Financial Literacy: What Are Business Schools Teaching?

Abstract

The financial illiteracy of Americans has attracted the attention and funds of more than 10 federal agencies and countless other state agencies and non-profit organizations. The manifestations of poor financial skills and planning are divorce, depression, and many elderly Americans living in poverty. Hundreds of business and non-business college students have been surveyed. Both groups were found to be financially illiterate. We examined the curricula of 100 AACSB institutions and concluded that business schools are either not offering fundamental courses in personal financial planning or that the courses are not generally available to business students (for credit) or non-business students. It is ironic that college students are graduating with the required 60 credits in the liberal arts, but are not required to pass a course in personal finance. We feel strongly that it is time for business faculty, specifically finance faculty, to argue that being financially literate is as important as being literate in English and the sciences.

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