For many of you who will graduate from college any day now, you're starting one of the most fun, scary and challenging times of your life. You're facing a huge change — and you may have a hard time coping, whether you're moving to a new city to start your career, or moving back in with your parents to job-hunt.

I recently came across a fabulous article  about how to handle those first 30 days after graduating from college. The tips range from the simple and practical (make sure you have a professional-sounding email address) to the deeper, emotional stuff (how to handle the loss of your college support system).

I wish I'd read a guide like this when I graduated. The months following my college graduation were probably much more stressful than they needed to be.

What will your first 30 days after graduation bring?

Posted by Caroline at 09:44 AM |  Contact Caroline |  Permalink  |  Comments (0)
Found in Financial education, Post-college, Preparing, Wells Fargo Bank

If you're graduating from college this spring, you probably can't imagine not being on campus — hanging out in the dorms, roaming the library stacks, playing Frisbee  on the green. But once you graduate, why would you go back?

That's a question I've struggled with for a long time.

I've been out of school for awhile, and until recently I hadn't set foot on my college campus in about five years. Considering that I live in the city where my college is located, that's pretty sad. But I figured I'd already had my four years, and there was a whole new generation of students to whom the campus now belonged. I guess I didn't think I was welcome.

A few months ago, though, things changed: I was recruited for a leadership board at my alma mater . Since then I've had a chance to spend some time on campus, with recent graduates, and with this year's graduating class. I've reconnected with some of my own college classmates on Facebook . And I've been asked to help with a Class of '93 tailgate at homecoming — my 15-year reunion, gasp! — this fall.

After all this time away, it feels good to be back.

As you're graduating, you're probably experiencing two emotions, maybe even simultaneously: that you can't wait to get out of there, and that you're so sad to go. I think that's completely normal.

But I also think that as you move on, it's important for you to stay connected to your college in the ways that matter to you, whether it's through your relationships with friends and professors, your support of arts or athletics, your gifts to the annual fund, or your participation in the alumni association.

So my advice to you, new graduates, is this: After giving yourself some necessary time and space away from college, you can — and should — go back. You are welcome, and you belong there. Don't wait as long as I did.

Congratulations to the Class of 2008!

Posted by Staci at 12:58 PM |  Contact Staci |  Permalink  |  Comments (0)
Found in College, Looking back, Post-college, Wells Fargo Bank

Back in February, I wrote about the possibility of lower student loan interest rates. We're getting closer to the possible rate changes for variable interest rate federal student loans (those made before July 1, 2006). Remember, those can change every July 1.

Are you getting antsy to know if the rates will change? Well, you can get a good idea right now.

Variable rate loans are based on the 91-day Treasury bill . Specifically, they're based on the investment rate of the last 91-day T-bill auction in May. This year that's May 27. Federal Stafford and PLUS loans with variable rates each have a margin that's added on to this base rate. They also have a maximum rate.

Here are the margins and what the rates are right now:

If you're wondering where these rates might be headed, you can check out how the 13 week treasury bills auctions have been going.

To see what the rates have been doing, you can perform a search on the Treasury Department web site . Just set the dates you want and be sure to click the 13-week box (that's 91 days…see, I can be a little mathy!) so you see only those auction results.

And make sure you're watching the investment rate. That's the interest rate to which the margin will be added.

Posted by Barbara at 07:20 AM |  Contact Barbara |  Permalink  |  Comments (0)
Found in Federal loans, Financial education, Paying, Preparing, Student loans, Wells Fargo Bank

A few weeks ago, I watched the protests around the Olympic torch  with quite a bit of interest. You see, I had already booked and paid for a family trip to Beijing to see the Olympics  this August!

This is something that we had planned on for some time, and we had saved up for this trip over the last couple of years. We even cut back on vacation plans in 2007 to make sure we had enough money set aside for the trip. Generally I am very careful with my money, but I knew that for a once-in-a-lifetime experience like this, I would find a way to make it work!

Before I leave for China, there is one important thing I will do: I will call my credit card issuer and let them know that I am traveling overseas. Credit card companies monitor cardholders' transactions for suspicious activity — this way, they can detect any fraudulent card usage quickly and protect their cardholders by shutting down their card. Transactions in a foreign country are sometimes a red flag for this monitoring, so I will let them know not to shut down my card due to purchases being made in China.

So, barring any unforeseen circumstances, my family and I will be cheering on Team USA  in person this August!

Anyone out there planning to join us?

Posted by David at 08:00 AM |  Contact David |  Permalink  |  Comments (0)
Found in Credit card fraud, Credit cards, Travel, Wells Fargo Bank

One of my great pet peeves in life is late fees. Whether they're at the video store, the library or on my credit card bill — it drives me crazy to have to pay extra just because I'm disorganized.

Recently my Gap  credit card bill arrived with a $20 late fee attached. Oops, I forgot to tell my husband that I applied for the card — he thought the first bill was junk mail and tossed it.

Fortunately, I was able to explain the circumstances to the nice people at the Gap, and they reversed the charge. But that only works once in a great while!

Then my stepdaughter found a $20 late fee on her credit card bill. Her bill comes to our house, and she ended up paying it a few days late. This was the first time she wasn't able to pay off her credit card without carrying a balance, so seeing the late fee in addition to the accrued interest is not something that she's likely to forget soon!

It seems like I'm always paying late fees on silly things like movies we rent or books I check out from the library. While these aren't much, they do add up over time. My new system to avoid these fees involves leaving myself a Post-It note  on our back door to remind me when things are due.

Hey, whatever works!

How do you stay organized to avoid late fees?

Posted by Caroline at 09:01 AM |  Contact Caroline |  Permalink  |  Comments (5)
Found in Credit cards, Fees, Money management, Paying, Wells Fargo Bank