Earl N - High Point University



Earl N. Phillips School of Business

High Point University

Fall, 2012

Course Syllabus

 

Course: FIN 2010, Personal Financial Planning

 

Professor: Jim Wehrley

Email: jwehrley@highpoint.edu

Blackboard:              

Website:

Phone: (O) 841-4560 (H) 869-0042  

Office: Phillips 202

Office Hours: Monday:  9:00 - 10:00 a.m.

Tuesday: 2:35 - 3:35 p.m.

Wednesday: 9:00 – 10:00 a.m.

Thursday: 2:35 - 3:35 p.m.

Friday: 9:00 - 10:00 a.m.

 

While these are my official office hours, you are welcome to stop by my office at any time. If I am not immediately available, we can set up an appointment. Of course, you can also e-mail or call me.

 

During the work week, I try to respond to e-mails or voice mail messages within 1 1/2 hours of receiving them.  Of course, I have meetings both on and off campus that will sometimes result in a slower response time.

Please let me know how I can help!

Course Description:  The course is designed to facilitate the understanding of topics in Finance and to help the student to create an appropriate personal financial plan. The student will be shown “how to” understand the basics of investing, insurance, retirement planning, budgeting, and mortgages. Overall, students will focus on how they or the person they advise can make intelligent financial decisions.   

Text: None

Course Objective: 

Upon completion of this course, students should be able to:

1. Develop and measure personal finance goals;

2. Develop and utilize a personal budget and balance sheet;

3. Apply time value of money concepts to personal finance decisions;

4. Utilize tax information when making personal finance decisions;

5. Manage debt and credit;

6. Purchase and finance a vehicle; and

7. Purchase life insurance.

Students should have a financial understanding of the following:

1. Liquidity and savings;

2. Home ownership;

3. Home, auto, health, disability, and life insurance;

4. Investment alternatives and asset allocation;

5. Retirement planning factors and strategies;

6. Estate planning terminology;

7. College planning;

8. “Love and Money” challenges; and

9. Donations to charities.

Honor Code:

The honor code is enforced.

 

University Honor Code

We, the students of High Point University, believe that honesty and integrity are essential to student development, whether personal, social, or academic. Therefore, we assert that:

Every student is honor-bound to refrain from conduct which is unbecoming of a High Point University student and which brings discredit to the student and/or to the University;

• Every student is honor-bound to refrain from cheating;

• Every student is honor-bound to refrain from collusion;

• Every student is honor-bound to refrain from plagiarism;

• Every student is honor-bound to confront a violation of the University Honor Code;

• Every student is honor-bound to report a violation of the University Honor Code.

Full details of the High Point University Honor Code are found in the Student Handbook and are online.

Grading Scale:

There are a total of 58 points broken down as follows:

Task Points

Team Modules (1 point per module) 23

Quizzes (2 points per quiz) 24

Paper: Are you an Optimist or Pessimist about the Future? 1

Four Memos: Current Event or Recommendation 4

Two-Minute Presentation (mandatory) 1

Comprehensive Final 5

Total 58

Business Student Association/Other Speakers (extra credit) 1

Final grades are determined based on the following scale:

A 55 - 58 points

A- 54 points

B+ 53 points

B 51-52 points

B- 50 points

C+ 49 points

C 47-48 points

C- 46 points

D 44-45

F < 44 points

There is a possibility that other opportunities will be provided; however, the grading scale above will not change.

Team Modules (23 points)

Effective learning takes place when you are involved. Passive learning is ineffective and often temporary. The team modules are designed to both engage you in the learning process and provide an opportunity to work collaboratively.

You will be assigned to a team in the beginning of the semester. Team members are expected to work together. Normally, every team member must be competent in the subject matter to receive credit for a module. That is, if one team member does not reasonably understand the material in a module, it is unlikely that any team member will be given credit for the module. Therefore, a team should not request grading of a module until each team member believes all other team members have an understanding of the subject matter.

Grading of team modules may be performed using a variety of methods: 1) oral discussion or questioning; 2) collection and grading of the team’s work or one team member’s assignment; 3) input from other teams or other classmates; or 4) a combination of methods. Generally, only one module per team needs to be completed; however, if I believe a team member does not understand the material in a specific module, I reserve the right to request that every team member complete the team module.

