Proposal

Date: To: From: February 8, 2014 Dr. Jeremy Reed, Technical Writing (En306) Instructor Central Methodist University Jennifer Jaboro, Project Group Leader Loren Ziegler, Project Group Member Katherine Bogler, Project Group Member Proposal for Debt Instruction Manual for EN306 Final Project

Subject:

Purpose
The purpose of our proposal is to secure permission to proceed with the instruction manual by explaining and justifying our project, describing our proposed manual, explaining how we will test its usability and providing a timeline, list of qualifications and a budget.

Summary
Our manual will provide instructions specifically geared towards college seniors between the ages of 22 and 25 at Central Methodist University. The instruction manual will explain to this audience how to save money and prepare for their future. It will help them to prevent debt or help them to get out of debt. In our manual, we also want to highlight wants versus needs. For example, in todays world, most of us have come to believe that new shoes or a new television are needs when they are, in fact, not. Also, going out to eat or going to the movies are not needs. Alcohol is also a want that can be very expensive. Seniors at CMU probably do not realize how much they spend on these wants. We need to try to teach our audience the difference between actual wants and needs. This may seem simple in thought, but is not in actuality. If we can point out how much money is actually being spent on these wants, we can help our audience save a lot of money. Some examples of needs are tuition, room and board, books, fees, food/drink, and transportation. Our manual needs to exist because there is no other reference out there geared towards our proposed audience. We want our graduates at CMU to be graduating with less debt or even no debt at all! Many college seniors have come to believe that graduating with debt is inevitable. We must get out of this mind-frame because the more they think this, the more they think that it is ok. Our manual could also be used as a reference in a senior level accounting class at CMU. Our manual could also be available to all seniors at CMU around campus. It could be something that advisors routinely hand-out to their students as they are preparing for senior year. If our manual is geared specifically towards seniors at CMU they will be more likely to use it because they know that the information it contains is specifically targeted towards them.

Section 1: Reasons senior level students acquire debt transitioning from Central Methodist University college life to real world living.

Central Methodist UniversityCollege of Liberal Arts & Sciences

Average debt of graduates 2012 Proportion of graduates w/debt 2012 Bachelor's degree recipients 2012 Full-time enrollment fall 2011 2011-12 In-state tuition and fees 2011-12 Total cost of attendance

$ 22,086 73% 259 1,103 $ 20,130 $ 30,860

The following information was taken from projectonstudentdebt.org. It is unfortunate that young adults that aspire to go to college cannot do so without taking on the debt that furthering education acquires. However, with the aid of this manual getting out of debt, and preventing debt can be a possibility with adopting the proposed tools. First, one must understand why exactly one is in his or her current situation. Having a visual of what the current financial status is and what the future goal will be is very important when having success with any program. Write down what the current financial situation is, where the costs are coming from, ie. tuition, cost of living, interest, etc. then, a realistic time line of where one plans to be. Keep in mind if a student has already obtained $30,000 dollars of debt several year plan needs to be put into place. The following manual is not a quick fix, rather a lifestyle change. Students without aid for education: For students that do not have the opportunity to have an extended education provided, the thought of overcoming the full cost of tuition for a Bachelors degree at Central Methodist University can be overwhelming. However, paying off the debt already obtained, or preventing debt once out of college can be prevented. With anything sacrifices will be made as previously mentioned, one must distinguish between a want and a need. Students that had the opportunity to receive a Bachelors degree with aid for education: For students that had the wonderful opportunity to go to Central Methodist University with assistance from financial aid programs, State or Federal programs, or parental assistance, years of work is already done. If the loan amount is minute, or nonexistent further instructions will be given of how to remain ahead of the game and

out of debt.

Section 2: Students without aid for education. For example purposes a hypothetical situation is going to be presented. It is May 2014 and a student has just graduated from Central Methodist University with a Bachelors degree in their desired field. Currently the student is in $61,720 of debt from the two years spent working on the degree. To be enrolled full time and give 100% the student opted out of working while enrolled. Student loans were taken, and since graduation date is here, the loan payments will start to arrive. Most importantly, start a job. Unfortunately, it may take months to find a career in the qualified position, but have no fear there is work available. Regardless of the amount being made, start chiseling away at the debt payments. Whatever the principle payment is, to get out of debt quicker one must pay over the recommended amount, even if it is only a few dollars. Being driven is something that Central Methodist University works to instill in all of their students. It is no surprise that the economy is in a poor situation and jobs are scarce. Central Methodist will have provided the tools and understanding that being persistent, hard working and having professionalism will eventually provide the desired career. Once out of college there can be no down time when it comes to the drive of advancing in life. Beginning work immediately and striving to continually move forward through promotions or opportunities will be the key in having the funds to pay for life. Having a visual of what the goal is help immensely in this process. $61,720 Debt Goal: $ 0 Year One: First Payment: $150 Second Payment: $150 Third Payment: $150 One year: $1800 Total: $59,920 Year Two: First Payment: $150 Second Payment: $150 Third Payment: $150 Year two: $1800 Total: $58,120

The first years are the hardest when paying off loans. The amount may seem like it is hardly decreasing, but it is decreasing. Beginning jobs are where foundations are

laid. Using the tools learned while obtaining a Bachelors Degree attending Central Methodist University one should not remain in entry level positions long.

