For an 18-week class, we recommend that students write their own personal investing strategies that is separate from the group portfolio project. This allows each student to reflect on their current financial goals and how they intend to meet them.
Students should choose one of the following financial goals:
- Buying a Home
- Hosting a major event, (like a wedding)
- Starting a business
- Starting a family
- Retirement
Based on their selection, students should do some preliminary research into how much this financial goal will cost. If you decide to include their research as part of the assignment, consider using the second grading rubric.
Next, they will have to approximate how much time from today they have to reach this goal. Their time horizon will be a critical factor in what investment strategy they will choose. The assignment is going to walk them through answering some basic questions to get them thinking about the effects of compound interest, risk, time horizons, liquidity and how comfortable they are with investing.
- What is your financial goal?
- How many years from today do you expect you have to save and invest before you are ready to pursue your financial goal?
- How much money will you be able to put into your savings for this financial goal every month?
- How much money will that be per year until you reach the time you need the money?
- What is the total cost of the goal at the time you intend to take your money out of your savings/investments? Remember to factor in inflation!
- For example, if your goal costs $5000 today, and you need this money in 10 years, you will need to save $6,094.97 if inflation stays constant at 2%/year.
- How much does your capital need to grow per year to allow you to reach your goal on time?
- What investments will you use that will allow your investment to grow, keeping in mind there are risks of losing your initial capital, (and/or your savings)?
Grading Rubric
| Needs Improvement (1) | Meets Expectations (2) | Exceeds Expectations | Total Score | |
| Completeness | Not all questions have been answered. | All questions have an answer, but some responses may lack full detail. | All questions are fully and completely answered. | |
| Style and Presentation | Answers are disorganized and difficult to follow. Numerous spelling/grammar errors. | Answers can be understood easily with minimal spelling/grammar errors. | Answers are creatively presented in an easy-to-understand format with no spelling or grammar errors. | |
| Research | There is little research included, or the sources are not credible. | There are some good references or sources, but more research is required. | The student can fully support their conclusions based on the research they conducted. |
Student Packet
Download and distribute the student packet for this activity by clicking the button below!