Written by Payton McPhee

Thumbnail Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Not all learning takes place within the four walls of a classroom and, unfortunately, sometimes what is left out can be difficult to educate yourself on later in life when they are the most crucial. In school, students learn about the sciences, humanities, and mathematics, however, it is beyond these core subjects where our education seems to be lacking. These gaps in our education can be illustrated by the popularity of the For Dummies books. With over 330 books in the series, they offer helpful explanations about various topics that people are seeking guidance with, such as taxes, repairs, cooking, and investing. This article aims to showcase important skills that are too often overlooked in post-secondary education but are necessary to educate yourself on before venturing into the real world post-graduation.

Budgeting

Being able to set a budget and stick to it is a skill many people struggle with. In fact, according to an article from Time Magazine, of the 82% of Americans who claim to keep a budget, 33% budget on paper and 20% keep a mental budget, which are two tactics that have shown to be relatively ineffective and unsustainable.

As students, we have plenty of necessary and costly expenses such as rent, groceries, and tuition, but there are also lots of additional expenses we need to manage such as shopping, going to restaurants, and emergency expenses. The problem many students have is that they struggle to maintain a balance between their necessary and additional expenses, leaving them stuck in a tough position where they may have great difficulty affording things they need as a result of making too many unnecessary purchases.

Learning how to budget properly is critical, and it is best to start sooner rather than later, and that can be just as easy as opening an app on your phone! There are an abundance of helpful budgeting apps that students can purchase (for free) to help manage their monthly expenses. Apps such as Mint, PocketGuard, Wally, and You Need A Budget all have their own unique perks, but each is great for helping to manage your money and create a budget that you can stick with.

Saving

Keeping and sticking to a budget often helps teach people how to save money, as well. Because of the difficulties people face with maintaining their budget, it is not surprising that many people also struggle to increase the amount in their savings account.

As a student, it is often hard to grasp the importance of saving money because there is so much to buy to receive instant gratification. For example, buying a new outfit or going to a fancy restaurant could change your entire mood, and it is much more satisfying and exciting than putting that $100 into a savings account. However, after graduation, when you no longer receive student loans and are forced to enter the real world, having little to no savings will be a challenging experience. What if you are unable to find a job right away, or you need to make a sudden repair on your vehicle? In general, everyone should have at least 3 months of expenses saved up in case they lose their job unexpectedly or a crisis occurs. Additionally, everyone should also have savings that are specifically for a goal such as a vacation, a condo, or a new car. Saving money doesn’t always have to be about preparing for the worst, it can also be for planning exciting future events!

The difficulties associated with saving money are illustrated by a recent survey from Forbes Magazine, where they uncovered that 63% of Americans do not have enough savings to cover a $500 emergency expense! It is never too late to begin saving for the future — the time to start is now. Similar to learning how to budget, students can consult various apps to help them save money such as Acorns. This app helps people save without really thinking about it or putting a burden on their shoulders. If you buy a coffee for $2.55, Acorn will round this up to $3.00 and place the extra $0.45 into a savings account. This is true hassle-free saving! Furthermore, students can open various types of savings accounts with their financial institution to help keep their savings in secure and separate accounts. This can keep students from “dipping into” their savings for unnecessary purchases.

Understanding and Increasing Your Credit

The idea of credit seems to be something that so many people are afraid of. Whether it be credit cards, credit scores, or credit checks, the term “credit” seems to push people into a frenzy. However, credit does not have to be that intimidating because credit can act as a great tool when it is properly managed. In short, credit scores are based on how you use your credit card and if you pay it off in a timely manner. Your credit score is evaluated when the bank is deciding if you are trustworthy and reliable enough to be loaned money with the expectation of returning it promptly. Because of this, credit scores are used when purchasing a car, a home, or taking out a loan.

If you use your credit card often and pay it off right away, your credit will increase (which is a good thing). Because of this, it is encouraged that people use their credit card as their primary means of payment. Whether it’s buying a coffee at Tims, paying for drinks at a bar, or going on a shopping spree, people should try to use their credit card rather than cash or their debit card.

However, if you are someone who doesn’t have the funds to properly pay off your credit card quickly, using your credit card will only decrease your credit. It is important to understand these risks and rewards so you are able to properly manage them.

Planning for the Future

As a student, our future selves seem like someone we will never meet. Life seems like a long journey and we often think our young adult years will last forever. However, we all know deep down that this is not true. Over time, we will age, become adults, create families, and grow old (amongst other things), and we need to accept this in order to plan for our future and take the necessary steps to make our future a little easier.

Primarily, planning for the future involves saving money and investing into retirement funds and education funds for any future children. Many jobs offer retirement savings plans or pension plans that can help individuals save for their future. To use these savings plans, a percentage of each paycheck is taken off and saved for you, which makes saving easy and stress-free. If it is offered, everyone should take advantage of these retirement savings plans, and it is best to start earlier rather than later. In fact, most raises and promotions will be given to you within your twenties and thirties, which means that you will be able to accumulate more wealth for your savings during this time rather than if you wait until later in life to start planning for retirement.

There are many skills that aren’t taught in the classroom that are important to learn in order to help make your life easier. Evidently, this article cannot provide students with a complete list of these important skills. However, it is able to provide students with a starting point. Other important things to learn can also include how to be confident in an interview, how to negotiate, how to balance work and home life, how to make time for yourself and take part in self-care, as well as learning how to be comfortable with being alone. Our school system equips us with fantastic knowledge and skills, but there is still more that needs to be done.

This is not legal financial advice. Always consider consulting with a licensed financial advisor or fiduciary about your specific financial situation.

Self-Educate Before You Graduate: Important Skills That School Doesn’t Teach Us

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