Through the learning process, teams may work with other teams to enhance the learning process. Other team-based guidelines:

1. While not necessarily planned, I may alter the teams throughout the semester.

2. A team member can be fired. I must approve the firing of any team member. A fired team member will work on future assignments individually.

3. Normally, modules will not have a due date. That is, these assignments are to be completed on a self-pace basis. However, if a team is not progressing at a respectable pace, a due date may be imposed.

4. Normally, quizzes cannot be completed until the related team module(s) is(are) complete.

5. Teams who do not pass a module can rework and resubmit modules.

Team Modules (1 point each)

1. Time Value

2. Amortization Table

3. Goal Setting

4. Balance Sheet

5. Behavioral Finance

6. Understanding Your Risk Profile

7. Taxes and Financial Planning

8. Budgeting and Cash Management

9. Mutual Funds and Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs)

10. Alternative Investments and Correlation (e.g., long/short, commodities)

11. Asset Allocation, Rebalancing

12. Investments, Income Taxes, and Inflation

13. 401K and IRA

14. Long Term Care Insurance

15. How Much is Needed During Retirement?

16. How to save for retirement

17. Insurance

18. Home Ownership, including mortgages

19. Credit Management

20. Purchasing a Vehicle

21. Estate Planning

22. Saving for College

23. Other: Paperwork, Choosing a Financial Planner, “Love and Money” Challenges, Donating to Charities

Quizzes (24 points, 2 points per quiz)

The topics for each quiz are provided below with the appropriate team modules that should be completed before completing the quiz. Obtaining two points on a quiz requires successful completion of all questions and problems. Failure to successfully complete one question or problem will result in 1 point earned on the quiz. Failure to successfully complete more than one question and/or problem will result in 0 points earned on the quiz. Evaluation of the answers to questions and problems may include oral discussion or questioning. Normally, each team member will complete the quizzes at the same time; however, quizzes are completed on an individual basis.

Quiz 1: Time Value

1. Time Value

2. Amortization Table

3. Goal Setting

Quiz 2: Personal Balance Sheet

4. Balance Sheet

Quiz 3: Risk Module

5. Behavioral Finance

6. Understanding Your Risk Profile

Quiz 4: Taxes

7. Taxes and Financial Planning

Quiz 5: Budgeting and Cash Management

8. Budgeting and Cash Management

Quiz 6: Investments

9. Mutual Funds and Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs)

10. Alternative Investments and Correlation (e.g., long/short, commodities)

11. Asset Allocation, Rebalancing

12. Investments, Income Taxes, and Inflation

Quiz 7: Retirement

13. 401K and IRA

14. Long Term Care Insurance

15. How Much is Needed During Retirement?

16. How to save for retirement

Quiz 8: Insurance

17. Insurance

Quiz 9: Home Ownership, including mortgages

18. Home Ownership, including mortgages

Quiz 10: Credit Management

19. Credit Management

Quiz 11: Purchasing a Vehicle

20. Purchasing a Vehicle

Quiz 12: Estate Planning

21. Estate Planning

There are no quizzes related to these two modules: 22.) Saving for College and 23.)

Other: Paperwork, Choosing a Financial Planner, “Love and Money” Challenges, Donating to Charities

Paper: Are you an Optimist or Pessimist about the Future? (1 point)

Review the IOUSA video. Write a typed, one page, or less, double-spaced paper on whether you are an optimist or pessimist about the future with an explanation of your perspective.

Four Memos: Current Event or Recommendation (4 points, 1 point per memo)

You have the opportunity to write, four, 1 page memos. You should write the memo from the perspective of a junior financial planner. Your audience can either be a client or your boss.

You can find an article or website to critique. The purpose of your memo is to provide your opinion, analysis, or recommendation with a justification about the article, website, or topic. For example, you could provide your opinion about an article that recommends investing in China. You could also write a memo recommending a website and telling the reader why the website should be utilized.

The article or the main page of the website should be attached to your memo.

