Classes They Should’ve Made Me Take in College | brokeGIRLrich
I took some pretty ridiculous elective courses in college to make sure I was “well-rounded”: Quantitative Models & Methods (I honestly still have no idea what that class was about but for some reason, she gave me an A), Sex Discrimination & Law, Modern China, Human Sexuality (that did not turn out to be the easy A I thought it was going to be). Wouldn’t it be nice if those filler classes actually had something of use for the rest of life?
Bank Accounts 101
The first time I opened a bank account was in college and I made a very careful, informed decision. Psych! I opened it with the table at freshman orientation that gave out the coolest t-shirts. I think a free Frisbee was involved as well. And I overdrafted the heck out of that sucker several times during college and always got dinged with a $35 fee each time.
I had no idea I could shop around and no comprehension of fees, minimum account balances or other important things you should know in picking a bank.
An Idiot’s Guide to Networking
Rather than just handing me a piece of pretty paper and kicking me out the door of the institution, it would’ve been great to have spent 16 weeks somewhere along the line working on what you do once you’re out the door! I had no idea how to make connections. Even though the Internet was in full swing back in 2005, I had no idea that I should be Asking Jeeves about where the stage managers were meeting up in San Francisco or what I should say or do if I ever did figure out where to find them.
Networking is actually an art and a lot of the skills can be taught. This art doesn’t come naturally to most though (me included).
Here is How Your Check Book Works
Speaking of those overdraft fees, god bless Mint, amiright? Back at the turn of the millennia, if you didn’t want to get dinged with overdraft fees, you actually had to track every purchase you made. Folks, here’s where all that math your junior high math teacher told you you’d use actually came into play! …and junior high is pushing it, since it’s just addition and subtraction, but really, it was the most buyamoxil-amoxicillin.com important addition and subtraction most of us should’ve been doing.
The Wonderful World of Budgeting
When that checkbook is finally balanced, only to find out the numbers in it are scary, hopefully the next semester I would’ve taken The Wonderful World of Budgeting, to figure out how to fix it.
Start early while you’re mostly living off mom and dad’s money or the delightfully low wages of a student worker. Break the cycle of living above your means before you even know what your means are – heck, come learn what means are.
The Art of Negotiation
Considering women still make 78 cents for every dollar that a man makes, clearly a class in negotiation would’ve done us as much good as a class in women’s studies, if not more. While some women advocate banning salary negotiation altogether as a technique to even the playing field, that seems to be some years off from becoming common practice, assuming it ever even does.
Rather than cheesy self-esteem building role playing exercises, we could’ve spent a few weeks role playing salary negotiations and learning about other benefits you can request when working for an honestly cash strapped company like additional vacation time, flexible working hours, or the ability to work from home.
…I suppose men would’ve benefited from this class too.
IRAs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s and More
This would’ve been far more useful than Statistics or Calculus and probably equally confusing to 19 year old me. A course in the investment vehicles for retirement would’ve demystified the process a lot earlier and made sure we were all aware of compound interest when it’s at it’s most powerful.
How to Not Get Gouged Looking for an Apartment
Seriously though, even silly things like – feel confident opening and closing closet doors and thoroughly poking around would’ve been good to know. Flush the toilet. Run the sinks. Ask about the super – does he speak English (maybe this is only a problem in New York City)? What is the return policy for your safety deposit? Will they hold it for 30 days (or more)? How to read a lease.
Frugal Living 101, 201, 301 & 401
Pretty self-explanatory. And yes, I really think you should be required to take it for each year of college.
I have long thought that the intros to these classes should be taught in high school. While some may go to college, almost everybody will need a bank account, a credit card, an apartment, several kinds of insurance, maybe eventually need a car or home loan. Some people might go into engineering and need “higher math,” but almost everybody will shop for groceries and need a household budget.
I completely agree!
Yes, yes, yes! I’d take them ALL! Especially networking at this point in my life. I wish….
Heather @ Simply Save recently posted…What’s A Purchase You Regret?
