Abstract: The paper aims to assess the awareness, knowledge, and experience of university students regarding personal finances. Responses were collected from university students at various public and private sector universities. A total of 148 students were randomly selected for the study and were made to fill out a questionnaire comprising of different questions that assessed their financial acumen. Perceived knowledge of personal finance and financial management skills were measured using a 5-point Likert scale from F (no skill at all) to A (very skillful) on 12 personal finance and management-related items: knowledge of money management skills, type of guidance chosen for financial money management, the presence of financial goals, savings for financial goals, money management approach, ability to distinguish between credit card and debit card, level of understanding of compound interest, the type of knowledge sought to improve personal finances, the importance given to emergency funds, the importance given to retirement savings, the personal finances topic chosen for more learning, and the level of knowledge about personal finances. The scores for the financial management skills were computed, and the results revealed gender differences in the score. Regarding personal finances, students indicated that they needed greater awareness of matters related to money and financial management. The study further found that most students would turn to a family member or friend for general financial money management guidance. It was also revealed that a vast majority of the students had set financial goals for themselves and were saving towards them. Finally, the majority of the students singled out investing as the topic of choice related to personal finances for further learning.

Key words: financial education, financial management skills, personal finance, financial knowledge