Financial Education of Emerging Adults

Abstract

We review four possible sources of financial education for emerging adults: college, work, the military, and on their own via free access resources. For each, we discuss benefits, challenges, and current trends. This chapter primarily focuses on the experience of U.S. emerging adults due to greater data availability, although international examples and research are also discussed. To examine the relationships between prior financial education, literacy, and behaviors, we also provide an example of financial education in action. We use a survey with emerging adults enrolled at a 4-year public university in the Southern United States to examine differences between financial education groups (those with and without prior financial education). We find that a general education college financial course may be one way to help address potential discrepancies between these financial education groups. Finally, we discuss needs and areas for improvement and advancement in current financial education programming and dissemination.