esm7i Kentucky Sophomore Wins First Money Fit Scholarship
Monday, August 1, 2022 Money Fit by DRS is a nonprofit credit counseling organization that announced today its first scholarship winner. Abigail Isaacs is the winner of the $1,000 scholarship. She is a college sophomore at Transylvania University, Lexington, Kentucky.
The Money Fit Scholarship was awarded to more than 250 high school and college students from 40 states and DC, as well as an overseas military base. They completed a survey about their opinions and experiences regarding personal finance and answered questions about debt and credit.
Money Fit Education Manager Todd Christensen says, “As an organization that assists individuals and families in managing their finances and getting out of debt, we felt a scholarships program was a perfect fit for our mission.”
Money Fit, or Debt Reduction Services, Inc., operates a nonprofit national credit counseling agency headquartered in Boise, Idaho. It has a call center in Long Island, New York, serving consumers from all 50 US states and the District of Columbia. It was founded in 1996 and now serves thousands of clients and consumers yearly.
Isaacs, who received the award, said that it would be a great help to her education.
Christensen says that the answers to the questions will help develop educational programs that better address students’ real concerns and problems. The data confirms what we already know, but it also gives us some surprising insights into students’ fears regarding money management and their financial concerns.
Scholarship Survey Highlights
Well, they were done, Moms and dads! Money Fit’s early 2010 surveys of high-school students revealed that almost 80% had never discussed money with their parents. 55% of the respondents to the scholarship survey said they have financial conversations with their parents at least once a month. A further 25% of respondents have spoken to their parents about money more or less every year. Only 6% of respondents could not remember having had such a conversation with their parents.
Savings Believers More than one-third of college students or students in progress believe their financial strength is based on their ability to save money (35%). One in five students (21%) considers earning money their greatest financial strength. Another 13% think that their greatest strength in terms of finances is to avoid debt. Just 0.4% of respondents believe their greatest financial strength is budgeting.
Uh Oh, Debt is the number one fear of college students when it comes to money. Unsurprisingly, 54% of college students are more concerned about debt than other financial issues. The second and third places are occupied by learning how to invest and eventually owning a house.
Misunderstanding of Student Loans For the vast majority, student loans have a default repayment period of ten years. Not even half of the respondents correctly identified this loan period. Four out of ten respondents (41%) think they have between 15 and 25 years to pay back any student loans they borrow. These expectations can lead to financial frustrations after graduation.
Students Underestimate Their College Experience It is surprising that these students, who are in college or plan to attend, vastly underestimate the value of their future degrees. Over the years, many studies have shown that a four-year degree can double a student’s lifetime average earnings. Only 20% of respondents correctly identified the benefit that their degree would bring. Over half of respondents (56%) believed their degree would only increase their lifetime earnings by 50%.
Student loan use. Students understand student loans to a large extent. 90% of students cited housing as proper use, while 89% cited textbooks. Another 80% of respondents knew that a meal plan on campus is an acceptable use for student loans. Only 25% knew they could use their student loans to pay for school-related expenses, such as gas, to and from the campus. Only 14% knew a student loan could be used to buy a computer for schoolwork.
Simply asking money-related questions can lead to further discussion with a guardian or parent during application. 45% of participants reported discussing money-related questions with their parents or guardians while completing the scholarship application.
