Students Attend Financial Reality Fair

Students from OSTC-Northeast and Northwest recently participated in a budgeting simulation learning opportunity, that provided students insight on real-world costs on housing, cars, clothing, food, furniture and credit card debt. OSTC-Northeast Entrepreneurship/Advanced Marketing Instructor, Elizabeth Diehl partnered with the Michigan Schools and Government Credit Union staff to coordinate this event. 

Every student was required to select a housing option, including living with a roommate, living alone, or living at home. Students were also required to make automobile purchasing decisions and decide on entertainment options. Another requirement was a financial "surprise", which could result in an unexpected bill or windfall.

Students chose different fields and began the simulation with a monthly salary. Upon visiting various stations, students then added up their monthly expenses to see the end result of their choices. Some were shocked to learn how expensive some of their choices were while others walked away with plenty of money left in their account.

All Marketing and Computer Programming students from the Northeast and Northwest campuses participated in the event. Volunteers included the credit union staff, campus staff, and senior Marketing and Programming students.