Comments on: Financial Tips for College Graduates

By: skylog

skylog — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 22:23:52 +0000

great post flexo! i was cracking up at the zelda analogy. if one followed this list, even partially, they would be on a better path that most these days. these are all solid tips.

By: Cejay

Cejay — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 18:50:09 +0000

I think these are great and shared with my young coworker. She is chomping at the bit to get a real position in our office. But she also shares with me her huge mountain of debt. She is on the right track living at home and paying them off. But she acquires new ones just as fast since she NEEDS that outfit, shoes, weekend away, night out with the girls or whatever. I feel sorry for her and maybe this will help to know that not only the “old lady” (only 46) in the office thinks this way.

By: lynn

lynn — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 17:24:02 +0000

I never finished Zelda. Now I’m glad I didn’t waste my time. I would have been very disappointed.

By: avonbyc

avonbyc — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 15:22:12 +0000

I didn’t have a clue when I got out of college how to handle money and debt. These are great tips and I am working hard with my own two kids to teach them the skills they need now to have financial success later. I have seen many a young person go out in to the “world” without a clue on how to prepare for the financial future. It may be intimidating but it is very necessary

By: shellye

shellye — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 13:53:53 +0000

All these tips are great, and I hope my college-age kids are listening to me when I each time I try to use the “teachable moments” to show them how the real world works. However, I must add one thing I think is really important, and that is “if you have the time and don’t have massive student loans or credit cards to pay on, this is the time to travel.” I’m encouraging all of my kids to get some stamps in their passports before they take on life’s big committments, like marriage, mortgages, kids, 60-hour workweeks, etc. I just think traveling the world opens a person’s eyes to other cultures and ideas like nothing else can. Remember when riding the Eurail Pass through Europe was a big thing to do in the ’80s?

By: Jon -- Free Money Wisdom

Jon -- Free Money Wisdom — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 23:03:02 +0000

I grew up on Zelda…..it’s hilarious.

By: Jon -- Free Money Wisdom

Jon -- Free Money Wisdom — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 23:02:20 +0000

I would say that the first job IS essential to building your career. Future employers frown upon someone with employment gaps, or inconsistencies. A college grad should be at his or her job for at LEAST a year in order to secure good recommendations and a stepping stone onto the next opportunity. College is the time to figure out where your life is headed and to do internships. Now, if you are planning on going back to school to attain a master’s then that is when entering the real world could be delayed. “Kids” are allowed to be kids far too long.

By: Flexo

Flexo — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 21:43:11 +0000

… and that’s why it’s funny. Well, to me, anyway.

By: Jack

Jack — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 21:39:03 +0000

Your advice is good but your analogy is dated. The original Legend of Zelda came out 3 years before people who graduated from college this year were born.

By: wylerassociate

wylerassociate — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 20:39:55 +0000

#3 is very good to follow because it’s so easy to accumulate debt. I just paid off a 5 year loan in under two years and now i’m trying to pay off my credit card debt. College graduates in the economic times we live need to keep all their options open.

By: DonnaFreedman

DonnaFreedman — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 19:24:32 +0000

Moderation in all things, including moderation. I agree that this is a time to explore and figure out what path you want to take — but while you’re making that decision, new graduates, remember that you’re on a path right now.
Sure, some jobs literally stink. But if that $9 an hour helps you pay down any debt or establish that EF that Flexo mentioned, keep it until something better comes along. With luck that will be something in your chosen field. If not, then keep walking that path until the roads diverge — or bushwhack your way to creating a path all your own.
Remember, though, that any debts will keep building. Make it a priority to avalanche them away. And yes, *do* open a retirement account. Your new friend compound interest will make you glad you did.

By: CK @ Money In Your 20s

CK @ Money In Your 20s — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 17:05:04 +0000

Great points, I especially like the ending. There are lots you can and should do to be financially responsible, but the more difficult underlying theme is finding the right balance of fiscal responsibility and living your life.

By: dino

dino — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 05:03:10 +0000

I like number 2. I just graduated and am making $9/hr working as a deli clerk while I look for a job in my time off. The hard thing for me has been the decision to wait on getting a better paying job and study for a certain professional exam or just go out and get a job that pays better but is not in the field that I studied for. If I wait and take the exam I am looking at another 6 months as a deli clerk. If I look for a better paying job right away I end up working shift work at a power plant. The smell of that Deli makes me want to just get a better paying job and not wait.

By: Greg

Greg — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 17:07:34 +0000

I would not put too much emphasis on the first job, especially if the student studied hard an graduated without debt. The “real world” is a time to experiment, see what work preferences are, and maybe take a year off and work as a ski instructor. Of course if the student graduates with a mountain of debt, they have no choice but to graduate and put their nose right to the grindstone.