<p>Just wondering if any schools offer a course in personal finance at the college level anymore. Im thinking there is more than enough material for a full quarter/semester class and could be the most valuable class of any in a college career. The course syllabus could include:
Student loans (repayment, refinancing, consequences of default, ?)
Insurance (evaluating car, health, personal and property insurance)
Evaluating a job offer
Retirement plans (including IRAs, in all their flavors)
Personal Investing (stock market trading, no-load funds, 529 plans?)
Evaluating a lease
Buying a home (contracts, inspections, location)
Im sure you all could add to the syllabus.
I did a (very) quick search on a couple of college websites and did not find much. Has anyones DS/DD taken such a course in college? Was it worthwhile? Did it shorten the school of hard-knocks our students face as they enter the real world after college?</p>
<p>Although I think this is important subject matter; material that every young adult should become familiar with; and, unfortunately, material that many of them are never exposed to… I don’t think it rises to the level of a college course.</p>
<p>You can find such material covered sometimes in local Community Services classes, adult ed type programs etc.</p>
<p>I sure hope my S will be able to take something like that.</p>
<p>I think that most schools’ philosophies would be: we want to give 'em the reading, reasoning, research, and critical thinking skills that it takes to figure out such things (and to figure out a whole lot).</p>
<p>I just checked the website of Johns Hopkins’ 3-week Intersession (optional) which can be used for mini Academic enrichment classes (for credit) as well as Personal Enrichment classes, Experiential Learning etc. (not for credit). Two offerings I saw in the Personal Enrichment category were:
which cover quite a few of the topics you’ve mentioned. So… there is some of this going on, which - I agree with all who have posted so far - is a good thing.</p>
<p>These courses cost extra (but nowhere near the price of a true University credit course).</p>
<p>My LAC did offer a personal finance class and it was a godsend to me, a science major from a rural background who did not have a lot of older, wiser, experienced adults in her life. I wanted to suggest a similar course for my DS and was surprised there wasn’t something similar at his school. It would not have been as easy to take that kind of course once I was out of school and juggling two jobs, but you are right, they are available at community colleges and elsewhere. </p>
<p>jmmom-Thanks. I just looked at the Johns Hopkins website intersession courses you mentioned and several others including one called
FROM HOPELESS TO HIRED: A SURVIVAL GUIDE TO BUSINESS ETIQUETTE AND CAREER MANAGEMENT
These are great options for students and definitely a reason to consider a school with this kind of schedule and a good intersession program.
I have to wonder, though, do they have to limit the class size in the BEER HISTORY AND APPRECIATION course ;-)</p>
<p>I heard that Smith College, all female LAC in Northampton, Massachusetts, requires all of its students to take a course in personal finance as a graduation requirement. I was very impressed with this.</p>
<p>The schools can’t because too donors are in the financial industry which often times is not the most ethical.</p>
<p>The Barrett Honors College at Arizona State University offers two such classes. The first is a basic personal finance/investing class and the second is called “Unconventional Investing” – both sound very interesting so I hope I’m able to fit them into my schedule at some point.</p>
<p>I took a business elective called Personal Finance at my state u. way back in the 80’s. It was a very good class. We each had to make a presentation on something we had done involving finances and a budget. Since I was a newlywed, I did my presentation on the budget and financing of my wedding.</p>
<p>Smith does not require a personal finance class, but offers several (not for credit–usually lunchtime lecture series, or all-day programs between finals and commencement) through its Women and Financial Independence program.</p>
<p>[Women</a> and Financial Independence](<a href=“http://www.smith.edu/wfi/]Women”>http://www.smith.edu/wfi/)</p>
<p>
[QUOTE=ceebrown]
When I was an undergrad at Wharton a group of us did a project centered on getting Penn to make such a class mandatory. As far as I know, Penn still has not seen the wisdom. Based on watching doctor friends and relatives, med schools really need business finance and management classes.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Funny you should say that - my stepfather recently went back to business school at HBS (he’s a doctor, bioethicist and public health specialist) and said it was some of the most useful education he’d had - and that he should’ve done it before he ran his own medicine practice. ;)</p>
