Financial Literacy Is New Website's Goal
A new online TIAA educational program allows students of all ages and knowledge levels to explore financial areas and learn the basics.
Following up on its 2018 SEEK program with Queens College of the City University of New York, which provided financial aid as well as supplemental academic support, TIAA has launched a nifty online and on-campus financial education program called FinSights. The online program aims to help college students (or others who want to watch) skills to attain financial literacy.
“Far too many Americans, including college students, lack the financial knowledge they need to thrive,” said TIAA President and CEO Roger W. Ferguson Jr., in a statement. “This program helps ensure that college students have the tools and resources to help them manage their financial lives and improve their financial future.”
The online program delves into several aspects of finances, providing three- to five-minute videos (learning modules), combined with quizzes and pop-up explanations to educate all levels of people in financial matters. Two access points allow the user to answer personal questions on financial goals to design a customized play list, or they can proceed to the general list of modules.
A tailored playlist includes videos to bolster knowledge in those areas that the respondent indicated they weren’t confident. For example, it might list understanding credit reports or how to build retirement savings for those new to the workforce.
Other playlists focus on topics, such as life goals, which then directs the user to eight videos that cover anything from auto loans to insurance to financing higher education. That last area covers loan documents and explains fine-print areas (such as the meaning of principal and grace periods). It also gets into details on student loans, differences between subsidized and non-subsidized government loans and the Free Application for Federal Student Aid and how to apply for it.
According to TIAA, the free website program, developed with technology firm EVERFI Inc., utilizes research findings from a study of 13,000 graduate students over a three-year collaboration between TIAA, the Council of Graduate Schools and more than 30 universities.
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