Overview
Assignment Overview and Resources
In this financial literacy assignment, you will research the starting salary of your career or desired job role in the geographic area you hope to reside in after graduation. Then, you will create a budget based on your projected income. Finally, you will reflect on and summarize your research and budget calculations in a short essay. A layout example of this project is available in the Unit 10 Module.
By submitting this assignment, you are verifying that you have viewed the following Canvas pages with detailed instructions.
Assignment Overview & General Guidelines
Title Page
Part 1: Salary Research
- Part 2: Calculations and Table of Expenses
Part 3: Graphical Representation of Your Budget
- Part 4: Reflection
Reference Page
- Turn It In
Students are responsible for checking uploaded submissions for the correct version. No resubmissions are allowed after the due date. Turnitin similarity indexes must be below 25%. If you are retaking this course, you will need to redo this assignment so that your similarity score is below 25%. If you have specific questions, please reach out to your instructor.
- Assignment Instructions
To complete the assignment, follow this required format:
- Title Page
Please include a title page in APA format. You can find the guidelines using Academic Writer or the Library and APA Resources tab.
- Part 1: Salary Research
Research several potential job roles in your desired geographical area. Provide a summary of your research including the location of the job, job title, and salary information. To research your starting salary, consider using the information provided at Salary.com and Payscale.com. Local government hospitals may also publish this information on their websites. You should find a minimum of two sources that contain salaries to compare to help you make a judgment about a reasonable starting average salary for this position. Consider degrees, certifications, and the number of years of experience that you have when determining what positions, you qualify for and what your salary may be.
- You must include in-text citations using APA format when comparing your salaries.
Part 2: Calculations and Table of Expenses
- After you have found your potential salary, set up your monthly budget using only 2/3 income to account for taxes and other deductions (called your net salary). You need to include your work for your calculations.
For example, if you anticipate making $45,000/year, then 2/3 times 45,000 = 30,000. $30,000 / 12 = $2500 and that is what you want to use for setting up a monthly budget.
Use the table provided to fill in your monthly budget. You may add any extra categories/rows to the table needed to complete your budget.
When creating your budget, be sure to consider the following categories:
Housing and living expenses (e.g., rent/mortgage, utilities, maintenance, etc.)
Food
Student loan payments
Transportation
Childcare (if applicable)
Credit Card or other debt
Car loans
Continuous medical expenses
Emergency savings
Retirement savings
Long term goal savings (e.g., buying a home, new car, education, etc.)
Discretionary spending (e.g., eating out, entertainment, etc.)
Insurance
The total amount and net amount will be included in your table so you can see your balance each month. The table must be copied into your Word document. Please refer to the video directions provided in the module.
Part 3: Graphical Representation of Your Budget
Display your table of expenses as a graphical representation. You may choose to use a pie chart or bar graph to represent your expenses. The table and graphical representation must be copied into your Word document. Do not submit an Excel file. Please refer to the video directions provided in the module.
Part 4: Reflection
In this reflection, you should reflect on your findings. This reflection section should be a minimum of 200 words.
Please address the following prompts in your reflection:
Why did you pick this location and job?
Were you surprised by your expected salary and income after taxes and other deductions were taken? Why or why not?
What were some challenges in creating your budget? What surprised you?
Were you able to set up an emergency/savings fund? Why or why not?
How can you prepare for unexpected expenses?
How can you apply these budgeting tools to your current situation?
Be sure to put in-text citations in APA format. Academic Writer is the recommended guide for formatting resources.