ASSEB HS Financial Literacy study plan
ASSEB HS Financial Literacy · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 6 hours per week
Money Management and Budgeting
Build a zero-based monthly budget from three months of actual spending records
Classify every expense line as fixed, variable, or discretionary
Compute your personal savings rate and compare it to a 20% benchmark
Identify three discretionary categories to cut and quantify the monthly savings
Your checkpoint
A one-page zero-based budget with fixed, variable, and discretionary totals plus a stated savings rate
Money Management and Budgeting
Construct a net worth statement listing assets and liabilities with current values
Design a budget that absorbs an irregular income month using a sinking fund
Set three SMART short-term financial goals with target dates and dollar amounts
Reconcile last month's planned budget against actual spending and explain every variance above 10%
Your checkpoint
A net worth statement plus a written variance analysis of last month's budget
Income, Taxes, and Employment
Read a pay stub and label gross pay, each deduction, and net pay
Complete a practice W-4 and explain how withholding elections change take-home pay
Distinguish employee vs independent contractor status and its tax consequences
Calculate self-employment tax on a sample freelance income figure
Your checkpoint
A worked pay-stub annotation and a completed sample W-4 with a short written rationale
Income, Taxes, and Employment & Saving and Investing
Walk through Form 1040 line by line using a sample scenario
Compare the standard deduction against itemizing for a given income level
Explain the tax treatment of a traditional IRA versus a Roth IRA contribution
Identify the employer match formula in a sample 401(k) plan document
Your checkpoint
A completed sample 1040 summary sheet with taxable income and effective tax rate shown
Saving and Investing
Calculate future value for a monthly contribution at two different assumed returns
Compare expense ratios and their 30-year dollar impact on a $10,000 investment
Differentiate stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and ETFs by risk and cost structure
Explain why diversification reduces unsystematic risk using a two-asset example
Your checkpoint
A comparison table of three hypothetical portfolios showing projected 30-year value net of fees
Saving and Investing & Credit and Debt
Compute a credit score's key factors and rank them by weight
Calculate the total interest paid on a revolving balance at 22% APR under minimum payments
Compare avalanche and snowball debt payoff on a three-debt sample
Read a credit report and identify one error to dispute
Your checkpoint
A debt payoff plan comparing both methods with payoff dates and total interest for each
Credit and Debt & Risk Management and Insurance
Distinguish term from whole life insurance by cost and purpose
Select appropriate deductibles and coverage limits for auto and renters scenarios
Explain how an emergency fund size changes with insurance deductibles
Identify what health insurance premiums, deductibles, and out-of-pocket maximums each cover
Your checkpoint
A personal insurance inventory listing each policy type, coverage limit, deductible, and annual cost
Consumer Rights, Fraud, and Financial Decision Making & Money Management and Budgeting
Recognize five common fraud patterns including phishing, romance, and investment scams
Apply the red flags of a predatory loan to a sample offer
Outline the steps to dispute a fraudulent charge and where to file a complaint
Re-run the week 1 budget incorporating insurance costs and debt payments
Your checkpoint
A one-page fraud response checklist plus a revised full budget tying all six domains together
Milestones
Week 2: Can produce a complete budget and net worth statement from raw records in under 45 minutes with no missing categories
Week 4: Scores at least 80% on a 25-question mixed set covering domains 1 and 2, and can explain the standard vs itemized deduction choice aloud
Week 6: Can compute future value, fee impact, and debt payoff totals on paper without a template, and correctly ranks all credit score factors
Week 8: Completes a full 50-question timed practice exam across all six domains at 75% or higher, with every missed item logged and re-explained in writing