Teens to Young Adults – Carol H Cox

April 25, 2019July 14, 2019

Teaching Teens Money Matters Before Graduation

by Carol H Cox

No, it’s not too late to talk to your soon-to-be-graduating high school senior about personal finance! In fact, now is a great time to begin the conversation. My parents never had these talks with me when I was graduating from high school, but I also wasn’t facing tens of thousands of dollars of student loans in my future either, and credit card debt wasn’t the huge problem it is today.

Managing money well is now more important than ever. The average college grad leaves school with about $28,500 in student loan debt, and the average American struggles with over $6,900 of credit card debt carried from month to month.

You don’t need to be an expert to give good advice to your child, and you don’t have to have your finances in perfect working order either. We’ve all screwed up our finances on more than one occasion. It’s tough for us parents to admit that we’ve made money mistakes, but these may be some of the best teaching lessons. They’re real. They’re memorable.

Life is messy. It doesn’t follow neat little rules—although financial experts sure like to draw them up. So take comfort in knowing you’re not alone. Many Americans are in difficult financial situations, like too much debt, flabby credit scores, savings deficits, and the like.

Now, where to begin?

May 14, 2018

Four Money Books to Match the New High School Grad

by Carol H Cox

young woman thinking

Perhaps reading a personal finance book is not the most exciting way to spend an afternoon for most people, but it can be a great way for teens and young adults to learn some important money management skills they’ll need once they’re on their own.

You may be a young adult wanting to educate yourself about personal finance or maybe you’re a parent or grandparent searching for a helpful money book for a graduating high school senior. Whatever the case, choosing a personal finance book with an approach that matches the reader’s personality will likely be the easiest to digest. Continue reading “Four Money Books to Match the New High School Grad”

February 28, 2018March 1, 2018

A Cheaper Path to a 4-Year College Degree

By Carol H Cox

Full-time employees with bachelor’s degrees have median earnings that are 67% higher than high school graduates, according to 2016 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, approximately $60,100 versus $36,000. An individual who has a 4-year college degree improves his or her potential income by hundreds of thousands of dollars over 40 years or more of employment.

Yet, to achieve a bachelor’s degree is increasingly expensive in the U.S. and out of reach for many individuals unless they and their families are willing to shoulder student loans in the tens of thousands of dollars. Encouraging young adults, age 18 and older, to take on sizable debt is not a very appealing solution, although that is what is happening in the U.S. today. Continue reading “A Cheaper Path to a 4-Year College Degree”

January 31, 2018March 1, 2018

On the Front Line for Teen Literacy

By Carol H Cox

Public school systems that offer personal finance courses are still the exception, and not the rule. The 2016 Council for Economic Education Survey of the States found that only 17 states required high schools students to complete a course on personal finance. State public educational systems are huge bureaucracies that take a long time and a lot of energy to change course. We can’t solely depend on public education to provide the personal finance training that our children need to prepare them for post-high school life. We parents need to fill this void. Continue reading “On the Front Line for Teen Literacy”

December 22, 2017February 1, 2018

6 Things College Students Need to Know About Credit Cards

By Carol H Cox

Credit cards are a fact of life for many young adults. They make paying for things more convenient, they can be used to build good credit (or bad), they can be used to make purchases in most places, and they can be welcome resources in an emergency.

In short, they can be very valuable, and a lot of college students have them. (Based on a recent FICO study, 67% of 18 to 24 year-olds have credit cards.) But in order for credit cards to be a positive rather than a negative factor in a young adult’s life, they need to be cared for carefully. You don’t want to take them for granted.

Just like a car, they have to be regularly maintained. If you had an auto and didn’t maintain it, failed to give it regular oil changes and tune-ups, eventually the vehicle would cease to run. After a while it wouldn’t be safe to drive, and one day it would leave you in the lurch somewhere.

Credit cards are the same way—if you neglect them, they can make your life miserable.

