Investing In Your Future

College is a big investment, but getting the most bang for your college buck doesn't have to be a guessing game. Join and learn about the financial and academic steps you can take to maximize the value of your college experience. From examining the net cost of college, financial aid types, strategies for applying for financial aid and covering financial aid gaps, to reviewing the role of academics in maintaining financial aid and determining the ROI of education programs and degrees, the College and Money course will provide you with good information about maximizing the value you get from your college investment, while minimizing costs.

After completing the College and Money Course, you will be able to:

• Explain the importance and process of applying for financial aid.
• Compare costs of different higher education institution types.
• Calculate the cost of college and identify net prices versus sticker prices.
• Compare and evaluate financial aid offer letters.
• Identify common financial aid types and terms.

Safeguarding Your Money Story

Every financial decision you make culminates in a credit history and score that forms your personal "money story." That's why understanding the credit basics is critical. By knowing the basics on how to access your credit report, how to read it, and how to report discrepancies, you will always be your own best financial advocate.

In Credit and Protecting Your Money, we examine components of a credit score in detail, as well as outline strategies to help you build or repair credit. Just as critical, the course will help you to understand the different forms of identity theft and consumer fraud, as well as ways to safeguard your identity and what actions to take if ID theft or fraud occurs.

After completing the Credit and Protecting Your Money course, you will be able to:

• Recognize how financial behaviors will influence your credit score.
• Understand the importance of a good credit history.
• Identify components of a credit report and common credit report errors.
• Learn the steps for resolving credit report errors.
• Identify and avoid common consumer fraud and identity theft schemes.

Managing Debt and Repaying Your Loans

When it comes to debt, you need to have a keen understanding of the fine print – and we're not just talking about student loan debt. This course will liberate yourself from ALL debt, giving you the information you need to pay it down, pay it off, and avoid it in the future. After mastering our Debt and Repayment course, you will be able to calculate interest costs over time on an outstanding debt, allowing you to determine what debt really costs in the long run. We'll also introduce a few different repayment strategies that allow you to customize an action plan to tame the debt monster. With a grasp on these concepts, you'll be able to make informed choices about the best way to maximize your repayment dollars and remain debt free in the future.

After completing the Debt and Repayment course, you will be able to:

• Eliminate debt and avoid unnecessary borrowing in the future.
• Recognize the relationship between interest, principal and debt balance.
• Understand the benefits of paying more than the minimum balance on debts.
• Calculate interest costs over time on an outstanding debt.
• Learn to communicate effectively with your debt servicer on repayment issues.
• Compare different debt repayment strategies, including debt consolidation.

Mastering your Career and Earning Money

When navigating the workforce, it’s important to pin down all aspects of career development at both a day-to-day and strategic level. Whether you’re trying to land your first job or ready to take the next step on the corporate ladder, this course gives you the tips and tools you need to feel confident as you navigate the world of work.

Within the Earning Money course, our savvy instructors will help you prepare for the job hunt, create a career plan, identify smart opportunities for advancement, and learn how to negotiate a salary and benefits package like a pro. And, of course, we’ll review how that whole pay and deductions system works.

After completing the Earning Money course, you will be able to:

• Compose a strong resume and deftly prepare for an interview.
• Identify specific components of a benefits package.
• Demonstrate appropriate workplace culture and behavior.
• Understand components of a paycheck, including net pay, benefits, taxes, etc.
• Recognize the role taxes play in local, state and federal government.

Filing the FAFSA

Completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is an imperative step in getting financial aid for college. And it's not just aid from the federal government! Getting state aid, and sometimes school aid, is also often dependent upon completing the FAFSA.

The Financial Avenue's FAFSA course, covers everything you need to know about the FAFSA process. From the purpose it serves, to filling it out and what to expect after submission, you will learn about the important role the FAFSA plays in qualifying for financial aid. Plus, the course shares information on how to accept your financial aid package, as well as how and when to renew the FAFSA for future aid eligibility. Simply stated, this course is jam-packed with the FAFSA know-how you need.

After completing the FAFSA course, you will be able to:

• Recognize the relationship between completing the FAFSA and securing financial aid.
• Understand the time line and steps necessary to complete the FAFSA.
• Identify the components of the FAFSA application.
• Examine the relationship between FAFSA, EFC and SAR.
• Understand how to accept financial aid awards.

