OU MoneyCoach Program Helps Students Plan for a Successful Financial Future

The MidFirst Bank MoneyCoach Program at the University of Oklahoma is dedicated to helping students make sound financial planning decisions to ensure student success. In fall 2019, more than 3,900 incoming freshmen completed a Financial Success Plan as a feature of their individual OU application process.

The MoneyCoach Program is part of OU’s innovative goal to improve student financial literacy. It is a strategic priority to help students not only figure out how to afford college, but also how to manage their money before they graduate.

“The idea was that students had three areas at which they might struggle to be successful at OU: academic, social and financial,” said Michael Hinderman, senior MoneyCoach at OU.

Taking a page from the playbook of Academic Life coaches, MoneyCoaches will have in-depth, one-on-one meetings to help students create a plan and implement steps to be able to afford their college experience. Around 1,400 incoming OU students met one-on-one with a MoneyCoach team member during the summer.

MoneyCoach advisers, in collaboration with MidFirst Bank, meet with the vast majority of incoming freshmen. The team builds connections with the Office of Admissions and Recruitment to make contacts with students before they come to campus to enroll.

Associate Vice President for the Division of Enrollment Management Brad Burnett said starting the MoneyCoach program in 2017 reflected a shift in thinking from processing student applications to helping individual students become skilled financial planners to ensure student success. 

“What each student needed was a plan,” he said. “I’ve got these resources. How can I take these resources and make this thing called a college degree something that I can afford.” 

Visit MoneyCoach for more information and a full list of upcoming events. Each scheduled event offers free food and the chance for a student to win a $500 scholarship.