Trends and Issues

Teach your students the essentials of financial responsibility with TG's Money Management 101 training

Even before college, students can be tempted with credit card offers that boast low introductory interest rates and minimum payments. While in college, many students use credit cards to maintain the lifestyle their parents provided for them, or to support buying habits that pay little heed to the financial risks of credit card use. By the time they graduate, credit card debt is already a way of life for many college graduates — at least according to some surveys, which suggest as many as 75 percent of students add an extra $2,000 to their loan debt by the time they collect their diploma.

The solution for avoiding debt is simple enough: Students should learn to practice fiscal responsibility early-on. Understanding the principles of good money management is an effective starting point.

As a financial aid professional, you can help students set and follow a pattern of responsible budgeting by providing training that teaches financial responsibility — like TG's Money Management 101 session from its POSITIVE+BALANCE™ training series on financial literacy and life skills.

Customer perspectives on TG's training
TG's Money Management 101 equips students with valuable financial literacy information and essential money management skills. The session forms one workshop in TG's well-designed Positive+Balance™ training, which teaches students how to succeed in life after college. Often, important concepts like fiscal responsibility are not taught in college and many students learn about debt the hard way — while trying to earn a living.

Life University in Marietta, Georgia first offered Money Management 101 to its students in 2006. According to director of financial aid Michelle Nixon, providing training for students so they can learn to make informed financial decisions is a priority for the university.

"Students can get lost in their academic endeavors and forget how the financial decisions they make now may come back to haunt them after they graduate," says Nixon. "Educating them about financial literacy through training programs like Money Management 101 provides students with valuable information about avoiding debt and making informed decisions now that will benefit them for a lifetime."

Money Management 101 has a few simple but important objectives: Teach students how to establish and maintain a spending plan, minimize debt, keep good financial records, invest in the future, and avoid credit card debt. The sessions are presented by trained professionals with years of financial literacy experience.

Texas State Technical College (TSTC) in Harlingen, Texas began offering Money Management 101 in April 2007, and now all first-time student borrowers are required to take the course.

"The most important thing students take away from the course is that they need to develop a spending plan to avoid going into debt and to maintain good credit," says Jesus Vasquez, the assistant director of financial aid at TSTC. "The class gives our students a heads-up so they know what to expect in terms of financial survival in the real world."

As the cost of a college education increases and debt rises, there is a substantial need for student financial literacy training.

"Financial literacy is extremely important and students are not learning it at their schools or at home," says Vasquez. "I strongly recommend all schools implement a program like Money Management 101, because students who have sound financial literacy skills will have a brighter financial future."

To learn about
To find out more about POSITIVE+BALANCE and the Money Management 101 training session, contact your account executive at (800) 252-9743. You can also learn more from Rett Anderton or Joe Braxton, TG's default aversion consultants. Rett Anderton may be reached at (800) 252-9743, ext. 4765, or by sending an e-mail message to rett.anderton@tgslc.org. Joe Braxton may be reached at (800) 252-9743, ext. 4696, or by sending an e-mail message to joe.braxton@tgslc.org.

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Question of the week

Q.: Must an individual (paper) check from the lender be made copayable to both the borrower and the school?

A.: Per the federal regulations in 34 CFR 682.207(b)(1)(ii)(A), a Stafford loan disbursed by an individual check must be made payable to the borrower or made copayable to the borrower and the school. Per the regulations in 34 CFR 682.207(b)(1)(v)(B)(2), a PLUS loan disbursed by an individual check must be made copayable to the borrower and the school.

Do you have a question?
If you have a question that needs an answer, feel free to Ask TG™. Ask TG is TG's online query tool for borrowers, schools, and lenders. It includes a database of frequently asked questions about financial aid, student loan processing, and TG's products and services. To submit a question to Ask TG, visit tgslc.custhelp.com.