Financial literacy – the ability to understand credit, investments and insurance – influences all stages of our lives, which is why the state House has designated April as Financial Literacy Month in Pennsylvania, reports Rep. Jim Cox (R-129).
Financial literacy involves making informed decisions about finances including investing, saving – especially for college and borrowing smartly to pay for it – understanding how credit cards work, insurance needs, real estate and retirement planning.
Students are often at risk of making poor financial choices due to their lack of life experience and a limited institutional effort to teach financial literacy skills.
Free resources are available to help bridge the information gap related to higher education financial issues at MySmartBorrowing.org, which provides estimators that help determine a student’s possible costs at different schools, future salary expectations in the selected field of study, availability of related employment opportunities, and the potential ability to repay student loans comfortably while affording an independent lifestyle.
Additional financial education tools are available from the Jump$tart Coalition and the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants.