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H&R BLOCK Budget Challenge

by Eva 1 Comment

I just heard the most amazing news! Sean Lawrence, a Michigan high school senior, just won $120,000.00 in college scholarships through the H&R Block Budget Challenge! Can you believe it? And no, I did NOT make a mistake and add too many zero’s to the number! HE WON OVER A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS. (Sorry for the yelling but I really can’t help myself!) And he did it by having the best financial skills out of 93,980 other high school students who participated in the Challenge.

H&RBlockBudgetChallenge

One of the things I love the most about the challenge (other than the awesome scholarships you can win) is that the people over at H&R Block understand the real problem. Teens are graduating from high school with very little training or education on how to manage their money, how to create a budget, or how to reach their financial goals. We can do Algebra – but not balance our checking account!

The Challenge simulates an adult financial ‘life’ by giving the student a virtual salary. The teenager has to pay their bills and work on saving within their means. This includes investing in retirement, managing loans and making sure their bills are paid on time.

H&R Block Budget Challenge

I wish life was like this – skipping around spending money…

Being involved in a real world simulation like this helps teens understand the realities of life as an adult and how to manage their money really well. The fact it is hands on and shows real consequences makes it even more valuable as students will be fined late fees and other penalties if they miss payments and such.

H&R Block will award $3 million in classroom grants, college scholarships and cash prizes via the Challenge. Points are earned for Behavior (participation and engagement), Knowledge (correct answers on quizzes), and Skill (earn points for savings and lose for late fees). There are 132 scholarships available and the top 22 students in each of the six cycles wins $20,000. The overall winner who demonstrates they are the most ready for living and budgeting in the real world wins $100,000.00.

H&R Block Budget Challenge

Saving enough is a big component to winning the Challenge!

This is an amazing program to participate in and has the potential for huge scholarship money. And you don’t have to write an essay because it’s more like a fun game to play! (Yay – I know you all are cheering with me!) If you are planning to go to college debt free like I am this could make all the difference for you. But the truth is that the Budget Challenge is an amazing opportunity. It can make a difference for the rest of your life if you learn the skills you need to manage money wisely even if you don’t win a scholarship!

H&R Block Budget Challenge

I hope you will consider participating in the next Challenge!

Wouldn’t it be amazing if a member of the TeensGotCents community won a scholarship in the upcoming Challenge? Registration will open August of 2015. Let me know if you plan to participate!

This is a sponsored post by the H&R Block Budget Challenge.

Share the Wealth!

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Join thousands of other teens on the path to a secure financial future!

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Comments

  1. Gerrie Amrein

    March 31, 2016 at 8:14 am

    Hi Eva!

    I believe our company could add additional College Affordability value to the Dollars and Sense program through EFC PLUS, our college financial planning software. It is the turbo tax for financial aid. Here is a link to the EFC PLUS advantages. It will give you an overview of the screens that the EFC PLUS software provides. Please review the screen tabs half way down the page.

    http://www.efcplus.com/efc-plus-core/

    The EFC PLUS website has an extensive free video library on the entire college funding and financial aid process.
    http://www.EFCplus.com

    Fred Amrein is the founder of EFC PLUS and is a national expert on saving, paying and loan forgiveness. If you ever need a resource for your articles please contact him. This tool can also be a great add on for your business model. We also have a quick free EFC calculator. Please contact me so we can discuss this further.

    Have a great day,

    Gerrie Amrein
    610 789-1255

    1
    Reply to Gerrie Amrein" aria-label=' Reply to Gerrie Amrein'> Reply

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Hi guys, I’m Eva!

Welcome to TeensGotCents, my name is Eva Baker and I founded this site when I was sixteen. I'm a complete money nerd and I love helping teens learn how money works. Also, I watch too much Netflix. Although I still have a lot to learn about personal finance I hope you will use my successes and failures to help reach your own goals whether you want to go to college debt free, get a part time job, work on a fun DIY project that will save you money or just read about ways you can learn to manage your money well as a teen. So glad you're here! Read more about my story here.

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