The Class That Should’ve Been Required All Along by Ryoma

The Class That Should’ve Been Required All Along by Ryoma - June 2025 Scholarship Essay

I don’t think I realized how much I didn’t know about money until I had to make real choices about it. Picking which classes to take, figuring out how to pay for textbooks, even budgeting for groceries---it all hit fast. And I’ve been lucky compared to a lot of people I know. Some friends didn’t even know what a credit score was until they had to fill out a rental application. Others racked up credit card debt without fully understanding how interest works. That’s why, if I had to choose one elective to make a required course, it would be personal finance. Not just the basics, but the actual day-to-day decisions students will face as soon as they leave high school, or even sooner.

There’s this idea that financial literacy is something you’ll figure out later---once you have a job, or a family, or a mortgage. But by then, a lot of mistakes have already been made. And in a world where everything from college loans to taxes to retirement plans feels more complicated than it should be, not knowing the rules doesn’t help anyone. What makes personal finance different from most classes is that it applies to literally everyone. Whether someone becomes a teacher, a doctor, a small business owner, or works freelance gigs, they’re going to need to manage money. So why wait until it’s already a problem to start learning?

What I imagine isn’t some long lecture on the history of banking. It’s something grounded and practical---how to read a pay stub, how to build credit, how to compare different types of insurance, how to spot a scam. It should include basic investing, too, and how compound interest works, and why it’s easier to start saving now than ten years from now. A class like that could also walk students through FAFSA, explain what a 401(k) even is, and give them a chance to create a basic budget that reflects real-life expenses. These are the kinds of things people end up Googling at midnight because they were never taught---and when it comes to money, guessing wrong can come with a cost.

A lot of schools offer economics, and that’s useful. But it’s not the same. Macroeconomic theory doesn’t teach you how to avoid overdraft fees or decide if leasing a car makes sense. I’ve taken classes that cover far more abstract topics, and while I can appreciate them, I can’t say they helped me prepare to file my taxes or make decisions about student loans. Personal finance, if taught right, would fill that gap. And it wouldn’t just help the students who are already interested in numbers---it would help the ones who are afraid of them, too.

The truth is, money stress affects everything. I’ve seen people drop out of college, delay plans, or take jobs they didn’t want just because they didn’t know how to manage what they had. And it’s not their fault. If you’ve never been taught, how are you supposed to know? Making personal finance a required class wouldn’t fix everything, but it would give people a stronger foundation. It would also make conversations around money less awkward. The more we learn, the easier it is to ask questions, and the less shame there is in not knowing.

From a practical standpoint, this class would also give students a space to make mistakes without real consequences. Budgeting on paper before budgeting in real life. Comparing loan options without risking your credit. It’s a safer way to learn, and it builds habits early. In the same way we’re taught how to write a five-paragraph essay or solve for x, we should be taught how to read a loan disclosure or pick a health plan. These aren’t advanced skills---they’re basic survival ones. And yet, we treat them like electives.

I’m majoring in Applied Mathematics now, but most of what I’ve learned about personal finance came from watching my parents figure things out as first-generation immigrants. It wasn’t always smooth, but it taught me how much of a difference even a little bit of knowledge can make. It made me pay attention. And if that kind of awareness could be built into the school system instead of learned through trial and error, I think a lot of students would feel more confident and less overwhelmed.

We already ask a lot from students---academically, socially, emotionally. But one of the best ways to actually support them is to prepare them for the world outside the classroom. That means teaching them how to take care of themselves, including financially. A personal finance class won’t solve every problem, but it gives students a chance to start out stronger. And that kind of preparation lasts longer than most report cards ever will.