With the low rates of financial literacy in undergraduate students, Ithaca College is offering personal finance workshops in order to help students understand interest rates, taxes, budgeting and loans, among other things.
Steven Novakovic, instructor in the Department of Finance and International Business, began the Personal Finance Clinic for Students to give experience to students in the Wealth Management concentration in the School of Business and to promote financial literacy. The clinic is from 5–9 p.m. Monday–Thursday, 5–7 p.m. on Fridays and weekends from 2–4 p.m. in Job 160. The clinic aims to help students with budgeting, handling student loans and planning their financial future.
Novakovic said the benefit of having students run the clinic is that they can provide personal experiences to other students dealing with similar issues.
“This is a place you can go and you can feel like you’re going to be able to talk to somebody who’s been in your shoes before because it’s [run] by students,” Novakovic said.
Novakovic said the ongoing recession and rapid inflation — both of which have resulted in job loss, high quit rates and a decline in the value of the U.S. dollar — has increased the need for financial literacy, as understanding financial problems is the key to solving them.
“One thing that is helpful is just tracking how you’re spending your money,” Novakovic said. “To just be aware of how you’re…
