Abstract:

This study examines the effects of undergraduate program content on financial literacy. The main assumption of the study is that financial literacy is a vital competence that can be attained through education programs. The study compares financial literacy levels of undergraduate students from Economic and Administrative Sciences Faculty, who are more exposed to financial concepts and techniques, with those of Engineering Faculty whose education content is more favored towards quantitative analysis. Data was collected from five universities in Turkey, which is a developing country. Recent developments in Turkey has placed increased responsibility on university students in terms of financial and risk management decisions. This highlights the importance of studies on financial literacy. The financial literacy of university students was measured using financial literacy scale developed by OECD. The study found 31.7% of the students to have a high level of financial literacy while 30.1% had medium and 16% had low levels of financial literacy. A significant relationship between University students’ level of financial literacy and field of study (quantitative vs. social) was also observed.

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