This Signature Assignment assesses the following skills in addition to your knowledge of the Financial Literacy material.

• Critical Thinking Skills – to include creative thinking, innovation,
  inquiry, and analysis, evaluation and synthesis of information.
• Communication Skills – to include effective development,
  interpretation and expression of ideas through written, oral and visual
  communication.
• Empirical and Quantitative Skills – to include the manipulation and
  analysis of numerical data or observable facts resulting in informed
  conclusions.

The assignment is divided into two sections: the rough draft and
budget worksheet, and the final draft which includes the work from the
rough draft and budget worksheet.

Part 1: Background (one paragraph)

Write a paragraph describing the average salary for a high-school
graduate with no further education who works in your geographical area.
Support this paragraph with at least one source. Include in your
paragraph at least three reasons you are seeking higher education.

Part 2: Future considerations (two paragraphs)

Write a paragraph describing your employment plans after graduation.
Address each of the following questions, supporting your factual
statements with sources. What job title will you seek? Why do you want
this job? What training and education is required for it? What is the
difference between the salary of a high-school graduate in your
geographical area and a person in your desired position and location?

Write a paragraph describing the average cost of living in your
desired location. Support this paragraph with at least two sources.
Address each of the following questions. What is the average cost of
rent? Utilities? Transportation? Healthcare?

Part 3: Develop a budget (two paragraphs and a worksheet)

Find three Internet sites that provide budgeting advice. Write a
paragraph summarizing basic budgeting information, supported by those
three sources.

Estimate your future bills based on the information you gathered in Part 2 and complete this budget worksheet

. Make sure your budget is balanced, you shouldn’t spend more than you’ll be making!

Write a paragraph summarizing your future budget.

Part 4: Submit a rough draft

Convert your five paragraphs and budget worksheet to a single .pdf
and upload it to Canvas. You should expect to have about a page and a
half of writing, two pages for the budget worksheet, and a bibliography.
Your rough draft should meet the following formatting guidelines:

• do not include your name in your document
• no cover page
• twelve point font
• one inch margins
• double-spaced
• use APA formatting
• only submit one file

You will be assigned three papers to peer review. Your feedback will
be due to your peers no later than March 2 which is four days after the
due date for the rough draft and budget worksheet.

Your rough draft, budget worksheet, and peer reviews will be 20% of your total Signature Assignment grade.