A lack of financial understanding is one of the reasons students struggle with investing and saving. Many students simply don’t know enough about issues like interest, inflation and diversification. They use credit cards more than ever before, and online shopping is a top choice for many. It helps if they have access to resources to improve their financial understanding and learn to apply financial skills.
Take financial literacy classes
Most high schools don’t focus enough on teaching basic financial literacy. One of the best ways to teach financial literacy is through stories rather than trying to include it in formal math or accounting classes.
Students need access to the right resources and practical examples to improve their financial knowledge. Financially literate students recognize how important it is to get a higher education. They learn not to just consider their immediate preferences but their future needs too.
Where can students find the motivation to succeed?
Many college students want to have more basic financial literacy. They want to know what will help them with saving money and investing. The problem is they don’t know where to start or how to find the motivation. With the help of essays on life for college & school students on Samplius, every college student can find a free essay online for inspiration on student life, money literacy, and more. Reading free essay samples helps to improve their own writing skills.
Learn the basics of budgeting
Students will benefit from learning some basic financial skills, such as knowing how to create a budget. To create a budget, they need to understand their income and expenses. Fixed expenses, like rent, stay the same month to month. Flexible expenses, like groceries, vary from month to month.
They can’t control their spending unless they have a good idea of what they spend their money on and how much they spend. Today there are many apps and user-friendly tools students can use to help them budget. Their parents can also help by having open discussions about finances.
Understand interest rates
Understanding how interest works is an important aspect of being financially literate. Knowing more about interest rates could make students think twice about borrowing. Adding interest to what they borrowed means they will pay back much more than they borrowed over time.
For example, there is interest in student loans. Various online calculators are available for students to use so they can find out just how much interest they will have to pay on their student loans.
Prioritize saving
Most students don’t understand why they need to save. However, learning how to save gives them the practice and set of skills they need throughout their lives. Bills will always be there, and if they learn how to save towards goals, they will feel a sense of accomplishment when they reach them. It helps them to start off with small goals, like saving $10 a week. Eventually, they can set higher goals like saving for a car.
Manage credit correctly
Students may have no concept of how easy it is to ruin their credit. It can be hard to regain credit once it’s lost. They are often flooded with credit card offers when they arrive at college. Credit can be useful if they know how to manage it correctly. Not managing it properly can lead to a burden of debt that follows them for years to come.
Keep financial information safe
It’s important for students to understand that their financial information is vulnerable to fraud. With so much digital transformation and everyone shopping online, identity theft is a problem. Limiting the amount of information they share online and using password protection can help them to maintain their safety. They should never browse or make purchases on a public computer.
Learn the basics of investing
Students need to learn the basics of investing. Invest unwisely, and they will lose their money. Invest wisely, and they have a way to make their money grow. Many students are interested to know how to make money online. This is a way for them to start making money while they are still studying that they could use to invest.
Conclusion
Without financial literacy, students will find making, keeping and growing money a challenge. It means that many of their goals will stay out of reach. When they are financially literate, students are more accountable, spend wisely, and save so they can earn more and have better health and life satisfaction.
