Is 45 Too Old to Get a Finance Degree?

Age-based Grants and Scholarships

For many students, paying for college is one of the hardest parts of higher education. If that is any deterrent to earning your degree in finance at 45, you might be relieved to know that there are multiple grants and scholarships available to encourage students to return to college or pursue a first degree later in life. This reduced financial burden could make earning a degree easier for a student in their 40s.

Career Advancement or Changing Careers

Students in their 40s are more likely to have been working for a longer time than college students right out of high school. As a result, these students are more likely to be looking for career advancement or a change in their career. Earning a degree in finance is a great way to position yourself for promotions or to go for a new career in financial management.

Life Experience

Another good reason to go to school in your 40s is that you'll have plenty of life experience to help add meaning to your coursework. Especially in a degree like finance, having real-world context to apply to coursework can help you understand the material better.

You'll also be better suited after graduation to make recommendations for individuals and organizations as you'll have experienced things firsthand, as opposed to working solely off economic theories.

What Will I Learn in a Finance Degree Program?

Finance is a degree based heavily on numbers, both calculations and analysis. As a result, many of the classes that you'll take in a financial management degree program will revolve around numbers.

Although different colleges will have different names for certain classes, the general principles taught will be universal.

Some of the classes you can expect in a finance degree program include:

• accounting
• economics
• risk management
• financial analysis
• statistics

What Can I Do with My Finance Degree?

Finance degrees can set graduates up for careers working with individuals to handle retirement plans and other investments as well as with organizations' planning budgets.

Financial Advisor

The financial advisor career path is built around helping people understand their current finances and advising them on the best products and services to improve their financial outlook for the future. This can come in the form of wealth management services and retirement planning.

Tax Associate

A person working as a tax associate can work with businesses or individuals to make sure they remain compliant with IRS regulations. Tax associates help identify deductions and adjustments which makes them particularly useful for businesses looking to minimize expenses.

Budget Analyst

Companies often hire budget analysts to help monitor budgets and other performance-related data. The role of these analysts is often to try to see where there is financial waste within an organization. Having a finance degree gives applicants the skills they need to properly review and understand the data they are analyzing.

Auditor

Governments, companies, and even private individuals are all subject to auditors. The job of an auditor is to review the finances of an entity and make sure that all financial claims being made are accurate.

FAQs About Starting a Finance Degree at 45

Having questions before starting any degree program is natural. There are several common questions that people ask when starting a finance degree at 45.

Are There Benefits to Starting My Finance Degree at 45?

There are multiple benefits to starting a finance degree at 45. One of the biggest is the career opportunities that having a degree can create. Other benefits include the added life experience that a person in their 40s will have, as well as additional skills that make it easier to handle college.

Will Transfer Credits Apply to My Finance Degree?

In most cases, you will be able to transfer credits to a finance degree program, but there are a few key exceptions. One of the biggest is if the credits were earned from a non-accredited or nationally accredited school. Most colleges will only accept credits that come from regionally accredited colleges.

Another factor that could impact the transferability of your credits would be the degree requirements of your school. If, for example, you started a degree in marketing, some of the business-specific courses will transfer while some of the more specialized courses won't.

Luckily, most schools have transfer guides on their websites or academic advisors who can look at your transcripts and help you understand which credits you can transfer.

What If I Already Have a Degree in Another Field?

Depending on what field the degree is in, you might be able to transfer credits or use it to satisfy requirements for a graduate-level finance degree. Most business, mathematics, or accounting degrees will have overlapping courses with finance that could reduce your course load, but it's always a good idea to talk to an academic advisor before transferring or starting your degree.

Can I Complete My Finance Degree Online?

You can complete a finance bachelor's degree online from both online only and traditional colleges. Completing your finance degree online is a great option for students who also work or need a more flexible and affordable financial management degree. It's important to verify the accreditation status of a school before applying.