the FRM program last year and you're saying that it's mandatory for the first year.
This means I didn't waste any money

I already have CFA membership (I can read CFA magazine, Financial Analyst Journal, etc.) and a member of NYSSA (attend free seminars and network events). I don't need another magazine to read.

One year membership is automatically included in the enrollment fees. After that it becomes a person's choice.

Unfortunately I spent lots of dollars for 3 years not knowing this rule (this was even before I enrolled for the exam). And the GARP people did not bother to send the GARP Risk Review (that was the name of the magazine is those old days) regularly or on time. And complaints used to go unheard. Perhaps we did not have the GARP facebook page nor did I know philanthropic people like David Harper back then.

Thank you David, for this wonderful forum, where you address issues beyond the dispersion of knowledge.

 

[samiksha.frm]

Hi, I did not clear FRM Level 2 and my membership is expiring tomorrow. If I enroll for the exam, do I still have to pay anything extra to be a member?

 

[DouglasBrown]

No you dont

Edit. Actually just to clarify

You do have to pay if you want to be a member beyond the initial year you get when enrolling for Pt1

But you don't have to be a member to retake pt2so can let it lapse (and stop the auto renew)

 

[samiksha.frm]

Thank you for the reply

 

[AFerr8396]

Hello, can I confirm if today it is still accurate that you do not need to pay for the membership to use the FRM designation? Is it possible not to pay for the membership and pay for it later (say 5 years later) to enjoy again all access to GARP material with the same benefit?

Thanks

 

[ami44]

Hello, can I confirm if today it is still accurate that you do not need to pay for the membership to use the FRM designation? Is it possible not to pay for the membership and pay for it later (say 5 years later) to enjoy again all access to GARP material with the same benefit?

Thanks

Yes, in my experience that is possible. After my FRM I wasn’t a member for a few years, but then I joined again, with full membership benefits.