Hard Facts: 1. Straight out of college begin working no matter the position, idle time is a waste of time. 2. When making student loan payments make more than the principle payment, even if it is a few dollars. Any spare change goes to the loan payment. Needs over Wants! 3. Using the tools learned attending Central Methodist University, work up the career ladder. This will allow for more income, thus leading to a faster decrease in loan amount due to more funds available. Section 3: Students that had the opportunity to receive a Bachelors degree with aid for education. For students that had the opportunity to go to college without having to obtain student loans received a wonderful opportunity. However, young adults are likely to obtain debt through other various decisions that will limit their ability to reach fullest potential. According to business.time.com, More than 20% overspent their income by more than $100. Thats every single month. And since they havent built up their credit histories yet, its a safe bet that these young adults are paying relatively high interest rates on the resulting credit card debt. Although more young people than older adults blame socializing as a barrier to saving money, most young people arent knocking back $20 drinks in trendy lounges. Theyre struggling with much more prosaic financial demands. For 42%, rent is their top expense, while 18% say transportation costs eat up the biggest chunk of their earnings and 22% say paying for food eats up the greatest share of their monthly budget. (MORE: Why More Americans Will Fall Behind on Credit-Card Bills This Year) To a disturbingly large extent, the young and the broke are relying on credit cards to make it until their next payday. This obviously isnt sustainable in the long run, and its going to put a huge drag on this demographics spending power even after they reach their peak earning years, because theyll still be paying interest on that carton of OJ or box of spaghetti they bought a decade earlier. A new study out of Ohio State University found that young adults are racking up credit card debt at a more rapid rate than other age groups, and that theyre slower at paying it off. If what we found continues to hold true, we may have more elderly people with substantial financial problems in the future, warns Lucia Dunn, coauthor and professor of economics at Ohio State University. If our findings persist,

we may be faced with a financial crisis among elderly people who cant pay off their credit cards. (MORE: The Verdict Is In: Tackle Smaller Debts First) Read more: Todays Young Adults Will Never Pay Off Their Credit Card Debts | TIME.com http://business.time.com/2013/01/17/todays-young-adults-will-neverpay-off-their-credit-card-debts/#ixzz2sgkkOOBK Senior aged Central Methodist Students may have made it through college without accumulating an immense amount of debt, but using credit cards as a means for payment can find young adults in a terrible situation fast.

Hard Facts: 1. Establishing a foundation in life is difficult. However, graduating from an accredited university like CMU was a great step number one. Do not be lured into taking on credit card debt, spending outside of means when it comes to renting or living expenses. One must understand that you cannot come out of the gate ahead, you must run the race. What I mean by that is it takes a life time to build success. 2. Credit cards and charge cards can be a great tool to build credit. Make sure that when deciding to use credit cards for that purpose they actually work on building credit (many do not). 3. Charge payment to the credit card and pay it off in store immediately. Do not wait for the bill to come in etc. that will leave the possibility those funds to pay for the NEED are used elsewhere. 4. In the beginning of adulthood sacrifices are made. The current world is very now make sure that needs are the only purchases. There will be plenty of time once success is made to purchase more needy items and actually own them. Section 4: Think future. Picture this, fresh out of college and at the starting gate of adulthood, set goals. Thus far life has been structured with classes, homework assignments, and due dates. The process to college is no mistake. Continue using the tools taught in college to study life, to prepare for challenges, and reach due dates. Hard Facts: 1. To prevent falling into debt one must have a clear plan. All through college one has been striving to achieve graduation. Life is no different the degree is to be successful in life; debt is a setback, a repeat course, and a waste of time. 2. Through college each semester and year is strategically planned out. Set the future up in that exact same way. This year I plan to achieve such goal by such date.

3. Through college one could not loan a class, or borrow someone elses work. Adopt that philosophy from post college young adulthood through life.

In a nutshell, continue applying the tools taught at Central Methodist University to transition from 22-24 year old seniors, to successful college graduates with credible careers.