The Foundations of Money

Take a minute or two and examine the strength of your financial foundation by answering these questions: Why should you care about managing money? How can you make the best use of your money? And what are the options you have for how you choose to spend, save, and manage it?

The course will help you reflect on your answers in the Foundations of Money course and then take action by establishing short- and long-term financial goals. Plus, you’ll create a spending plan to help you achieve those goals and identify which financial institutions and products will support your financial journey.

After completing the Foundations of Money course, you will be able to:

• Recognize the importance of understanding, managing and saving money in reaching financial goals.
• Compare features and costs of different banks and banking products.
• Identify the components of and create a spending plan.
• Compare the costs and benefits of different payment types.
• Identify short-term and long-term financial goal(s).

Planning for Your Financial Future

Most of our daily financial decisions are relatively small: what to have for lunch, or where to get gas. But those big money decisions like purchasing a car or home don't come around very often, adding an extra degree of stress and difficulty to the decision making process.

In Future of Your Money, we help alleviate financial uncertainty by letting you make choices for other peoples' money. Take on the role of Ms. A and Mr. B as they navigate where to live, weigh leasing versus buying a car, choose insurance plans, and start investing for the future. During this course you will learn about the role of slow and steady savings in reaching financial goals, the importance of planning for unplanned emergencies, types of insurance, investing basics, and considerations for making big-ticket purchases. Consider this a test run to help you craft
smart strategies for your future.

After completing the Future of Your Money course, you will be able to:

• Recognize the importance of saving money for emergencies.
• Identify types of insurances, policy specifics and how to apply.
• Define the relationship between investing, compounding interest and building wealth.
• Identify common investment terms and vehicles (brokerage, 401K, 529s, etc.).
• Compare the pros and cons of renting or leasing versus owning a home or car.

Owning Your Loans

Current borrowing affects future financial incomes, but for some, student loans are likely not optional. You’re relying on them to fulfill your educational dreams and aspirations. Unfortunately, for some, student loans can quickly turn into a scary tangle of debt, stress, and confusion. But, it doesn’t need to be that way.

In the Loan Guidance course, the instructor helps you become an informed borrower by explaining the importance of actively managing student loans while in school to prevent over-borrowing and avoid repayment sticker shock once you’re out of school. You may even learn a new strategy or two that will alter your borrowing habits to promote manageable repayment. The end result: money and repayment time saved, fewer (or no) headaches, and minimal hassles!

After completing the Loan Guidance course, you will be able to:

• Create a personal plan to repay federal student loan(s).
• Identify the terms of a federal loan.
• Calculate the cost of borrowing a federal loan.
• Identify your rights and responsibilities as a borrower.
• Outline the anticipated payment time line, schedule and requirements.

Understanding Why You Handle Money the Way You Do

We've all made poor spending choices, even when we sometimes know better; it's what makes us human. How do external and internal factors impact your financial choices? How do your life experiences and the way your brain is hardwired affect your money decisions? These are important questions to consider when reflecting on your own personal relationship with money.

The instructor will help you answer these questions, while exploring your financial philosophy type to examine how emotions and past experiences impact your spending and saving. From empowering tips and strategies to retrain your brain for better financial decision-making, to helping you identify and define your relationship with money, this course serves as the foundation upon which healthy financial habits can be built.

After completing the Loan Guidance course, you will be able to:

• Recognize the influence of one's financial preferences in financial decision-making.
• Examine personal habits, strengths, weaknesses and values when it comes to money.
• Identify common financial situations where decision-making may be influenced by external forces.
• Create a plan to create good money habits based on your personality type and common external forces.

Building Smart Money Habits

When it comes to borrowing and spending, learning how to make smart choices is just as important as learning how to budget. It's critical to be able to identify the everyday messages that encourage us to spend, and understand how those everyday choices can add up to big expenses.

Within our course Spending and Borrowing, the course helps you strategize the best ways to put your money to work in a way that supports your financial goals. We will also cover smart ways to resist the temptation of impulse purchases. Finally, a review of contracts and "the fine print" will also help you understand common terms that impact the overall cost of borrowing.

After completing the Loan Guidance course, you will be able to:

• Understand how saving on daily purchases helps to achieve long-term financial goals.
• Assess potential financial decisions based on trade-offs, value, options and budget.
• Identify common spending pressures, resolve "needs" versus "wants."
• Grasp common borrowing terms such as APR, Annual Fee, Finance Charge, etc.
• Calculate costs of borrowing with interest versus paying in cash.