NEW HAVEN, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Higher One announced the winners of its annual Money on My Mind Video Contest, which asked college students to submit a video sharing money management advice with fellow students. More than 100 entries from college students across the country were submitted, offering some great—and entertaining—money secrets and advice. The winners were selected based on overall appeal, creativity, originality, quality and value.
In addition to the top three prizewinners listed below, four runners-up also received $100 each for their winning entries. The winning videos and runners-up can be viewed on Higher One’s $tart With Change site.
- First place and $2,000: Jessica Kotik, Kent State University
- Second place and $500: Joshua Bonzo, American River College
- Third place and $250: Benjamin Schmidt, University of Missouri-Columbia
“Our Money on My Mind contest encourages students to share personal experiences and advice in a peer-to-peer format—which we have found to be a very effective way to share financial knowledge,” said Mary Johnson, Vice President of Financial Literacy and Student Aid Policy at Higher One. “All of our winning submissions do a great job of sharing essential money management tips in engaging ways. We’re proud to see students becoming financially capable adults.”
Mirroring a newscast for college students, first place winner Jessica Kotik offered tips on how to save money on textbooks, find ways to earn extra cash and look for scholarships, including small dollar amounts. “Saving Money 101,” a silent film from second place winner Joshua Bonzo, shared a story about renting textbooks instead of buying them, not buying unnecessary items, especially clothing, and not spending money by eating out all the time.
Third-place winner, college senior Benjamin Schmidt, used his submission to travel back in time to share money tips with his freshman self, saying, “College is a really fun time, but it can also be a very expensive time with tuition, dorms and dining halls. Saving money is crucial to both your future and current happiness. The key to saving money is making good use of your resources, including checking textbooks out from the campus library instead of buying them new.”
Other winning entries shared tips on finding a bank account with online access and financial management tools, earning money with an on- or off-campus job, utilizing recipes found online to cook cheap, healthy meals, using cash instead of credit cards to limit spending and, if possible, having multiple checking accounts to segment spending.
This year’s contest saw the highest level of interaction from students with approximately 110 comments received on the $tart With Change site, where commenters had the chance to win gift cards for commenting with their own money tips. One commenter responded, “I think all of these videos had great ideas. All of the contestants did amazing jobs and I learned a lot from their videos. I want to thank them all for helping me and for showing me so many tips.”
Additionally, this year students were invited to vote for their “fan favorite” submission, won by Leslie Windless from Baker College. Windless, in addition to her runner-up prize, received $200 for wining the fan vote.
About Higher One Holdings, Inc.
Higher One Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:ONE) is a leading financial technology company focused on providing cost-saving solutions that enhance student service for the business office of colleges and universities. Higher One’s technologies for higher education institutions streamline the processes of financial aid disbursement and payment acceptance. Higher One also provides options for students and families to manage college-related expenses, such as unique student-banking services, and financial education through $tart with Change. Higher One supports more than 1,500 campuses and more than 9 million students across the U.S. More information can be found at www.higherone.com.