Cited
"State by State Data." Project on Student Debt:. Web. 05 Feb. 2014. http://projectonstudentdebt.org/state_by_state-view2013.php?area=MO White, Martha C. "Business & Money." Business Money Todays Young Adults Will Never Pay Off Their Credit Card Debts Comments. N.p., 17 Jan. 2013. Web. 07 Feb. 2014. http://business.time.com/2013/01/17/todays-young-adults-will-never-pay-off-their-credit-carddebts/

Usability Test
Jennifer Jaboro
Test being used: The usability test I will be using to test our manual will be the read and locate test. This is where I will give 3 people the manual and a list of things to locate. Goals and Objectives: Quantitative Goals We want our users to determine how effective the manual is when it comes to locating important tools provided. This is a valuable goal because this manual will be effective in our users long-term money saving goals in life. Qualitative Goals We want our users to feel like they are getting everything out of this manual and really learning the importance of saving money. This is a valuable goal because we would like our users to potentially refer it to other people that they know might be struggling financially and/or may need a little advice. Tasks for the test: The tasks for the read and locate test are to read through the manual and locate all of the key aspects and most important things that stick out. I will conduct the usability test in an empty room in the library at CMU. I am looking for seniors. I will randomly ask people in the library what grade they are in. After I select 3 people who are seniors, I will then ask if they have time to sit down and read this manual. If they say yes, the users will be timed for 30 minutes while doing this. They will be asked to very carefully read the manual and with a pen and paper, write down what they feel stands out as very important. If the users are able to point out majority of the things that my group and I find most important, then the test was a success. These steps will determine if our goal is met or not because the purpose of this test is for the importance of this manual to stick out and really make a mark on the users thoughts so they are able to use the tools provided. Evaluation Measures From this test we will take all of our participants results and thoroughly look through them all. We want to determine if our manual is easily comprehended and that the most important tools are obvious and well pointed out. I will be looking over each user and observing whether they

are taking their time and really focusing on reading the manual, or if they are just skimming through it and not really paying attention. I will remind them of the time every 10 minutes so they are aware of how much longer they have during this test. The passing grade of this test would be if the user is able to find the most important information. The failing grade would be if the user just writes down the last thing they remember and is not really relevant to what we are looking for.

Usability Test
Loren Ziegler

Introduction: The purpose of my usability test is to determine how the readers comprehend the manual document regarding Central Methodist University Seniors aging from 22-25 staying out of debt. The test is conducted with individuals that are planning to graduate within the following year at Central Methodist University. The seniors are asked to read the manual and learn how to apply the recommended skills. The purpose is to set the foundation for a successful life and career after college without obtaining debt. The seniors/readers will then be tested to see if they understand what procedures and thought processing it will take to avoid making debt based decisions. I will be administering the summary usability test at Central Methodist University at: the library, in a common area with tables and chairs, or during a seniors free time. The test should correspond with the exit analysis given by Central Methodist University to all senior level students. The manual is paper form. The seniors will read the document, record their thoughts on staying out of dept on a given form provided by Loren Ziegler. The information the senior listed should state how to stay out of debt as a young adult graduating from Central Methodist University. The senior will summarize the information provided by the manual stating tips, cautionary steps, and motivational tools pertaining to staying out of debt.

Executive Summary: The usability test - summary for seniors to stay out of debt after graduation from Central Methodist University will take place on campus: at in the library, in a common area with tables and chairs, or during a seniors free time. The purpose of the test is to gain a better knowledge of how prepared seniors are for establishing a foundation for life that does not require obtaining debt. The manual given to the seniors will list tools, tips, motivation for staying out of debt, and ways to eliminate debt if there is already an accrued amount. The tips and tools given in the

manual are a continuation of lessons learned from Central Methodist University, however, a different perspective is put on the information to give a apply to life after college and classes approach. The test will be given to all seniors planning on graduating from Central Methodist University ranging from ages 22-25. The manual should only take about 30 minutes to read and the response to the information and recording of summary should take roughly 30 minutes. Totaling a time of 60 minutes spent on the staying out of debt manual and summary usability test. The demographic of seniors taking the usability test will be the senior population at Central Methodist University. International students do attend Central Methodist University. Disabled students also attend Central Methodist University. These students will be included in the data collected about preparedness for life after Central Methodist University staying debt free, or eliminating acquired debt. For students that are not fluent in English, the presenter of the usability test Loren Ziegler will read the information to the student. If the student does not understand English at all, an interpreter will be found at the testers expense. For students that are deemed Disabled, the presenter of the usability test Loren Ziegler will contact Central Methodist University for further procedure. At the Universities consent the test will be given to the disabled student with whatever provisions they request or need to be made.

