I would like to get some input on which Compliance Schools anyone would recommend. The budget was approved yesterday and my schooling was approved. I have been in Compliance for four years however all learned has been from reading and this site. I do have 26 years in banking, but compliance is fairly new. any recommendations would be appreciated.

ABA Compliance School is the best in my opinion. I have attended much compliance training and many are good/great, but I would recommend ABA Compliance School first than followed by the others as money and time permit.

Where are you located? Some state programs cover best as they cover both the national and state laws. I know that the Wisconsin Bankers Association has wonderful schools. I attended both deposit and lending side this year.

I like PBS, Professionsl Bank Services. Their class materials and books are well designed and readable.

I use both PBS and have attended the ABA Compliance School. I can immerse myself in compliance for a full week. No distractions or interruptions, just time to really dig into the regulations. I use PBS and BOL for training all year long. When an issue comes up that I need more training on I can generally find either an online webinar or 1 day training class from one of them.

I'll second Nanwa's PBS. They provide a follow-up question/answer service that is really helpful.

I'm hoping to get to ABA or WBA school soon too.

I recently attended a CFT (Center's for Financial Training) weeklong conference in St. Louis. This is my first year in compliance, and I found this particular conference to be very informative and beneficial to the job. There are even a few presenters who post on BOL

I also attended several PBS seminars and in-state training programs, which are great for looking more in-depth at a particular topic.

I'll put in my 2 cents for ACB compliance school. It gave me a great head start in compliance. The instructors there were great. They have the school in Connecticut.

Each of the schools will send you information you can compare. As an ex-ABA school board member I can tell you that while expensive, they are dedicated to bringing you the latest info with nationally recognized speakers. And with the move to Emory this next session (March) you should find the housing top notch.

In any case, look for what you want help in, state, federal, lending, operations, etc. If you intend on going for your CRCM, look for CPEs too.

I am about to attend NAFCU's Certified Compliance Officer school for federally-insured credit unions. It is the best in our industry.

I found ACB to overlap and much too broad. It's like a soap opera - you can skip a few years and not miss much. I definitely recommend PBS - much more robust, detailed - good materials and follow up questions available afterwards. First choice - whenever you can find one-- is finding the instructors or sessions that train the examiners directly. PBS does alot of their training.

I agree with checking with your state banking association as a first step. I happen to live in Oklahoma and we have a compliance school put on by our state bankers assoc. and I will put our school up against any other in the country. We always get several nationally recognized speakers and the other locals/not so nationally recognized speakers are still top notch. The local schools are also great for networking in your own backyard, whereas the national schools will give you a wider variety of folks to compare notes with. Either one would be great just to (as an earlier poster said) "immerse" yourself in pure compliance. If you suffer from CRADD like most of us do, this will almost be a vacation in itself!

Catgirl - the next NAFCU CCO School is April 2005 in VA. That is the one I am attending. PM me with your email address and I will send you the link. (it's a little difficult to navigate on your own as their site is kind of mixed up)

I wandered into a post you did awhile back and noticed you had a compliance policy (nightmare subject, I know), but I am reviewing a compliance policy for a bank I will be responsible for and wondered if you might share your policy with me?

I also agree Compliance School is great...

Thanks

The ABA is tops! I recommend their compliance school, graduate compliance school, annual conference, and teleconferences.

Also, local compliance associations or state bankers' associations will provide seminars.