More than socio-and geo-demographics: how complementary education and business experience shape students' financial behaviour in Europe

Abstract

Although financial literacy would seem relevant to university students? education, it is not currently offered as a transversal subject within European academic curricula. It should therefore come as no surprise that a common solution are ad-hoc specific courses, with students often additionally acquiring valuable learning through their own experiences in business environments. With this and the recent literature on the drivers of financial literacy in mind, the authors decided to explore the context shaped by socio-demographic, academic and work-related factors that either promote or prevent European university students from developing appropriate financial skills, such as managing personal finances, planning for short- and long-term needs, and distinguishing among different sources of non-traditional funding. The study used a sample of 881 undergraduate and postgraduate university students from Romania, Poland and Spain from different studies, with information obtained through an anonymous online survey. The applied econometric model was cumulative regression with location-scale estimation using the R software, version 4.3.2, with variables associated directly with the development of basic financial skills being age, gender, country, but also specific training as well as work and entrepreneurial experience. The authors stress the importance of providing financial management education connected to the reality, especially the business and entrepreneurial environment.