Five questions for Carol Abraham

Photo by Desireé Myers

Graduate program to offer students expert advice
on budgeting, credit and other money matters

Students too often graduate without basic money-management skills. But there’s hope: TU's M.S. in Accounting and Business Advisory Services (MACBAS) program is offering a seminar that could positively affect their post-TU lives.

The M.S. in Accounting and Business Advisory Services is a relatively new program, isn’t it?

We launched MACBAS in 2004 with the University of Baltimore. Students can choose from a wider array of classes and continue their careers while pursuing M.S. degrees in accounting. Our graduates meet not only CPA requirements, but possess other skill sets that enable them to go into management or consulting, for example. MACBAS faculty members are drawn mainly from accounting, finance, applied information technology, and management information systems.

And  now you’re reaching out to financially challenged undergraduates? 

MACBAS wanted to make its resources available to those who really needed them—and who better than our own students? We’re offering a free seminar, “Young, Graduating, and Broke?” as part of TU's Senior Experience on Wednesday, Sept. 17, from 4 to 6 p.m. in Stephens Hall 310.  Seniors are the target audience, obviously, but we’d love to see any student who's interested in personal finance.

Are seniors a particularly vulnerable group?

Most are about to enter the work force and start repaying student loans, and that can be a rough transition. They’ve spent four years in an environment where it seems as if everybody is trying to give them credit cards. They need to understand how financial planning—or lack of it—can affect their ability to secure jobs or mortgages. And most marital disputes involve money, so that's another incentive to acquire these skills.

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Don't parents teach money-management skills to their children?

Many do, but a lot of students don't learn much at home about handling money. That’s why the program wanted to lend a hand—we saw an opportunity to broaden students’ horizons, to make a real difference. They really do need to understand what they’ll be facing once they graduate, and MACBAS really can help.

So who’s giving the advice to the young, graduating and broke?

We've coordinated our efforts with Richard Rabicoff of the Maryland Association for CPAs, and he's sending two guest speakers to talk about basic budgeting, student loans, FICO scores, identity theft, etc. Charles Wolpoff, Department of Accounting, will talk about credit cards. It's going to be a really interesting, worthwhile experience for those students who want to start working now toward a rich future.

For more information about "Young, Graduating, and Broke," contact Carol Abraham, x46163 or cabraham@towson.edu.

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