Continue reading “6 Things College Students Need to Know About Credit Cards”

March 31, 2017August 10, 2018

Student Loans: Think Carefully

By Carol H Cox

photo: www.cafecredit.com

It’s no secret that American private colleges and even many public universities are absurdly expensive these days. In the process of weighing acceptance options, high school seniors will be reviewing financial aid packages and may be considering signing up for student loans. It’s important for everyone involved, students and parents alike, to educate themselves about what a student loan really involves.

Continue reading “Student Loans: Think Carefully”

October 4, 2016January 31, 2018

Personal Finance Tips Before Heading to College

By Carol H Cox

At this time of year, the attention of many high school seniors’ becomes focused on transforming into college freshmen. It’s a thrilling time for young adults as they experience increasing independence, emotional untethering, and face new challenges. But before they “cut the cord” there are a few personal finance basics they should know.

Having a checking account with an ATM/debit card attached can make handling student finances easier.

Ideally, with the help of a parent, college-bound teens will have opened a checking account sometime during their junior or senior year of high school. Checking accounts are a convenient and easy way to store and access money. And most student checking accounts are free until the accountholder graduates from college. There will be many expenses in college that aren’t included with the payment of tuition, room and board, and fees, whether it be books, class supplies, toiletries, meals off campus, transportation costs, or other things. Using an ATM/debit card or writing checks can be an efficient way to handle these costs.

Continue reading “Personal Finance Tips Before Heading to College”

September 15, 2016January 22, 2018

Help Is a Text Away for Students Sorting Through College Financial Aid and Loans

The statistics are frightening. Americans hold $1.3 trillion in student loan debt. This represents years and years of hefty loan payments for millions of citizens. High School students and college students, need assistance understanding the financial aid and student loan process so that they can make the best financial decisions for themselves.
There’s a startup company that wants to be a sort of financial-aid-counselor-in-the-pocket for students. It’s called NextGenVest, founded by Kelly Peeler. According to a NerdWallet analysis, in 2014 as much as $2.7 billion of free federal financial aid went unclaimed by students, mainly because of either a failure to file or incorrect completion of the Federal Application for Student Aid (FAFSA). This is free money that students didn’t receive. And what is more, in 2014 graduating college seniors carried $28,950 in student loans with them when they left school (the Institute for College Access and Success report).

Continue reading “Help Is a Text Away for Students Sorting Through College Financial Aid and Loans”

July 25, 2016January 31, 2018

College Tours

By Carol H Cox

For many of us, summer is the best time to head out with our son or daughter to view some prospective college campuses. Trekking to a few schools can help to underscore in the mind of high school students the importance of the college application process, as well as give the flavor of different schools.

Recently, my daughter, husband, and I visited 4 colleges in Southern California. Afterwards we hashed over each of our personal likes, dislikes, and general impressions of each school. And I jotted down a few notes, to have a written record of our visit. (My memory is famously unreliable.)

If your student plans enough ahead, he or she can arrange to get an organized campus tour led by a student. (We managed to go on tours for half of the colleges we visited.) This is the preferred method to get introduced to a school. Instead of blindly ambling around on your own with a campus map, a student-led tour can give a lot of behind-the-scenes information and a youthful perspective on what college life is like at a particular campus. Some schools also offer tours of the dormitories, where you can go inside a dorm room and experience the limited dimensions firsthand.

Continue reading “College Tours”

June 22, 2016February 7, 2018

Checklist for Applying to College

By Carol H Cox

Not long ago, I attended my daughter’s high school College Information Night. It had been over 7 years since I’d been to one of these. At first, I was going to skip it, but then I reconsidered how things may have changed in the college admission process. I was glad I went. I learned a lot, and I thought I’d pass some information on to you all.

Below, I’ve shared some web links, resources, and thoughts regarding the college application process that might be helpful to Junior and Senior high school students and their families. The timing listed below is approximate. Depending on where you are applying to college, the dates may be quite different, and if students are applying early action or early decision to college the timing will be earlier. Hopefully, this list will get you thinking about what’s coming up on the horizon.

Continue reading “Checklist for Applying to College”