College Students Flood Personal Finance Courses to Beat Financial Stress

Woman Studying Inside the Classroom

College students are no longer seeing personal finance as an optional college course. At the University of Maryland, Gen Z students scramble to get into finance classes, fearing that entering adulthood without any formal financial education would lead to serious financial problems down the line.

A significant number of Gen Zers are finding themselves financially ill-prepared, with more than half lacking basic knowledge about managing money.

Yahoo Finance shared that a SIFMA Foundation study determined that more than 75% of parents surveyed do not believe they are sufficiently qualified to discuss investing with their children, an education gap students must fill on their own. Alongside this, nearly three out of five students have considered dropping out due to financial stress. But if not worse enough to take them out of school, it instead, destroys their mental health.

This was further supported by professors like McMillian and Dorothy Kelly, from the University of Virginia, who emphasized that learning to manage finances can improve not only a student's financial situation but also their emotional well-being and overall life satisfaction.

Should Finance Courses be Mandatory?

While personal finance courses are helpful, both professors agree that they should not be mandatory. Instead, students should be motivated to take them because of the value they see in the content.

Now, there are courses tailored to students' specific needs. This can include budgeting basics for freshmen to more advanced topics for upperclassmen. But still, the goal is to provide students with the tools they need to succeed in their current financial realities rather than overwhelm them with complex topics they aren't ready to tackle.

While these lessons are available, financial education alone is not enough to solve the challenges financial stress students face. Educators like Andrea Pellegrini of the University of Illinois highlight the need for a more systemic change in the financial system. She encourages students to stay informed, but also be critical of financial opportunities. Most importantly, forgive themselves when they make mistakes.

For now, these college students acknowledge that understanding personal finance is a lifelong journey, and it's never too late to start learning.