Two Minute Presentation (1 point, mandatory)

You will make a presentation on a financial planning topic. The purpose of the presentation is to provide an insight or perspective you have regarding a financial planning related topic.

The topic is very flexible. For example, you could discuss someone you know who you believe has made good or bad financial planning decisions. Alternatively, you could discuss a current event, article, or website. The key is that your presentation should be educational for your audience.

Comprehensive Final (5 points)

90-100% = 5 points; 80 to < 90% = 4 points; 70 to < 80% = 3 points; 60 to < 70% = 2 points; 50 to < 60% = 1 point

Business Student Association/Other Speakers and Events (1 point, extra credit)

Throughout the semester, there will be opportunities for you to attend presentations or other PSB activities. To obtain a point, you must attend at least 50 percent of the events and write a brief memo commenting (not reviewing) on the presentation. Ideally, your comments will be related to this class. Each presentation will be announced in class.

Computer Usage Policy:

During the class, the computer is to be used for FIN 2010: Personal Financial Planning purposes only. If you violate this policy, your first violation will result in a warning. For each subsequent violation, there will be a three point reduction to your final grade.

In addition, please do not text message, e-mail, receive or send telephone calls, or take pictures during class unless related to class. Any such activity during the assessment process will be construed as cheating.

Attendance:

The Phillips School of Business at HPU has adopted a universal attendance policy.  Following the third absence, a student will be placed on Class Attendance Probation. If the student misses one more class after being placed on probation, the student may be dropped from the class with a grade of W, WA, or FA as appropriate (please refer to the Undergraduate Bulletin for additional information).

Disclaimer:

 

Because much of the discussion and work in this class may be related to personal financial information, I recommend that you do not discuss or present, in any format, any personal information that you do not want your colleagues or other people to know.  It will be assumed that all financial information is hypothetical.

 

Because of time limitations, some of the content discussed may not be in-depth enough to allow for an individual to make a sound financial decision.  The complexity of topics and the complexity of individuals' financial situations make it difficult to cover every topic adequately for every class member.

Important Notes:

 

1. All work is expected to include correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling.

2. Late work will be accepted for feedback but not graded.

Students with Disabilities:

Students who require classroom accommodations due to a diagnosed disability must submit the appropriate documentation to Disability Support in the Office of Academic Development, 4th Floor Smith Library. A student’s need for accommodations must be made at the beginning of a course. Accommodations are not retroactive.

HPU Writing Center:

The Writing Center, with locations on the first floor of Smith Library and in the University Center Learning Commons, provides writing assistance for students at any level of study – from freshman to graduate – with any stage in the writing process, from invention through revision. The Center’s staff of student writing consultants will be available for appointments Monday through Thursday from 5 to 10 p.m., beginning Tuesday, August 28th. Appointments may be made by emailing writingcenter@highpoint.edu and listing three times when you are available to meet during our regular hours. Alternatively, students may request appointments outside these hours to review their writing with consultants online or at an authorized campus location, and the Center will provide a list of times when individual consultants are available. Writing consultants do not proofread or edit students’ papers for them, but they do work with students to help them develop strategies for improving their writing in light of their respective assignments, instructors, and writing styles. For more information, visit the Writing Center itself, or contact the Center’s Faculty Coordinator, Dr. Joe Goeke, at jgoeke0@highpoint.edu or (336) 841-9633.

Course Evaluations:

All students are expected to complete course evaluations in the week preceding final exams.  These evaluations, which are delivered online, are an important part of High Point University’s assessment program, so your cooperation in completing them is greatly appreciated.  As the end of the semester or academic session draws near, you will receive information from the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment about how to complete the online evaluations.  IMPORTANT NOTE:  All communications from the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment will be sent to your High Point University e-mail account, so please be sure to check and maintain your account regularly.

THE FINAL EXAM PERIOD, TUESDAY, DECEMBER 11, 12:00 – 3:00 P.M.

The final exam period will be utilized.

I'm glad you registered for FIN2010. I hope you enjoy the course!!!!

Always remember, Personal Finance is Fun and Extremely Valuable,

but you MUST execute !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download