College Newspaper Feature on Finfo
June 28, 2007
Finfo has been profiled in The George-Anne Daily, student-run newspaper of Georgia Southern University. The original story appears in PDF format on the newspaper's website, but we have reproduced the entire article for you here:
Students can be financially savvy with new serviceIt can be difficult for college students to develop a budget and save money.
The task of financial planning becomes even more challenging as graduation approaches and post-college life threatens to impede cash flow with a ton of bills.
In order to aid the financially strained college students, three students at the University of Southern California have started a website dedicated to helping students. The website, finfo.com, is divided into three sections, each concerning a different aspect of the financial world, the "College Sim," "Job Sim," and the "Budget Sim."
The College Sim option compiles the tuition, room and board, and all other college fees by year into an easy-to-read bar graph and breakdown of where the money goes.
It also allows the user to make school comparisons, input any money available at the start of college, and enter the amount of monthly contributions that will be made during college.
Under the Job Sim, the easy-to-use interface allows the user to compare up to three jobs in different cities.
Nicole Standifer, a junior education major says, "the job simulator helps me plan my life after college by showing me the results of taking one job over another."
The simulation takes into account the cost of living, average home price, state taxes, and even the price of gas.
The job location is mapped out on a Google map while the information is put in the form of a pie chart.
The Budget Sim is a basic measurement of where the user stands financially at a given point in time.
It shows income and expenses in a pie chart and gives the amount of savings over a year in a line graph.
The Budget Sim also has several other tabs. One showing the yearly income and expense totals, another maps out the length and the amount needed to repay debt and finally one that allows the user to see what it takes to save any desired amount of income.
Finfo.com also offers other financial aids such as home loans, debt relief, and even student loan consolidation.
Business major Reginald D. Jackson said, "Finfo.com is a great way for me to save money because it not only shows me how but also the time period necessary to reach my goal."
Finfo.com is a good tool for college students, giving them the ability to set up a financial plan.
The fast majority of Finfo.com is understandable but includes definition links for the things that are unclear.
All tools and information on the site are free.
Burnside, Michael. "Students can be financially savvy with new service." George-Anne Daily, 18 April 2007: 2.
Original article appears at http://www.stp.georgiasouthern.edu/George-Anne/pdfs/070418.pdf (second page)