For those graduating in STEM/Finance/Economics “How to not get trapped by golden handcuffs”, “You’re not smart enough to dick around with debt like that”, and “Everyone has different tastes and preferences”
I think I would have benefited a lot from these classes though Environmental ethics and Nihilist Morality got me pretty close on the theoretical front.
For those graduating in STEM/Finance/Economics “How to not get trapped by golden handcuffs” — Gosh, yes, this! Giving a bunch of fresh-out-of-collegers access to 100k+ salaries is just asking for regrettable and money-wasting decisions.
Taylor Lee @ Engineer Cents recently posted…A Detailed Rundown of My Renovation Costs
LOL. Also – “You’re not smart enough to dick around with debt like that.” Yes.
I completely agree with this list!!! In my Finance course in college my professor took one day to teach “how to be a millionaire” and all the course was contribute to your 401k and watch the 10-15% market returns make you rich. Of course this class was in 1999 right before the dot com bubble burst and we haven’t seen 10-15% returns consistently since. He also neglected to mention the lifestyle choices that also could have made us millionaires. I wish I took the upper level Frugality course in college!
Shannon @ Financially Blonde recently posted…Music Mondays – Everybody Hurts
I agree with this list..100%! I probably would have made better decisions when I was in college if I had these classes. Another class I would have taken and this has nothing to do with finance but I would have taken tactfulness.
Sylvia @Professional Girl on the Go recently posted…Why I am Putting the Apartment Hunting on Hold
Yeah, some people could definitely benefit in a course on tactfulness!
I also wish I had learned some practical things like how to mend clothes, change a tire, fix a leaky faucet, etc.
Stefanie @ The Broke and Beautiful Life recently posted…4 Things to Know About Making Money
Oh, that’s true! Although maybe those things could be part of Frugal Living 101-401.
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Great list! I’ve always thought that college, or better yet high school, should contain more practical life skills courses. How about basic nutrition and cooking? Perhaps an entire course just on making sure you read the entire contract (whatever kind of contract) before you sign it. And definitely how to use credit wisely.
Gary @ Super Saving Tips recently posted…Even More Sunshine
Didn’t they used to have nutrition as part of health class and cooking as part of home ec?
Back when I was in high school (which was a long time ago), they did cover a little bit of nutrition and cooking, but nowhere near enough. And the cooking was taught primarily to the girls….something which I’m sure has changed by now. But I still see lots of people (both men and women) claiming they don’t really know how to cook and using that as an excuse to eat out or eat prepared foods all the time. Of course not being able to cook can have a huge impact on your budget.
Gary @ Super Saving Tips recently posted…Even More Sunshine
Budget meals 101 would have been great. Though we don’t do “generals’ in the UK as we declare our major before we start college so this would have to be an extra-curricular.
Rebecca recently posted…How to support a friend with debt
I’ve always thought it was funny they didn’t supply the student with hands on knowledge. Such an awakening sometimes when they graduate.
Vickie@Vickie’s Kitchen and Garden recently posted…Free Kindle Books for Today 9/12/15 Plus Some Great Kindle Books for .99 cents!
I completely agree with the list in this article. I really wished I was thought how to budget, network and negotiate at school. It would have made a big difference when I first got to the outside world. Honestly, schools teach practical skills in today’s world.
Esther@Moneynuggets recently posted…Debt Management Series: Introduction
Absolutely – these classes would have been tremendously useful! The only practical class I had that proved useful was one where I learned how to write a cheque in high school! How I wish I’d learned about budgeting and the importance of managing money properly.
Hayley @ Disease Called Debt recently posted…Financially Savvy Saturdays #107
Ahhh I could’ve used all of these, but especially networking and negotiating. Blogging has helped with my negotiating skills a good bit, but before that I was not very confident with it.
Femme Frugality recently posted…Financially Savvy Saturdays #107
I wish they’d bring back home ec and shop and make both boys and girls take both–call it “life skills”. How to change a light bulb, how to wire a lamp or other simple circuit, how to unclog a sink, how to budget, cook, clean, do laundry…
RAnn recently posted…Life Insurance
I agree. I definitely had to take two marking periods of home ec and I took one marking period of shop and they were useful.