Navigating Financial Literacy: A Comprehensive Guide for Post-College Success

Abstract

MAT-144 Major Assignment 2 Instructions Please follow these instructions when completing Major Assignment 2. You will be completing a Write-up and Financial Calculations Spreadsheets in the Excel template for the assignment. Refer to the assignment rubric for details about how the assignment will be scored. Overview As you look ahead to your post-college life, you have decided you should start to look ahead to your financial plan. Given that you have learned about Financial Literacy in your studies at GCU you feel confident that you will be able to achieve this. You will use the provided Excel Template to complete Major Assignment 2 in your MAT-144 course. You will gain insights into income/pay, savings, credit cards, loan repayments, and budgeting. Be sure to read all directions carefully, as details matter, and your score on this assignment depends on your ability to follow those directions and demonstrate what you have learned in your coursework. Project details in Word For your project, you will provide specifics of what you have discovered and the implications. You will complete the template by answering the questions using approximately 60 to 80 words on average for each question (complete answers will earn complete credit whether or not they meet the word count). Please leave the section titles and question numbers in your write-up. You will not receive full credit unless you thoroughly address each question in each section. The objective is to demonstrate that you have thought in detail about financial literacy and its implications. Although you may cross-reference points between sections, the questions from each section must be answered in that section to get credit for your response. The amount of credit you receive will depend on how thoroughly you have explained your answers: you should attempt to write so that a reasonable reader would need to ask few or no follow-up questions. Write-ups that leave many questions unanswered or with significant gaps will earn less credit. Be sure to support your claims with evidence and reference to other parts of the Excel spreadsheet for values/quantities. Here are the sections that will be completed in the Microsoft Word template: Titles for both the Project and Each Section A heading for your write-up, including your program of study and related career, your name, the date, the course, and your instructor’s name. Titles for Each section – generic ones are provided in the template Income and Projection In this section, you must address the following questions: How does the given Current Income on the Income and Projection tab compare to your expected salary and desired area of living upon graduation? How much of a single one-time raise would you need to request after working in your career for 5 years to cover the rate of inflation you found? (Assume no other changes in income or expenses. Include a dollar amount and percentage along with how you calculated both in your answer.) What careers in your program of study will provide enough income to cover your expected real-world expenses upon graduation? Student Loans In this section, you must address the following questions: How much of your future monthly salary would you need to use to pay for the loans calculated in the project? (Assume no projection due to inflation and express your answer in a dollar amount along with a percentage. Include how you calculated both in your answer.) From your Student Loans tab, was the subsidized loan or unsubsidized loan a better investment? Will that type of student loan always be the better investment? Explain. How does student loan debt...