Personal Finance
FAFSA and Aid Basics
Entrepreneurship essentials
Quality Enrollment Frameworks
Wild Card
100

How is income divided in the 50/30/20 rule?

What is 50% for needs, 30% for wants, and 20% for savings or debt repayment.

100

What does FAFSA stand for, and why is it important for students to complete it?

What is Free Application for Federal Student Aid. It’s important because it determines eligibility for federal aid, such as grants, loans, and work-study.

100

This form of entrepreneurship emphasizes innovation, developing a new product or service, and assuming significant financial and operational risk. What type of entrepreneurship does this describe?

What is Start-Up?

100

What are the four components of the Quality Enrollment Framework?

What is Financial Fit, Academic Match, Personal Fit, Completion Support?

100

A student’s top-choice school offers an award package covering 70% of the COA. Their second-choice school offers an award package covering 90% of the COA. Which school is the better financial fit, and why? Include two factors they should consider.

What is second choice?

  • Better Fit: Second-choice school.
  • Reasoning: It minimizes out-of-pocket costs and debt.
  • Factors to Consider:
    • Amount of debt required for each school.
    • Total cost of attendance after aid, including living expenses and transportation.
200

You create a monthly budget with $800 for rent, $250 for groceries, and $50 for subscriptions. How much do you spend on needs?

What is $1,050? 

$800 (rent) + $250 (groceries) = $1,050 on needs.

200

What’s the difference between subsidized and unsubsidized loans?

What is Subsidized loans do not accrue interest while the student is in school, and they require financial need. Unsubsidized loans start accruing interest immediately and are available to all students regardless of financial need.

200

Name all five types of entrepreneurship.

What is Start-up, Franchise, Merger, Acquisition, and Non-Profit?

200

Name at least three of the five key considerations for determining personal fit when choosing a college.

What is 

Possible Answers:

  • Location
  • Campus Size
  • Sense of Community
  • Available Majors/Programs
  • Extracurricular Opportunities
200

A student borrows $5,000 with a 4% simple interest rate for a 5-year loan. How much total interest will they pay by the end of the loan term?

What is $1,000?

Total interest = Principal × Rate × Time = $5,000 × 0.04 × 5 = $1,000.

300

Is rent considered a fixed or variable expense? What percentage of your income is recommended to go toward rent?

What is fixed expense, no more than 30% of your income?

300

A student qualifies for the full Pell Grant of $7,395 per year. How much will they receive per semester if they attend full-time?

What is $3,697.50/semester? 

Answer: $7,395 ÷ 2 = $3,697.50 per semester.
Explanation: Federal grants are typically divided into two equal payments, one for each semester.

300

A company chooses to combine resources with another organization to form a single entity. What type of entrepreneurship does this represent? Provide one possible reason for this strategic decision.

What is merger?

Answer:

  • Type: Merger.
  • Reason: Access to new markets, reducing competition, or combining resources for greater efficiency.
300

A student receives an award package covering 50% of their cost of attendance. They plan to take out loans for the rest. Does this school have a strong financial fit for the student? Why or why not?

What is NO?

A strong financial fit minimizes debt and out-of-pocket costs. Depending on the student’s ability to pay, taking loans for 50% of COA may lead to financial hardship.

300

A student is comparing two loans. Loan A has a 3% interest rate but no grace period. Loan B has a 5% interest rate with a 6-month grace period. Which loan might be better for a student who plans to work part-time during college and why?

What is Loan B?

Loan B is better because the grace period allows the student to delay payments until after college, giving them time to stabilize their income. However, they must consider the higher interest rate over the long term.

400

A student earns $1,500 per month. According to the 50/30/20 rule, how much should they save?

What is $300?

$1,500 x 20% = $300

400

True or False: Students can lose their grants and loans if they fail to meet satisfactory academic progress (SAP). Explain your answer.

What is True?

Federal aid programs, including grants and loans, require students to maintain SAP by meeting minimum GPA requirements, completing a percentage of attempted credits, and avoiding excessive withdrawals or failures.

400

This type of entrepreneurship focuses on creating a mission-driven organization to address community needs. Identify this type of entrepreneurship and explain how it differs from others in terms of revenue usage and societal impact.

What is Non-Profit?

A non-profit reinvests all revenue into its mission to address community needs rather than distributing profits. Its primary focus is on societal impact, not financial gain.

400

A student has a 3.5 GPA and scored a 24 on the ACT. They’re considering two schools:

  • School A: Average GPA is 3.6, and ACT is 26. Offers need-based financial aid with smaller merit scholarships.
  • School B: Average GPA is 3.4, and ACT is 23. Offers generous merit scholarships 

What is School B? 

Reasoning: While the student is slightly under School A’s averages, they exceed School B’s, making them more competitive for merit scholarships. School B’s financial aid package is likely more generous for students who perform above its averages, reducing potential debt and increasing affordability.

400

In what year did Texas pass the legislation requiring high school seniors to complete a financial aid application to graduate?

Options:
A) 2019
B) 2020
C) 2021
D) 2022

What is 2019?

500

A student earns $2,400 per month. Their rent is $800, groceries are $300, and transportation costs are $150. Using the 50/30/20 rule, calculate how much the student should ideally spend on "wants" and "savings." Does their current budget align with the rule?

What is wants $720, savings $480 and they need to adjust their budget?

Answer:

  • Wants: $2,400 x 30% = $720
  • Savings/Debt Repayment: $2,400 x 20% = $480
  • Needs (Actual): $800 (rent) + $300 (groceries) + $150 (transportation) = $1,250
  • Analysis: Their current needs ($1,250) are slightly above the recommended 50% ($1,200). They will need to adjust their spending on wants or increase savings to align with the 50/30/20 rule.
500

What are the two main categories of grants, and how many grants could a Texas resident potentially qualify for?

What is state v. Local, 6?

  • Categories: Federal and State grants.
  • Grants for Texas Residents: Six total (2 federal: Pell Grant, FSEOG; 4 state: TEXAS Grant, TPEG, TEOG, BOT/TEXAS Exemptions).
500

A global coffee chain operates primarily as a franchise, allowing independent owners to manage its branded locations. The company recently purchased a smaller, local coffee shop chain with a strong regional following, planning to convert those stores into franchises under its brand. Was this primarily a franchise expansion or an acquisition, and why? Defend your answer by analyzing the primary goal of the company's strategy.

What is acquisition?

The purchase of the smaller chain focuses on absorbing its existing market share and customer base, which is a hallmark of acquisitions. However, converting the stores into franchises suggests a secondary goal of long-term scalability.

500

Two universities are being compared:

  • University A: Graduation rate of 75%, offers academic advising, tutoring centers, and mental health counseling.
  • University B: Graduation rate of 68%, offers fewer academic resources but has a robust career center and strong alumni network connections.

What is University A?

Reasoning: With a higher graduation rate and more robust academic and mental health resources, University A directly addresses the challenges students may face in completing their degrees. While University B's career center is valuable for post-graduation success, completion support focuses on helping students graduate, which University A is better equipped to do.

500

What percentage of students who file the FAFSA receive some form of financial aid?

Options:
A) 55%
B) 66%
C) 78%
D) 85%


What is 85%?

Explanation: Approximately 85% of students who complete the FAFSA are awarded some form of financial aid, making it a critical step for accessing educational funding.