Studies show that the average high school graduate lacks the basic skills necessary to manage their personal financial affairs such as balancing a checkbook. In addition, as a result of higher tuition costs and limited financial resources, many students are relying more on student loans and other debt to pay for college.
To help students develop a better understanding of personal finance, Mapping Your Future will offer an interactive, online chat session on debt management strategies at 6 p.m., Sept. 13.
Borrowers will have an opportunity to ask questions about various debt-related topics, including the basic survival principles of earning, spending, saving and investing, all from the privacy and convenience of a personal computer. Student loan and financial experts from across the country will also be available to answer questions about:
- Avoiding student loan default.
- Credit cards.
- Credit reports.
- Budgeting.
- Loan consolidation
Anyone with Internet access can join in the chat by visiting www.mapping-your-future.org. Simple instructions will guide them on how to join the chat.
Mapping Your Future is a national collaborative public service project of the financial aid industry. It brings together the expertise of the industry to provide free college, career, financial aid and literacy services for schools, students and families.
The Mapping Your Future Web site is sponsored by the Oklahoma Guaranteed Student Loan Program (OGSLP) and other guaranty agencies that participate in the Federal Family Education Loan Program.
In Oklahoma, loans for higher education or post-secondary education made to students by private or public lending institutions are guaranteed by the federal government through OGSLP, a division of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education.
