Session 1: You and your money

Introduction

Let’s get started. Bobby Seagull introduces the course in the first video and outlines some of the ways your money becomes more important as you come to the end of school or college. In this session you will explore banking and saving, and why you need skills in managing your money. It’s all about choosing to keep safe and take control.

Download this video clip.Video player: mmmft_1_video_week1_intro.mp4

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Transcript

BOBBY SEAGULL:

Hi there, I'm Bobby Seagull, and I'll be guiding you through this course to help you manage your money. Right now as you're getting near the end of school or college, your future life stretches out before you with all its potential excitement and challenges. One of those challenges [is] getting to grips with your finances as you start to earn your own money and have great responsibility for managing your budget and making your own financial decisions.

You're also likely to start borrowing money if you decide to continue studying. Most students use loans to cover both tuition and living costs. This course is designed to give you the skills and knowledge to make the best financial decisions to support yourself as you continue into education, go into employment or start an apprenticeship.

To kick off, this session covers banking and savings products that you're likely to be using by the time you're 18. How do you choose the right bank account for you? And why do you need a savings account?

Saving for the future is a vital part of good financial planning, so starting early is a wise move. You look at what you need to do to keep your money safe, particularly when you're buying things or using apps online. You look at credit cards and their good, bad and ugly features. Most adults possess at least one credit card and they make buying both in stores and online very easy, but this very ease of spending can create problems, with expensive credit card debts mounting up if you're not careful. We look at how you can avoid this happening to you.

So let's get started, so you can take control of your money.

End transcript

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By the end of this session, you should be able to:

• go about selecting a bank account, savings account and credit card
• check your bank statement
• understand the role that credit rating agencies play in your financial life
• make good decisions about phone contracts, including whether to buy phone insurance
• undertake financial transactions securely.

The Open University would really appreciate you taking a few minutes of your time to tell us about yourself and your expectations of the course. Your input will help to improve the online learning experience. If you would like to help, and if you haven’t already done so, please fill in this optional survey [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] .