Financial Education Resources from PHEAA

Throughout April, we are celebrating Financial Capability Month by featuring a variety of financial education programs and resources that you can put to use in your classroom right away. The tenth of these is a series of financial education websites from the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency – more commonly known as PHEAA.

Providing student financial aid is far from the only thing PHEAA does. Did you know that PHEAA offers three online platforms aimed at helping students understand the financial implications of higher education – both the benefits and the costs? Check out each of these sites for more information. You can also view the Making Cents Webinar from October 2017 that featured PHEAA’s Marla Kane sharing information about the sites.

Education Planner (Audience: middle and high school students and their families)

• Students: Learn about careers, conduct self-assessments, and find out information to help you understand your options for paying for higher education.  
• Parents: Get tips for teaching your child about money, find out how to start saving for college, learn about the FAFSA and college scholarships, and submit questions to a counselor.
• Counselors: Access tips for introducing EducationPlanner to students, setting up a job shadow program, and hosting a student aid event.

MySmartBorrowing (Audience: students in grades 8-12) This site takes students through a series of questions: what career they aspire to, what college they hope to attend, and how much their family will contribute towards their education. It then calculates an estimated student loan amount and determines whether that amount is realistic using the rule of thumb that students should not borrow more than their estimated starting salaries.

YouCanDealWithIt.com (Audience: college students and older)

• Borrowers: Get information on financial aid, making student loan payments, and getting help with overwhelming debt. There is also information for graduate students and nontraditional students.
• Parents: Information is divided into three sections: before, during, and after college. There are also helpful calculators and other tools.

Disclaimer: Resources included on the Making Cents blog have been reviewed by Pennsylvania educators and deemed worthwhile for classroom or professional use. Inclusion does not indicate endorsement by the Pennsylvania Department of Education or Penn State University.