Eric’s Story - Fiduciary Management Certificate Program | CSUF

Alumni Experience Alumni of Fiduciary Management Certificate Program

Eric Black

While working in the Entertainment industry, Eric discovered his true calling for fiduciary management. His first step down this new career path was earning a certificate.

Why did you choose Cal State Fullerton to earn your Fiduciary Management Certificate?

I was doing a friend’s trust, and his attorney told me, “You are the single best trustee I have ever worked with. You have to do this for living!” So I started doing research on what the first steps were, and the first steps were going through a certification program. And that’s when I came across Cal State Fullerton.

What were you doing before completing this certificate program?

My education is in Molecular Biology, and career was working in Entertainment as an Executive Producer in commercial television, branding, promotion, etc. I was still doing that until I started working on my friend’s trust, and it just seemed like a natural fit for my skillset.

What did you enjoy about the courses in the program?

I enjoyed the open discussion lectures where we got to hear about specific case studies and the experiences people had with managing a trust. Having that dialogue with this core group of students and the instructor was really instrumental in my learning.

Now that you’ve earned your certificate, what will you do next?

My goal is to study, get licensed, and operate as a professional fiduciary, mainly a trustee, in the state of California.

What advice do you have for students entering the Fiduciary Management Certificate program?

Do the readings and memorize as much as you can. Memorizing codes and statutes and basic rules just helps you move forward with a basic foundation. It’s also important to understand that while there are very black and white rules in acting as a fiduciary, we are still serving humans. Each case is unique to the person you’re serving. You need to be able to think quickly on your feet, have a great moral compass, and realize that it’s about taking what you learn in class and using your best judgement and experience, as well as relying on others who have good judgement and experience.