Inspiration
Financial literacy is essential for building a good life in our college career but it’s often overlooked in university and high school curriculum. This leads to many students facing challenges in managing their student loans, budgeting each month, and planning for their financial future. Therefore we created FLUNC ! - A financial literacy webpage that helps students find the right resources and tools to navigate their finances confidently here at UNC. Our goal is to demystify personal finance and make financial skills accessible to everyone!
What it does
FLUNC provides an all-in-one platform for UNC students to gain financial literacy! The platform has main tools like a Student Loan Calculator, chatbot advisor, resources page tailored to UNC students and a cheaper alternative product finder. Each feature is designed to meet the specific needs of college students, offering practical resources and personalized advice to help them make informed financial decisions. UNC already has some great resources, such as a Net Price Calculator and a Loan Fee Calculator that help students determine the size and type of loan that is right for them. However, there was not a tool present that helped students set a plan for how they would pay these loans off (which is the first step to financial health in the future). This is where FLUNC comes in.
FLUNC (Financial Literacy at UNC)
Never Fail Financial Literacy Again! This site is a resource for UNC students to plan for their future. College is a time to learn, and that is not restricted to just academics. FLUNC is a resource that will help UNC students plan for loan repayments using our student loan calculator, find a list of UNC resources, and search for discounts on items using our function that relies on webscraping! And if you need any assistance on how to navigate the site...
Special Chatbot Features: Meet FINram (FINny)
FINram, or FINny, is a friendly financial chatbot designed specifically to support UNC students in mastering their finances. With an approachable and conversational style, FINny can guide students through various aspects of the financial calculators, ensuring they fully understand how to use each tool and optimize their financial planning. Here’s a closer look at FINny’s features:
Student Loan Calculator Support: When students need guidance with the Student Loan Calculator, FINny is ready to step in with personalized advice. For instance, if you’re curious about repayment plans, FINny will prompt you to explore how different disposable income amounts affect loan repayment. Not every repayment plan suits every budget, so FINny suggests experimenting with various inputs until you find the one that aligns with your financial goals.
Error Assistance: Financial calculations can be tricky, especially with varying interest rates and repayment terms. If an error occurs, FINny will offer troubleshooting advice to help adjust either the plan length or the disposable income to ensure the loan is feasible given the specified budget.
Personalized Explanations for Key Financial Terms: Disposable Income: FINny clarifies what disposable income is and helps you calculate the best amount to allocate to loan repayments. Principal: The starting amount of debt you’re working with. Rate: Your interest rate, with a default set at 5% unless you specify otherwise Time: FINny provides insights on how to adjust the repayment duration to find the right monthly payment and financial plan for you.
Budget Planner Guidance: With the Budget Planner, FINny encourages students to consider all income sources and categorize expenses. Whether it's fixed costs like rent or flexible expenses like dining out, FINny’s budgeting tips help you identify potential savings and work toward a balanced budget.
Emergency Fund Calculator: Building an emergency fund is essential. FINny will help you assess how much you might need in case of unexpected costs, based on your current spending and lifestyle. This way, you can be prepared for those unexpected surprises without stress.
Scholarship and Grant Finder Assistance: Finding scholarships and grants can be overwhelming. FINny simplifies the process by offering pointers to local and national opportunities, helping you save on tuition and educational expenses.
7.Tax Tips for Students : Filing taxes as a student comes with unique opportunities and challenges. FINny provides guidance on claiming deductions for educational expenses, including tips on tuition credits, textbook deductions, and more.
- Financial Wellness Tips : To support students in establishing good financial habits, FINny shares actionable financial wellness tips. These include setting achievable financial goals, curbing impulse purchases, and reviewing budgets regularly to maintain financial health.
Whether you need help with loan calculations, budgeting, or understanding financial terminology, FINny is there to guide you every step of the way with accessible, student-friendly advice.
How we built it
We developed FLUNC using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript for the front end, alongside Python and Flask for the backend functionality. We integrated a main Student loan calculator and a skilled financial chatbot using API calls to Open AI. We also pulled in resources from reliable financial literacy sites and tools to ensure students have access to accurate information.
Challenges we ran into
One of our biggest challenges was making the platform intuitive and engaging. Financial topics can be dense and overwhelming, so we needed to ensure our design was user-friendly and visually appealing. Additionally, implementing the calculators accurately and testing them for various inputs to ensure precision was time-consuming.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
We’re proud to have created a comprehensive tool that fills a critical financial literacy gap for UNC students. From the functional calculators to the interactive chatbot, each feature contributes to our mission of enhancing financial literacy. We’re also proud of the platform's clean, accessible design, which makes it easy for any student, regardless of their background in finance, to use and benefit from.
What we learned
Building FLUNC taught us a lot about the technical aspects of creating financial tools and the importance of user-centric design in educational platforms. We also gained insights into the financial challenges students face and how crucial accessible financial literacy is for young adults.
What's next for FLUNC - Financial Literacy at UNC
We aim to expand FLUNC’s features, incorporating more personalized content, such as tailored financial advice based on user inputs. Additionally, we hope to collaborate with financial experts at UNC to offer virtual workshops and more interactive tools. We also plan to gather user feedback to improve and adapt FLUNC to meet students' evolving financial needs.
Footnote
In our video submission, we were unable to fully demonstrate all the features of FINny. We encourage you to go through the code and the demo to explore all the amazing features that FINny has! Please come up to our table to ask any questions. We are so excited to tell you about the rest of our site.
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