By: Amina Khan
Financial Literacy Week is catered towards university students who have just started dealing with their own finances and are unsure of the concepts that come along with it, whether that is with taxes, banking, credit, or loans. It is a great opportunity for students who are feeling overwhelmed with the idea of managing their own finances to learn and begin their independent financial journey.
Sitting down with Sophia Ge, the USC’s Associate Vice President Finance, we got the inside scoop on what’s to come for this exciting week! Sophia, a fifth year Ivey and Computer Science dual degree student, works in the USC’s Governance and Finance Portfolio and her team organized this semester’s Financial Literacy Week for Western students. Financial Literacy Week is a collection of events – including presentations, speakers, giveaways, and more – throughout the week of November 22nd to 26th where students are able to attend and learn about finance literacy, money, budgeting, and credit. Financial Literacy Week is being hosted in collaboration with PennyDrops, which is a non-profit organization that aims to help Canadian youth with finance literacy and skills.
Financial Literacy Week is hybrid this year, with both in-person and online events. However, most events will take place on Zoom. There will be a total of five events throughout the week, kicking off on Monday with a basic introduction to financial literacy. Tuesday will feature a guest speaker and influencer, which will take place on the 2nd floor in the UCC (Mckellar Room) There will also be an online seminar on banking and investing. Wednesday will focus on credit and loans, and the week will come to a close on Thursday with an event teaching 10 money hacks.
The speaker event will feature Nathan Kennedy, who is the host of the New Money Podcast and has his own TikTok account (@newmoneynate) where he explains difficult financial concepts by breaking them down in a digestible way. It will be an interactive event where Kennedy will involve participants in activities and close with a Q and A period where students will have the opportunity to ask any pressing finance questions.
Sophia highlighted that the events this weeks are “ an opportunity to get started whether you are in first or fourth year or even a grad student. We want to also cater to students who are currently in the workforce or might be entering it soon. We hope it gets students to learn about finances in the long run.”.
Students are able to sign up for events and can find out more information uwo@pennydrops.org, or find PennyDrops on Facebook or Instagram. Follow for @pd.western on Instagram for more updates!
Space is limited, so sign up today – attend for a chance to win gift cards for each series!
Note that each workshop will be offered at least once each term. If you are unable to attend this semester, there will be more coming in the spring!
Questions/concerns? Please contact uwo@pennydrops.org, or find PennyDrops on Facebook or Instagram. Follow for @pd.western on Instagram for more updates!
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