On January 13th and 14th, HUECU had the opportunity to host our 10th annual Wintersession: “Financial Independence: Why It Matters” program. We were excited to have students attend from all Harvard University schools as we hosted our sessions virtually! Our Wintersession course consisted of four different sessions: Taxes, Selecting Benefits, Investing, and Saving for Retirement.
On day one, we welcomed back Patrick Donnelly, Matt Ilteris, and Ian Cole from The Colony Group to help our students understand taxes in the United States. Students had questions about the history of taxes, gross income vs. net income, and how monetary gifts could be taxed. Patrick, Matt and Ian did a great job encouraging our students to really look at their paychecks and take a more active approach to understanding taxes.
Elizabeth Rich, a first time presenter for Wintersession and Harvard University Benefits employee, used her benefits expertise to help students navigate the waters on employer benefits as they fit into their overall compensation package. She helped students understand the difference between healthcare plans, as well as insurance options possibly available to them. A student commented, “I can better understand all the benefits jargon and make important decisions for myself.”
On day two, we were happy to welcome back Shahar Ziv, HUECU Board Member and Co-Founder of our Personal Finance Wintersession course, as presenter for our investing session. He gave students a good foundation on how to get started in investing, but also how to “stay average,” just like Warren Buffett. Students were interested in learning more about robo-advisors and ETFs, as well as the upside of investing early.
Veteran Wintersession presenter Jake Northrup, from Experience Your Wealth, closed our program by giving students an opportunity to think through what they value and how their money can help them experience that. Students were able to envision what retirement would look like for them and learned tips on how to plan for their future. Although there was great conversation about the future of retirement, most students were ready to get started saving early.
We look forward to continuing to work with students throughout the spring semester!
Harvard students may watch session recordings , here.
Want to catch the next financial workshop? Make sure you're following @myHUECU on social for updates on upcoming programs!
