Welcome to BAF 101 - I01: Personal Finance
Summer 2009
Instructor: Steve McMillion

Course Description

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This course covers practical applications of concepts and techniques used in managing personal finances. Major areas of study include financial planning, budgeting, time value of money, credit use, housing, insurance, investments and retirement planning.

The required text is Focus on Personal Finance, 2th edition, by Kapoor, Dlabay, and Hughes, published by McGraw-Hill. In addition to the text, other important course material is available such as slide presentations, lectures and videos for each chapter, homework solutions, practice problems, tables, and handouts. This information can be accessed through your WebCT.

No special calculator is required. If you already own a specialty or comprehensive calculator, feel free to use it. However, a simple four-function calculator will be sufficient for this course.

Students are graded on the basis of their exam and quiz scores, scores on related assigned homework, and participation in on-line self-testing. More information on tests and grades is available on WebCT.

All testing and assignments are to be completed on-line through WebCT.

Adding the Course in WebCT

After you have registered with the college for BAF 101 Section I01, but not before Friday, May 15, you can begin the process of registering for the course on WebCT.

If you have not taken an internet course before, be sure to read "Should I be taking an internet course?" below before registering.

To register in WebCT for this course, please use following instructions:

  1. Go to WebCT 6.0 at courses6.midlandstech.edu
  2. If this is your first time on WebCT 6.0, click "Create Account" and follow the on-line instructions. AFTER CREATING YOUR ACCOUNT, DO NOT LOG IN. CLICK THE "ENTRY PAGE" BUTTON. (Note: if you have previously created an account, it is not necessary to do so again. Just go to the next step.)
  3. Click "Course List".
  4. Click "2009 Summer Internet-Hybrid Courses"
  5. Click to the left of "BAF_Banking and Finance_SU09" to expand the course list.
  6. Find "101 I01 Summer 2009" on the course list, click the icon and follow the instructions for self-registration.
  7. You will now be asked to log-in. This will take you to your WebCT Homepage, where you should click "BAF 101-I01" to enter the course.
  8. Hereafter, you will only have to log in to access your courses.

Orientation


Complete all the items in the online orientation. As you complete them, click on the circle shown for each item to indicate that you have completed it and save your answer. Be sure to follow the instructions within the orientation. When all the items are saved, click the FINISH button. You will receive a verification message that your orientation has been submitted.

 If there are any questions or problems concerning self-registration or orientation, please contact the instructor, Steve McMillion, by email at mcmillions@midlandstech.edu.

For any issues in operating WebCT, you can find instructions for getting help through the distance learning page at the Midlands Technical College web site, or click on "Help" in the upper right corner of each WebCT page.

Should I be taking an internet course?

When you sign up for an on-line course, you are giving up approximately 40 hours of classroom instruction. This instruction must be made up by the student if he/she is to be successful in the course. That means that there is a lot of "extra" studying to do in an on-line course.

Taking an on-line course is not for everyone. It certainly is not for you if your motivation in taking a course on-line is to save time and get an easy grade. Students that are the most successful in an on-line study environment frequently exhibit some or all of the following traits:


If you don't see yourself reflected in the above, perhaps you'd want to consider taking the course on-campus.