As more states consider guaranteeing students graduate high school having taken a personal finance course, they must consider when it should be taught as well. 

More than 80% of personal finance teachers said a personal finance course should be taught when students are in 11th or 12th grade, according to a recent Next Gen Personal Finance survey.

“As more states guarantee a personal finance course to every high school student, it's important for policymakers and legislators to recognize WHEN the course should be taught is an important consideration,” said Tim Ranzetta, NGPF co-founder.

Next Gen Personal Finance is a nonprofit organization that advocates for every high school in the U.S. to guarantee a one-semester personal finance course before students graduate.

More than 2,400 educators in the NGPF network responded to the question: Based on your experience, if a semester-long course could be taught to students in only one grade in high school, what do you think would be the best grade level to teach them in?

81% of respondents stated that the course should be taught in either 11th or 12th grade, with 38% preferring 11th grade and 43% preferring 12th grade.

"It's not surprising that teachers prefer teaching personal finance in 11th or 12th grade as opposed to earlier high school years. With students about to gain financial independence, their level of interest in the subject is likely to be higher,” said Carly Urban, Professor of Economics at Montana State University. “The questions students will ask in 11th and 12th grade personal finance will be more directly relevant to their immediate financial futures."

Teachers responding to the survey reflected this sentiment. 

"In 12th grade, students start to realize the importance and immediacy of needing this knowledge,” said Kerri Herrild, a personal finance teacher at De Pere High School in Wisconsin. “They are closer to adulting now than they have been through their high school experience, and they are beginning to make these financial choices that will shape their future for years to come."

“I think it is better for older students,” said Kimberly Worrell, a teacher at Agora Cyber Charter School in Pennsylvania. “They have developed math and other skills that will help them understand and make sense of this course which includes history, math, social sciences and even psychology."

Mary Stockham, a personal finance teacher at Pinnacle Classical Academy in North Carolina said, “It is more useful for seniors. Either they, or their friends, have a job, drive, have a bank account, have had an accident (insurance), are about to be on their own, and will need this information NEXT year. Seniors need it NOW! Necessity is the driver of student motivation." 

Research demonstrates clearly that guaranteed personal finance education leads to positive outcomes and improves quality of life. 

The movement to guarantee personal finance education in high school is growing. In just the last two years, the number of states guaranteeing a one semester course to all high schoolers has grown from 8 to 17 states. Already in 2023, as of Feb. 17, 74 bills have been introduced in 21 states to add the course high school graduation requirements, according to NGPF’s K-12 Financial Education Bill Tracker. 

While more states are stepping up and embracing this guarantee, three of every four high school students in America still do not have guaranteed access to a personal finance course.

About the Author

Hannah Rael

As NGPF's Marketing Communications Manager, Hannah (she/her) helps spread the word about NGPF's mission to improve the financial lives of the next generation of Americans.