Date of Graduation

5-2018

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Business Administration

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Finance

Advisor/Mentor

Tompkins, Christopher

Committee Member/Reader

Morris, Noel

Abstract

The purpose of this thesis is to provide a comparative analysis of the financial state of modern American college graduates to similar groups of graduates. From this comparative analysis, we can see which aspects of Personal Financial Literacy need to be emphasized to achieve success as a new college graduate. First, a comparison was made between modern American graduates and American graduates from Generation X. It was found that modern graduates have just slightly more student loan debt than Gen X graduates, despite having significantly higher tuition rates. This debt amount, over time, would not be a huge concern for modern graduates to have the same success as Gen X graduates. Next, a comparison was made between modern American graduates and modern Australian graduates. Australia is the most culturally similar country to the United States according to two independent studies that measure cultural distance. It was found that modern American graduates typically take on significantly more student debt than Australian graduates, and with significantly more complex repayment terms. However, it was also found that over time, American salaries are nearly double Australian salaries in the same fields of study, meaning that American students could easily have similar or more success to their Australian counterparts. Overall, modern American graduates are well-positioned to have similar or more success than their comparative groups.

Keywords

personal; financial; literacy; finance; college; management

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