Final Project Report Guideline
Introduction:
This comprehensive final project report encapsulates the culmination of the whole course learnings of Personal Financial Planning course. The primary objective of this project is to apply theoretical knowledge to practical scenarios, offering robust financial plans for individuals or families. The project delves into various aspects, including data analysis, strategy development, and effective communication of financial plans.
Project Components:
Data Gathering and Analysis:
- Collect all your financial information and keep a good record of it.
- Utilize Excel to analyze your financial statements.
Financial Planning Recommendations:
- Develop a comprehensive financial plan tailored to you, addressing short-term, medium and long-term goals.
- Integrate strategies for budgeting, investment, retirement, insurance, tax, and estate planning.
Implementation Strategy:
- Outline a clear and feasible plan for implementing the financial strategies.
- Consider timelines, responsibilities, and potential challenges in the implementation process.
Assessment:
The project report will be evaluated based on the Rubrics attached below
Sheet1
| Major Parts of the report | Weight (%) | Excellent (8.5-10) | Good (7.6-8.4) | Satisfactory (6.8-7.5) | Marginal/Unsatisfactory (0-6.7) |
| Assumptions (life expectancy, time to retirement, future retirement income , exchange rate, inflation rate, future income, pension eligiblity and estimete) | 10 | All five assumptions are described individually and clearly. | There are 2-3 assumptions are described individually or clearly. | Only one assumption is described clearly. | No assumptions were provided |
| Financial analyses: Cash Flow Statement, Income/ Expenses, and Balance Sheet. All components of the financial planning have been included. | 50 | Tracked cash flow and balance sheet assets and liabilities included in detail and Income/Expenses included two pie charts, | Tracked cash flow, income/expenses, and/or balance sheet included | Tracked cash flow, income/expenses, and or balance sheet partially included. | No cash flow tracking, pie charts, or balance sheet assets and liabilities. |
| Strategies for future improvement in money management. | 20 | Strategies to improve future money management (spending habit and increase annual income, reducing indebtedness) has been clearly explained | some of the strategies to improve future money management situation lack details | All of the strategies to improve future money management lack details | No strategies to improve future money management is discussed |
| Recommendations | 10 | Specific recommendations provided that go beyond the expected scope of individual situations fully supported by data, alternate viewpoints fully considered | Specific recommendations provided that are substantially correct, alternate viewpoints may be considered | Recommendations provided that are partially correct, alternate viewpoints not considered | Recommendations provided that are mostly incorrect or absent |
| References, grammar, sentence structure, paragraphing, vocabulary, spelling, punctuation and clarity | 10 | References used are cited using APA format both in the text and the list of references. The whole report is clearly expressed using proper writing mechanics. There are no mistakes. | Minor mistakes in reference citation using APA format. There are very few minor issues with writing mechanics | Significant mistakes in using APA format. Multiple items are not described individually or clearly. | APA format is not followed in citation of references. Several items negatively impact clarity, grammar, spelling or structural errors, and unknown abbreviations. |
| 100 |
,
Instruction to final project
This project is based on the data that you have been collecting so far since the beginning of the class (your or your family’s) income and expenses. Prepare your own financial plan!
Use at least one month’s or 6 weeks data that shows all your expenses and incomes. Expand it to 12 months which shows your annual financial data. Make sure that you detailed all sources of income and catagorized all your expenses into fixed, variable, and discretionary expenses.
Based on your collected financial data,
1. Prepare your cash flow statement. Just like your previous individual assignment, add screenshots of your financial analysis (from Excel). Use a pie chart to show your categorized expenses.
2. Comment on your spending habit and pinpoint options or possibilities to reduce your expenses or improve your spending pattern or habit,
3. Prepare your current balance sheet.
4. Create your improved future budget and link that to your SMART goals. Your goals should be short-term (saving for emergency fund), medium-term (your own choice) and long-term goal (Retirement). Clearly show how you want to achieve those goals.
5. Indicate your investment plans to achieve your goals even if you are not investing currently. Discuss the types of funds that will help you achieve your goals and estimate the possible investment returns for your investments. Choose a specific asset allocation that matches your risk tolerance and time horizon by creating a pie chart in Excel of specific investments that you would like to invest in. Please choose any investment that you think is better from the link below https://www.bankrate.com/investing/best-investments/#what-to-consider or any other investment options that you are aware of, may be from your own experience, country, and others).
6. Explain your risk management plans.
Remember that any financial plan should have basic assumptions (like life expectancy, time to retirement, how much you should save by the time you retire, exchange rate, inflation rate, and others)
The report has to be written using APA format i.e,
1. Double-space all text, including headings.
2. Use an accessible font (e.g., Times New Roman 12pt., Arial 11pt., or Georgia 11pt.).
There will be a 5 % reduction of mark for any additional one page of report. APA format of citation must be used. A screenshot of your financial statements and asset allocation must be added inside the body of the report, not in an appendix.
The report should be 4-5 pages (excluding cover page, table of contents and bibliography).