Date of Award

2018

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Honors Thesis

Department

Pharmacy

First Advisor

Angela Ockerman

Abstract

Introduction. Exploring whether or not students feel prepared financially for graduation is a useful exercise for universities as the results can provide ways to better support their students as they move into life after graduation. Financial wellness plays a role in a person’s overall wellness and happiness. This could be of particular concern for pharmacy students due to increasing cost of education and typically, a minimum of six years of education is required. If universities implemented better ways to educate their students on student loans and financial well-being, new graduates could have decreased financial anxiety, as well as improved overall wellness.

Methods. This study was conducted via online survey using Qualtrics. Pharmacy students at Butler University were asked questions relating to the amount of stress they experience due to their finances and access to financial information, then rated their responses on a 5-point Likert scale.

Results. There were 107 complete responses from P1-P4 pharmacy students enrolled at Butler University. Results indicated 69.1% (n=74) students agreed or strongly agreed with the statement, “I feel anxious about my financial situation” and 84.1% (n=74) of students agreed or strongly agreed with the statement, “I want to learn more about what to do with my loans after college.” When comparing anxiety and desire for financial information, there was a 0.276 positive correlation between anxiety and desire for financial information (p=0.004).

Conclusion. Financial anxiety is correlated with desire for financial information in college students with debt. Students feel like they would benefit by having more access to financial planning resolving student loans.

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