<p>I could be wrong, but I think our tour guide at WashU said he was taking a personal finance course.</p>
<p>I can’t imagine too many schools, especially private schools, offer courses to undergraduates in personal finance. The reason: kids might realize that taking on all the debt for their “dream school” isn’t such a good idea!</p>
<p>I think this should be a required course for both high school and college students. In our rural area a lot of the kids do not go to college and a course in how to handle personal finances before high school graduation would be something they could all use and would probably cut down on the bankruptcy rate among 20 somethings.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Agree. What about auto mechanics, cooking, swimming, health and personal hygeine,… All important life skill, but not exactly what one expects to get college credit for.</p>
<p>One research study has concluded that people who have taken a personal finance course in hs or college are not any better off finacially.</p>
<p>The keys to financial success are quite simple. Spend less than you earn. Always search for the lowest interest rate for debt you incur. Spend as little money as possible on depreciating assest(ie cars). Understand the magic of compound interest. And understand that there is almost always a correlation between return on investment and risk.</p>
<p>I have followed these rules and have been successful beyond my wildest dreams in terms of net worth accumulation. Er at least until recent months. ;-)</p>
<p>Dad’o’2: I know of at least one highly regarded college that does require competency in swimming prior to graduation, a requirement I support. And, my DS was required to take a personal health issues class during his freshman year. While I’m sure they covered substance abuse and STD’s, I know they also covered nutrition, sleep, and time/stress management which were topics he shared with me at Christmas break. It was a partial credit class, but overtime, probably the most important class he had freshman year. </p>
<p>Personally, I would rather my tuition dollar be spent on a personal finance course than on some of the more obscure/bizarre course offerings found in many college catalogs. A personal finance course could be offered for reduced credit. It could be offered non-credit. To the college administrators out there, please, just offer it.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Good point. This makes me wonder what criteria a subject must meet to be taught as a college course. Of course, that is an entirely different question than what I would personally consider to be worthy of my tuition dollar! In the abstract, I think I would have a hard time paying $1000 per credit hour for classes that are roughly the equivalent of adult education courses at the local community college. </p>
<p>My S had a half-year personal finance/economics course in high school, which is probably the best place to teach this as the kids who need it the most won’t end up in college. The big project of the class was to create a budget to live as a high-school graduate earning $2000 per month, documenting the cost of food, lodging, transportation, etc. That was a worthwhile excercise. Furthermore, this was probably the only class that he took in high school with non-college-track kids, which was eye-opener on its own.</p>
<p>Also, my S has a one-year zero-credit PE requirement at his university. I think that is a little bit mickey mouse, but I know it will be good for him, nonetheless, so I don’t really have a problem with it. </p>
<p>;) P.S. I think the 100-yard swimming requirement for graduation is a nice, quirky anachronism, but why stop there? I could make the case for a number of other requirements, but I have included alternatives in case the first is not to your liking:</p>
<ol>
<li> (a) Bench press your own weight, or (b) learn ballroom dancing</li>
<li> (a) Change a automobile tire, or (b) drive a stick-shift around the block</li>
<li> (a) Ride a unicycle, or (b) milk a cow </li>
<li> (a) Eat 12 raw oysters, or (b) chug a beer.</li>
</ol>
<p>Then again, maybe we just let the Panhellenic Council set the requirements…</p>
<p>Many colleges have extension programs or classes offered to the community & a personal finance course would probably be offered through them.</p>
<p>If something isn’t offered/taken for college credit- it will be a lot cheaper-
- There’s* your first tip! :)</p>
<p>Reed has a few weeks in between semesters that students aren’t required to attend, but when unusual classes are offered. Dr Demento gives lectures and thats when the underwater basket weaving is taught. It gets it out of their system, because the rest of the course schedule is pretty traditional.</p>