Broke again?
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How to improve your finances
by SIOBHAN O'CONNOR
With post-holiday wallet drain in full effect, it's hard not to get annoyed with yourself for being so, um, financially "unhealthy." Below are some crafty ways to learn to keep your bank statements looking a little better this new year. Also, self-betterment can be a costly project, so these courses should be able to help you keep your pocket-book as fit as the rest of you.
Billed as a kind of "Investments for Dummies" class, The Beginners' Guide to Investment is a non-credit course designed for amateur investors who want to learn the fundamentals of markets and how they work. A working understanding of basic mathematical principles is ideal, but mostly you just need a calculator and the desire to play the stocks and bonds game. The course will touch upon subjects like stocks, debt, equity, options, mutual funds and more. It's a 10-week class starting Feb. 20, $150 at Vanier College (815 Ste-Croix). Info: 744-7000.
The Personal Finance course offers the first of many, many steps toward "financial health." This basics course touches on the fundamentals of retirement plans, education savings plans and more. Also on the curriculum is an elucidation of our confusing taxation system, clearing up, for example, why that $4.31 is taken off your paycheque every month. Also at Vanier for $150.
If you'd rather skip straight to the cha-ching stuff, try the Beating the Stock Market course. This one helps you learn the basic concepts of trend analysis, which supposedly works like a wet finger to the wind for the stock market. The course's main focus is on timing, long- and short-term investments and trading. Previous stock market experience is recommended. Also at Vanier.
For those money-minded types who are a little more electronically inclined, Dawson College's continuing ed program offers an E-Commerce course (3040 Sherbrooke W., $295), open to anyone with a high school diploma and proof of residency. There you can learn how to maximize your profits with online trading as well as setting up an online business. With said market expanding exponentially every day, this course promises to clear up all the confusion that surrounds it, then teach you how to be a part of it.
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