Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Awesome Class at Wellesley Teaches Students How to Get a Financial Life

via NPR;
Apparently, the class fills up every year within minutes. The professors, two women from the Economics department, say that it's one of the hardest courses they teach because all the information has to be updated every year as laws and regulations change.

The course page pulls together a bunch of great web resources on personal finance, budgeting, housing, investments, etc.

In my new book, DIY U, I suggest personal finance is one of the gaps in most people's college experience that might be filled with open course ware, if you're not lucky enough to go to a college like Wellesley--or if you can't get into the class.

5 comments:

Russell Dunkin said...

Take a look at this page about a similar "real world" class at Bethany College: http://www.bethanywv.edu/about-bethany/news/2008-09-news-archive/bethany-adds-innovative-real-world-coursed

Scott, K5TA said...

Compared to other concepts routinely presented in 200-level college courses, the "personal finance" information presented in this class (as reported on NPR) is remarkably simplistic. It seems more appropriate for high school.

Anya said...

Simplistic--perhaps. but the fact remains that most college graduates do not understand this material.

High school would, indeed, be a great place to teach it, since it would reach way more people that way.

Judith Levine said...

Hi Anya,

My column about upaid (and underpaid) internships quotes you. Here it is:

http://www.7dvt.com/2009intern-nation

you can find more at judithlevine.com/blog

mz cap said...

I could have used this course in college. I've been in the "real world" for years but I have yet to learn how to read an investment policy statement.