Results: The results of the test will include how the seniors comprehended the manual presented. The seniors will record in the usability test summary how they felt they could apply and use the learned information to stay debt free after graduation from Central Methodist University. For students that are currently in student loan debt, tools on becoming debt free are presented in the manual. A summary of how they comprehended those tools and the tips of using the tools to become debt free will be recorded. The response given will be the determining factor of rather or not the senior comprehended, or was successful at understanding the information that was provided within the manual. An explanation of how to take the structure of Central Methodist University course structure, due dates, plagiarism (borrowing money/borrowing someone elses work) are explained in a way that seniors can continue the routine that has been practiced for the years spent at Central Methodist University. In the summary comprehension of the explanation and examples such as:

I [the senior] now understand that borrowing money or taking out a loan is much like plagiarism. Credit must be given to the original creator of the document. Payments must be made to the original loaner. Or, I will create my [the senior] own work and not borrow from outside help, thus not giving an outside source any credit other than myself [the senior]. If a response such as the one provided in the example is given, Loren Ziegler will know that the student was successful in the usability test summary. The senior will have learned the tools from the manual to apply Central Methodist University structure to decision making, as well as, applying the tips and tools provided in the manual to prevent debt-based decision making. The senior stopping to think about what he or she should not take on the debt is a tool provided by the manual. The reflection to plagiarism is a tool learned from Central Methodist University, but brought to light by the staying out of debt for seniors at Central Methodist University manual. Staying out of debt or getting out of student loan debt, building a foundation for life after Central Methodist University. For seniors ranging from aged 22-25 graduating from the University. Name: Date: Age: Graduation Date: Degree Field: Ethnicity: Location of where test was presented: Summary of information learned from presented manual: Summary of what tools learned from Central Methodist University that can be applied in comparison to avoid debt. Summary of the goal for life after college: Example: *The first year after college I would like to begin working to pay off current student loans and climb the career ladder in my desired degree field (using tips from manual). *The first year after college I would like to avoid obtaining debt by using the manual tools in this way (using tips from manual):

*The first year after college I would like to develop a future goals plan list those goals. Summary of test interpretation, usefulness, overall perception, and feeling while taking, and after completing the manual test and usability summary.

Usability Test
Katherine Bogler
The usability test I will be using is the document markup test. This is one of more informal forms of usability testing. During the document markup test participants read through the document marking where they are having trouble or do not understand.

Goals and Objectives

Quantitative: We would like our participants to be able to read through our manual and be able to easily understand the tasks and tips stated. We want our manual to be intuitive where it can be easily understood by our audience. This goal is important because CMU seniors are busy. They want to be able to quickly find the information they are seeking. If it takes too long, they are likely to get frustrated and go to a different source. Qualitative: Our goal for our manual is that its audience is able to use the information they have gained from it and use this information to successfully save money and stay out of debt. We know that our manual will not provide instant satisfaction because it will take time to put the tips to use and see their benefits. The first step is that the audience can understand it, and they feel that it is realistic. We want current users to recommend it to future users!

Tasks for Test I will use three CMU seniors from my current classes as participants in the test. I will conduct the test in a small room in the library at East Central College. This is where
my CMU classes are located. The rooms need to be reserved, so I will be sure to reserve enough time for all three participants to complete the test. I will provide each participant with a different colored marking pen so I can distinguish between each test. The participants will be given 30 minutes to complete the test. I will give them a time reminder at 15 minutes. After the test I will look through each sample manual. I will review each manual to see if the participants ran into trouble at the same places, different places or any place at all.

Evaluation

I plan to remain in the room during each test observing the participants and taking notes on their mannerisms while reading the manual. Do they seem frustrated, relaxed, interested, bored, etc.? I will take notes on any comments or questions they have for me. I will document the amount of time it took them to read the manual. The amount of markups on the manuals determines the success of the test. The more the markups, the less successful the test. The less the markups, the more successful the test. I would consider 0 markups as exceptional. I will compare each test to see if there are common spots in the manual where the participants run into trouble

Qualifications and Experience of Group Members

Each member of our group will have the task of choosing two important steps or tips to saving money and/or preventing debt. We will discuss these steps or tips we chose with one another so there are no repeats of the same topic. No group member is more qualified than another, therefore it does not matter which task is given to what member. Some examples of the tips or tasks that could be used are: Cheaper ways to buy textbooks at CMU Alternative transportation offered to students or that students could use Meal plans Student Loans and Grants Checking and savings accounts offered to students Getting organized! What social venues offer student discounts? Each group member is qualified to create this instruction manual because we are all currently seniors at CMU graduating within the next year. We have experienced how expensive college can be and have a lot of knowledge on how we can save money. This manual applies to our current lives. We are all attempting to save for our futures while thinking about starting to pay on our student loans. We are, in a way, writing this manual for ourselves because we get to learn new ways, as seniors at CMU, to help us save money and pay of debt in more efficient, faster ways.

Budget
Gas: $80. Jennifer and Loren will be spending about $20./week on gas driving about 40 minutes to meet up with each other. Ink: $15. Paper: $2. ------------------------------Total: $97.