The purpose of this activity is to increase your understanding of how social and structural inequalities have affected and will continue to affect your lifestyles.

Stage 1:

Write a personal social history in which you provide details about your parents socioeconomic status in 250-350 words. Include:

How you thought about your parents status while you attended school as a child/teen

How you may have been labeled by teachers and peers because of their parents status

How peer selection was influenced by these factors

How your choice of college or university was affected by them, even if remotely.

Stage 2:

Make a budget that shows your anticipated earnings after graduation and how your after-tax monthly income will be spent.

Formats are found in magazines like Money and Fortune or numerous personal finance books.

You can obtain salary information online at the Bureau of Labor Statistics

http://www.bls.gov/ (Links to an external site.)

Include in your expense report:

Housing and other basic cost-of-living information for the city in which you plan to locate.