Every college student steps onto campus with an academic plan. This plan is flexible enough to change as their dreams, goals and abilities come into sharper focus. It recognizes that each of them is different, and so is every academic journey. The plan is a reflection of the dramatic evolution people undertake when they invest in an education.
But when it comes to paying for all of this –a burden that ultimately falls to the students – no such framework exists. Well-meaning financial wellness efforts over the past decade have spurred investments into financial literacy modules or planning software, which have proven too generic for students and thus completely ineffective. No matter how hard a new vanguard of leaders in financial wellness have tried, they simply haven’t been given the tools to move the needle in a systemic way.
It's time for a holistic change in the way student financial services are delivered on campus, bringing together disparate and confusing delivery mechanisms into a single intuitive platform for students.
We explored this mission in more depth in this blog post.
Within this larger mission, colleges broadly agree in a very simple first step. Every college student should step onto campus with a personalized financial plan that…
Integrates financial aid, scholarship and tuition data, addressing both how students finance their education and manage college expenses
Gives students a clear understanding of the gaps they face between income and expenses
Explains concrete steps to improve their situation
Creates a seamless connection to existing resources, from one-on-one coaching to transportation subsidies to the food pantry
Evolves with them as their goals and needs change
Provides a clear understanding of the investment they’re making by mapping out their entire journey through graduation
The Arbol team often faces questions about the durability of the existing system. “If it’s always worked this way,” the inquiries go, “why invest in change?”
But within the growing network of financial wellness leaders in higher ed, we know that question takes creative license with the concept of a working system. Young adults drop out of college at an objectively alarming rate. For first-time, full-time freshman in the U.S., 1 out of every 5 enrollees drop out in the first year. A very high percentage of students at colleges across the country face financial holds that prevent them from starting their second year of college.
Students and their families are becoming more cost-conscious, and the institutions that win them over will be those that clearly demonstrate a return on investment. This includes guiding students to understand the financial commitment needed to complete their degree and what they can expect to earn post-graduation.
A few important points
Some deeper thoughts about financial plans for college students:
● They should be delivered early during the financial aid packaging process and student orientations, making financial wellness a priority alongside other campus services.
● Some of the plan’s attributes are common sense. There should be a clear framework for when college bills are due and the options available for payment plans.
● The plans must be personalized and dynamic: Students make many choices that affect their financial calculus, from switching majors to studying abroad to accelerating their timeline via summer courses.
● The plans create a seamless connection to financial wellness support, giving students access to the galaxy of resources at their disposal. Right now, these resources exist but are hard to deliver efficiently.
While financial wellness has been a point of emphasis for years now, many of those initiatives still rely on generalized outreach that does not efficiently find struggling students and get them the help they need. But Arbol’s personalized financial wellness plans give students transparency into their situations, a roadmap for improvement and ways to access support. The plans also give colleges the ability to triage which students need help, and to reach out to them with tailored support messages. This is all about information delivery – turning chaotic environments into orderly operating systems that serve their customers. We’ll drive the new era, Financial Wellness 2.0, together.
