Personal and Consumer Finance Minor
The Personal and Consumer Finance minor (21 credits) equips students with an understanding of financial principles specifically tailored to individual, family, and community contexts. This program combines the development of essential financial skills—such as money management, credit and debt management, savings and safety nets, major expenditures, and retirement planning—with effective decision-making processes to help individuals and families accomplish financial goals and achieve lasting financial well-being. Through practical coursework, students learn to apply financial principles to everyday situations, making this minor ideal for those who want to manage their own finances wisely or assist others in doing the same.
This minor complements a wide range of career interests, including business, social work, counseling, and teaching, and prepares students for roles such as:
- Financial coach: Offer future-oriented support to help clients leverage their strengths and values to achieve their financial goals.
- Financial educator: Design and deliver financial education workshops or courses to build financial capability—a particularly valuable skill given that 26 states, including Montana, now require personal finance education for high school graduation.
- Financial counselor: Assist clients in addressing financial challenges that impact their well-being (AFC Certification required).
Students who complete this minor are eligible to earn the Accredited Financial Counselor (AFC) certification through the Association for Financial Counseling & Planning Education.
Students are strongly encouraged to meet with an advisor to explore electives that best align with their career interests. For instance, a student interested in becoming a financial educator in public schools might consider the following recommended electives: HDFS 263, HDFS 344 or HDFS 465R, and HDFS 450.
| HDFS 138 | Survey of Family Finance and Consumer Issues | 3 |
| HDFS 237 | Managing Work and Family | 3 |
| HDFS 337 | Personal and Family Finance I | 3 |
| HDFS 359 | Theories and Skills for the Human Services | 3 |
| Choose three of the following: | 9 | |
| Principles of Financial Accounting | ||
| Leadership & Public Policies in Aging | ||
| Principles of Macroeconomics | ||
| Microeconomics | ||
| Intermediate Microeconomics with Economics Education Applications | ||
| Money and Banking | ||
| Adult Development and Aging | ||
| Relationships and Family Systems | ||
| Communication and Marketing in Community Education | ||
| Contemporary Housing Topics | ||
| Curric Dev in FCS Education | ||
| Family Life Education | ||
| Gender, Race, Class, and Family Diversity | ||
| Family Law & Public Policy | ||
| Internship | ||
| Memory & Cognition | ||
| Science of Psych Well-Being | ||
| Judgment & Decision Making | ||
| Total Credits | 21 | |
Nine upper division credits are required. Some electives have prerequisites; students are responsible for fulfilling all prerequisites before attempting to enroll in a course.