The Status of Post-Secondary

Personal Finance Courses

Paramount importance of financial literacy in the U.S.
Gregory P. Valentine
University of Southern Indiana
Department of Economics and Finance Sparse academic literature
8600 University Boulevard
Evansville, IN 47712
Council on Economic Education and Jump$tart
Katherine M. Sauer Coalition Surveys
Metropolitan State College of Denver
Department of Economics
Campus Box 77 PO Box 173362 Personal finance education standards at the high
Denver, CO 80217
school level (44 states)
Daria P. Sevastianova
University of Southern Indiana
Department of Economics and Finance
Need for assessment of the current state of post-
8600 University Boulevard secondary personal finance education
Evansville, IN 47712

To assess the status of post-secondary personal

Web-based survey administered through the finance education based on:
Center for Applied Research at USI
Type of course
Invitation to participate e-mailed to NABTE
Institutional location
representatives and Directors for Centers for
Course audience
Economic Education throughout the country
Enrollment
Course content
Objective and open-ended questions about
personal finance courses at each institution Instructor demographics
Administrative aspects

SAMPLE DATA BASE RESPONDENTS

n %
NUMBER OR RESPONSES RECEIVED 68 28.5
n %

NABTE SCHOOLS 72 30 NUMBER OF RESPONDENTS THAT INDICATE

THAT THEIR INSTITUTION DOES NOT OFFER A 4
PERSONAL FINANCE COURSE
CENTER DIRECTORS AFFLIATED WITH
NUMBER OF RESPONDENTS THAT DID NOT
THE COUNCIL FOR ECONOMIC 166 70
COMPLETE THE SURVEY 8
EDUCATION

NET RESPONSE RATE 25.2

56 RESPONDENTS -- 25 STATES

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 Table 1: Institutional Information Table 2: Location of Credit Allocation
Type of Course Offered n % YES % NO %
Credit Course 46 82 Institutional Level
Non-Credit Course 2 4 counts toward core curriculum or general education 8 17 38 83
Workshop 16 29
None 4 7 School or College Level
counts toward a school/college core requirement 8 17 38 83

Location of Course n %
College/School of Business 35 Program Level
76
counts toward major, minor, or area of emphasis 49 88 7 12
College/School of Education 7 15
requirement for a major 20 65 29 35
College/School of Liberal Arts 2 4
requirement for a minor or area of emphasis 6 19 43 81
Continuing Education 2 4
elective for a major 14 45 35 55
Other Area 6 13
elective for a minor or area of emphasis 9 29 40 71

Table 3: Course Audience Table 4: Administrative Aspects of Credit Bearing Courses

Credit Bearing Non-Credit YES % NO %

Course Bearing Course Workshop Pre-Requisite Information
n % n % n % course has a pre-requisite 1 2 43 98
course is a pre-requisite for another course 5 11 40 89
Freshman Only 3 7 0 0 1 7.1
Sophomore Only 7 16 0 0 0 0 Course Setting
Junior Only 7 16 0 0 0 0 traditional classroom setting 40 95 2 5

Senior Only 7 16 0 0 0 0
Assessment
Open to All Students 32 73 0 0 5 36 pre-test given 4 9 40 91
University/College 0 0 1 50 5 36 post-test given 21 47 24 53
Community
Duration
All Interested Parties 0 0 1 50 5 36 whole semester 43 96 0 0
partial semester 2 4 2 100

Table 5: Enrollment Per Semester Table 6: Course Content

Credit Bearing Non-Credit Credit Bearing Non-Credit

Course Bearing Course Workshop Topics Course Bearing Course Workshop
n % n % n % percentage of time spent on each topic
Number of Sections Offered Budgeting, Cash Flows 12 15 12
1 19 43 1 50 2 15 Taxes (Federal/State/Local) 9 10 9
2 13 30 0 0 3 23 Consumer Credit and Debt Management 14 10 15
3 6 14 0 0 3 23 Major Purchases (Home/Auto/etc) 10 10 11
4 6 14 1 50 1 8 Risk Management (Life/Health/Home/Auto) 10 10 11
5 or more 0 0 0 0 4 32 Investment Fundamentals (Stocks/Bonds/MF) 12 15 15
Financial Decision Making (goals/time value 11 10 12
Number of Students Per Section money)
0-10 6 13 0 0 11 85
Financial Responsibility 9 10 10
11-20 9 20 0 0 1 8
Consumer Rights and Responsibilities 8 10 8
21-30 17 38 1 100 1 8
Other Topics 5 0 0
31-40 4 9 0 0 0 0
41-50 5 11 0 0 0 0
TOTAL 100 100 100
Over 50 4 9 0 0 0 0

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 Table 7: Faculty Demographics
n %
Rank
Adjunct faculty 11 22 Majority of personal finance courses bear credit and
Lecturer/Instructor 9 18 are offered within a College/School of Business.
Assistant Professor 4 8
Associate Professor 12 24 Just over half of the respondents indicate that the
Full Professor 15 29 course counts towards a major, minor, or an area of
emphasis.
Years Teaching Personal Finance
15 23 44
6 10 5 10 The three areas receiving the most course coverage
11 15 3 6 are consumer credit/debt management, budgeting,
16 20 3 6 and investment.
Over 20 2 4
About one third of the courses are taught by full
Gender professors and one fifth are taught by adjunct faculty.
Female 29 56
Male 23 44