Watch: Financial Literacy Basics
Start here â this short video covers the fundamentals of finance and budgeting.
Watch on YouTube â
Open Educational Resource
A practical, step-by-step guide to taking control of your money during university â no finance degree required.
Start Learning ↓University is exciting: new friends, new freedom, and for many students, the first time managing money on your own. But that freedom comes with real financial responsibility.
According to a 2023 survey by the Canadian University Survey Consortium, over 55% of undergraduate students report being concerned about their finances, and nearly 1 in 3 say money worries affect their academic performance.
The good news? Budgeting is a learnable skill, and even small changes â like tracking a daily coffee habit or setting a weekly spending limit â can make a huge difference over a semester.
This resource will walk you through the fundamentals, give you hands-on tools, and help you build a budget that actually works for your life as a student.
A $6 daily latte = $180/month or $2,160/year
5 unused subscriptions at $12 each = $60/month wasted
Ordering delivery 3x/week at $25 = $300/month vs. ~$150 cooking at home
Students who budget report 40% less financial stress
Start here â this short video covers the fundamentals of finance and budgeting.
Watch on YouTube â
Five modules that build on each other â follow the path from basics to your own budget.
Understand
Income & Expenses
Track
Daily Spending
Avoid
Common Traps
Learn
50/30/20 Rule
Build
Your Budget
Five interactive modules that build on each other â from understanding your money to creating your own personalized budget.
Learn to categorize your income sources and understand the difference between essential and discretionary spending.
Use our interactive budget tracker to log expenses, see category breakdowns, and get personalized feedback.
Identify the most common financial pitfalls that catch students off guard â and learn how to avoid every one of them.
Discover a simple framework to split your income into needs, wants, and savings â with an interactive calculator.
Put it all together: create a personalized monthly budget you can download and use right away.
Academic sources, further reading, Creative Commons license information, and credits.
We designed this resource using evidence-based learning principles so you can learn effectively at your own pace.
Each module starts with clear explanations, real-world examples, and visual breakdowns you can work through at your own speed.
Interactive exercises, quizzes, and tools let you apply what you learn â so knowledge sticks beyond the screen.
In the final module you create your own monthly budget â a real artifact you can download and start using today.