Financial education and responsible consumption in undergraduate management students

In recent years, many countries have implemented policies to promote Financial Education (FE) among citizens as a mechanism for boosting economic development and social prosperity. Since 2008, Spain has had a national FE strategy that primarily promotes basic FE among students in compulsory education. This study analyzes first-year university students’ perception of the FE acquired in earlier educational stages and its practical application in their personal lives through the acquisition of responsible consumption habits. A survey is carried out in which students are asked how certain basic financial attributes (savings, investment, budgeting, expenses, income and quality of life), translate into everyday life, and their relationship is analyzed with their perception of the importance of FE, and certain values such as honesty, responsibility and solidarity, by applying a PLS-SEM methodology. The results allow us to extract proposals for improving public policies on FE in university studies and in earlier stages. [Display omitted] •Financial Education (FE) has acquired special importance in today's society for making financial decisions by citizens.•Significant population segments in the developed world do not have the necessary knowledge or understanding to cope with elementary financial decisions.•We analyze whether students have responsible consumption habits and whether they are linked to their appreciation of the importance of FE and its attributes.•It would be necessary to promote knowledge of the concepts of saving, spending, investment and quality of life, so that a better knowledge and attitude would be associated with a greater ability to consume responsibly.