Peace Of Mind Over Paychecks: The New Financial Literacy Gen Z Needs

As I helped my 17-year-old son navigate his tax return from a part-time job, I realized how much financial education has changed since my high school days—and how much has remained the same. While he is far more comfortable with digital banking apps than I ever was with a checkbook at his age, he still struggled to understand withholdings and deductions.

As parents, we do our best to pass on financial wisdom, but the financial landscape has changed dramatically since this Gen Xer had a part-time job. Cryptocurrency, “buy now, pay later” services and investment apps marketed directly to teens have created a financial world far more complicated than what I navigated at my son’s age.

“Financial education should start early in the home with parents who have open dialogues with their children about money and are positive role models, helping to establish behaviors they want their children to adopt,” says Dr. Billy Hensley, CEO and president of the National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE), which has issued a series of papers about the importance of financial education in high school. “However, because managing money happens over a life-long continuum, schools should reinforce it through a dedicated semester, or year-long course, with continued support in higher education and the workplace.”

In my home state of Colorado, this recommendation is gaining legislative attention. A bipartisan bill currently under consideration by the General Assembly would make financial literacy a graduation requirement for all high school students. While Colorado has had financial literacy standards since 2021 covering topics including saving, investing, debt management and retirement planning, only about a quarter of the state’s 178 school districts currently require a personal finance course for graduation. This equates to 13% of high school graduates who are guaranteed access to a high school personal finance course before earning their diploma.

As both a higher education finance expert and a parent who is watching my son prepare to enter an increasingly complex economy, I’ve seen firsthand why financial education initiatives matter. The stakes are high: without solid financial knowledge, young adults face significant consequences that can follow them for decades—from crippling student debt to retirement insecurity.

But what’s particularly interesting about today’s young adults is how they’re redefining what financial success even means. New data from Intuit Education suggests Gen Z is forging a distinctly different relationship with money than previous generations—one focused less on traditional markers of wealth and more on overall wellbeing and life satisfaction.

Values of Valuables: Gen Z’s Financial Philosophy

According to the Intuit study, Gen Z isn’t abandoning financial education—it’s quite the opposite.

“We know that students need to begin learning essential personal finance concepts earlier, and our latest Prosperity Index Study results show that 60% of Gen Z are eager for more financial education,” says Dave Zasada, Vice President of Education and Corporate Responsibility at Intuit.

While U.S. high school students are interested in learning more about financial topics in school, many want it on their own terms. Today’s young adults are taking education into their own hands, with 36% following financial influencers and using YouTube tutorials to learn as they go. They’re creating a DIY approach to financial literacy that fits their digital-first lives.

Just because these young adults want more financial education does not mean they are seeking a bigger bank account. In fact, according to Intuit, nearly two-thirds of young adults would rather have a better quality of life than more money in the bank, noting 64% of Gen Z prioritizes peace of mind over wealth.

Financial Education That Works: Lessons from the Hour of Finance Challenge

Despite their desire for financial knowledge, talking about money remains taboo for many young adults. The Intuit data shows Gen Z would rather discuss politics, parenting struggles, sex and even infertility than their debt, salaries or investment mistakes. They’re part of the 50% of Americans who would rather talk about sex than speak about their own finances.

This reluctance creates a significant barrier to financial literacy. When finances remain behind a veil of secrecy, young people miss opportunities to learn from others’ experiences, mistakes and successes.

The financial education gap is real and urgent. Gen Z currently has the lowest financial literacy rates among U.S. generations, with just 38% of financial literacy questions answered correctly in recent assessments. Without intervention, this gap threatens to widen.

“Financial education is vital to our overall economic well-being, and the focus is improving. But, there is still more work to be done, especially with equity and access,” says Dr. Beth Bean, senior vice president of research and policy at the National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE). “By promoting financial literacy, we can empower underserved communities and promote full economic inclusion, which contributes to stronger economic mobility.”

Fortunately, efforts are underway to address this challenge. Intuit has committed to helping 50 million students become financially literate by 2030 through the Intuit Education platform, which provides free financial literacy curriculum and interactive tools designed specifically for Gen Z and Gen Alpha students.

In April, which is also known as Financial Literacy Month, the company launched its second annual “Hour of Finance Challenge,” a nationwide competition encouraging middle and high school students to spend just one hour learning about financial concepts.

“As an organization that has been helping our customers become financially capable for 40 years, Intuit is leveraging that experience and setting a goal to help 50M students graduate financially literate, capable, and confident,” says Zasada. “The overwhelming response to the Intuit Hour of Finance Challenge demonstrates how impactful providing students the ability to learn through interactive real-world scenarios in an engaging way can be.”

The initiative began April 1 and runs through the end of the month, offering participating schools the opportunity to compete for prizes and recognition as state or national champions. Schools can track their progress on a national leaderboard throughout the month, adding a motivating competitive element to financial education.

“The Hour of Finance challenge has really super-charged what I’ve been teaching in the classroom this semester,” says Jeremy Bryson, business teacher at Laurel Highlands High School in Uniontown, Pennsylvania. “I have been able to bring real-world financial concepts to life in a way that can often be hard to do for high schoolers. The flexible activities help them make connections between budgeting, saving, and setting meaningful financial goals, and they’re gaining practical skills they’ll carry with them long after they leave my classroom. In just an hour of time, I’ve been able to make financial education exciting and relevant.”

As with most competitions, schools are evaluated based on both achievement (measured by students’ financial wellbeing scores in the game) and engagement (participation rates). The competition allows students to practice real-world financial decisions in a low-stakes environment, building confidence that translates to better financial habits. The initiative is digital-first, interactive, involves gaming elements and focuses on practical application rather than abstract concepts—many of the components of learning valued by Gen Z.

The State-by-State Push for Financial Education

Financial education extends beyond just one month of the year and many states have taken similar action to that of Colorado. As of mid-2024, 16 states require a standalone personal finance course for high school graduation and over a quarter of states have enacted financial literacy requirements. This represents significant progress toward ensuring that young adults enter the workforce with at least basic financial knowledge.

However, implementation varies widely. According to the nonpartisan Education Commission of the States, some states like Washington State, have allocated millions for financial education grants without establishing graduation requirements. Others, such as New York, are in the process of developing new requirements through forums and state agency planning. Meanwhile, the National Financial Educators Council has argued that unlike other core subjects that have had standardized frameworks, financial education still lacks consistent standards for program quality, rigor, teacher qualifications and testing.

This inconsistency creates an uneven landscape where ZIP code often determines whether a student receives quality financial education. Organizations such as Next Gen Personal Finance are working toward “Mission 2030,” which aims to guarantee all high school students take a personal finance course before high school graduation by the year 2030.

Rather than imposing outdated definitions of success, we can meet Gen Z where they are—with their values-driven approach to money and their desire for financial knowledge that supports the lives they actually want to lead. By understanding that for today’s young adults, prosperity isn’t defined by the size of a paycheck but by building a life that feels grounded, flexible, and fulfilling, we can create financial education that truly empowers the next generation.

As they forge new paths to prosperity, let’s give these young adults the tools, knowledge, and confidence to succeed—on their own terms.