If you’ve graduated from high school, then you’ve spent more than 11,700 hours in the classroom learning about science, history, English, and math.
Pew Research showed that Generation Y is more educated than any other generation with more degrees and advanced degrees, but where do we stand when it comes to being educated about money?
Here are 8 reasons why financial education is important.
1. Money isn’t taught in school
TD Bank surveyed more than 2,000 people, ages 18-34, and found that 76% of young adults want financial advice, but 69% have never attended classes about money.
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2. It’s proven we’re financially illiterate
Only 24% of millennials can answer four or five answers correctly out of a five-question financial literacy quiz. Think you can do better? Take the quiz here.
3. Financial education isn’t taught at home
Parents are more comfortable having a talk with their kids about drugs versus money. A T. Rowe Price study showed that 7% of adults found it difficult to discuss drugs with their children compared to almost 20% having a hard time talking about money.
4. Money is taboo
Talking about money is more taboo than bringing up religion or politics at the dinner table or in social settings with friends. A Wells Fargo survey found that 44% of Americans find it difficult to discuss finances versus other hot topics.
5. Money is the number one stressor in life
What happens when you avoid a problem? Stress. According to the American Psychological Association, the number one thing Americans are stressed about is money. Among survey respondents, 72 percent reported being stressed about money at least some of the time.
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6. Debt is out of control
A big reason why financial education is important is to deal with debt. The Business Insider reported that the average 20-something owes $45,000 total in student loans, car loans, and credit cards.
7. High student loan delinquency rate
The U.S. Department of Education reported that people are late on more than $33 billion dollars of student loans.
8. Overspending and medical debt is common
In addition to student loan debt, The Investor Education Foundation found that 31% of millennials have unpaid medical bills and, as a whole, 23% of millennials spend more than they make each year.
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- How Kim Paid Off $45,404 in Debt in 28 Months
- Jessica and Daniel’s Story of Paying off $21,000 in a Year as a Single Income Household
- How Ashley Paid off Medical Debt and Saved $10,000
April is a month dedicated to financial literacy and education.
That’s progress, but there’s still room to grow. Afterall, if you graduated from high school you’ve devoted over a year of your life (nonstop day and night) to education. Money is something that you use every single day. Isn’t it time to learn about it?
What do you think? Do you think financial education is important?
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