UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- One day each semester, Marja Verbeeten, associate professor of hospitality management, invites a guest speaker to her managerial accounting course to demonstrate how the career skills students gain to guide business finances can also be applied to personal financial management.
For the past 11 years, Verbeeten has invited Eric Loop, Penn State graduate and associate vice president and financial adviser for Morgan Stanley, to discuss how making sound financial business decisions translates to making sound personal financial decisions.
“The goal of the course is to familiarize students with financial decision making issues, but I would also like students to be well-versed when it comes to their own personal financials,” Verbeeten said. “Most of the students taking the course are juniors and seniors who will have jobs in a few semesters and who will be out in the real world, on their own and without the safety net of parents. Whether they like it or not, they need to know about 401(k) options, personal credit history, and personal budgeting.”
In November, Loop -- who earned a bachelor’s degree in political science in 1982 and a master’s degree in work force education and development in 1996, both at Penn State -- joined Verbeeten’s class once again to review retirement plan options, credit card management and the significance of a personal credit score.
“It affords me the opportunity to engage with a small cross-section of the University’s undergraduate community,” Loop said. “I consider it a small way of giving back to Penn State and there’s a healthy measure of satisfaction in that.”
When Loop talks to students about common mistakes with credit card management and introduces them to the concept of a ROTH Individual Retirement Arrangement, he hopes students gain a baseline for personal financial planning.
“I hope students take away an appreciation for the remarkable leverage that time affords them to accomplish their financial goals and the very real imperative to take responsibility for their financial futures,” Loop said.
Afterward, students, who are already using one or more credit cards and realize the “real world” is not far off, said they appreciated the talk that focused on their personal financial futures.
“We are learning from a trusted source that has no bias,” said student Julia Finley. “It’s also great to see how what we are learning in class translates easily to the real world.”
Student Madeline Fernandez said, “It’s definitely helpful because I have credit cards that my parents manage and it’s nice to see what I’ll be dealing with three to five years from now. I really enjoyed this class. It was very intriguing. Right now, I’m more involved in the present. It’s nice to know it’s never too early to start investing in your future.”
Student Dayar Brown-Gurwotiz said, “I took away the importance of maintaining and balancing your credit, which affects your credit score. It was important to hear from another source outside of my parents. It was also helpful to understand retirement plan options and the benefits offered in addition to salary.”
As seniors, hospitality management students gain further personal financial management skills through HM 492 Advanced Professional Seminar, which prepares students to assume leadership positions within the hospitality industry.