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Minnesota personal finance standards and requirements

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Minnesota requires students who enter grade 9 in the 2024-25 school year or later to complete a personal finance course for credit in grade 10, 11, or 12 before graduating. The course must center personal finance, but districts determine its credit value, local standards, schedule, and curriculum. It is separate from Minnesota's required mathematics, economics, and broader social studies credits. Minnesota has not adopted statewide academic standards for this new course; Department of Education guidance instead recommends six content areas for local course development.[1][3][4]

Last reviewed September 20, 2026

View official sources
Stand-alone course
Yes
Graduation requirement
Yes
Credit / duration
Course for locally determined credit; no statewide credit amount
Effective / cohort
2024-25 entering grade-nine cohort

What Minnesota requires

Minnesota's personal finance mandate applies by cohort. Students entering grade 9 in 2024-25 or later must successfully complete a course for credit in personal finance during grade 10, 11, or 12. The statute does not name a first graduating class, and this record preserves the official entering-cohort language rather than converting it to an assumed class year.[1][2][4]

The required course is separate from economics and mathematics graduation credits. MDE says personal finance content and skills should be the course's primary focus, and a personal finance offering placed in a mathematics or social studies department does not count toward that subject's minimum state credits. Approved CTE program options may be used when they meet applicable program rules.[3][4][5]

Minnesota does not prescribe a uniform credit amount. Districts choose the value under local credit policies and may account for semester, trimester, block, virtual, and other schedules. Qualifying teachers must hold a field license or out-of-field permission in agricultural education, business, family and consumer science, social studies, or mathematics.[1][3][4]

No statewide academic standards or benchmarks govern the required personal finance course. The separate 2021 social studies economics standards include personal finance, but MDE expressly distinguishes those standards from the new course requirement. Statewide guidance recommends two recurring outcomes and six focus areas for districts developing local standards and curriculum.[3][6]

The course should make personal finance its primary focus and may sit within social studies, business education, mathematics, family and consumer sciences, agricultural education, or outside a department. It does not count toward the minimum required mathematics or social studies credits; local districts determine credit value and locally developed standards.[1][3][4][5]
Grades / placement
Grades 10-12
Responsible agency
Minnesota Department of Education
Assessment required
Not located
Evidence
6 primary sources

Implementation timeline

  1. Milestone 01

    Chapter 55 enacted the personal finance course graduation requirement.[2]

  2. Milestone 02

    The requirement began with students entering grade 9 in the 2024-25 school year.[1]

  3. Milestone 03

    MDE published final statewide implementation guidance for locally developed courses.[3]

  4. Milestone 04

    Minnesota's separate 2021 social studies standards, including the economics personal-finance anchor, reach full implementation.[6]

Minnesota personal finance standards

The complete list below contains all 6 required personal finance topics currently identified in the controlling state materials. Each topic remains separate so educators and search engines can find the exact requirement.

Recommended course-content framework

Minnesota has no binding academic standards for the required course. These six official guidance areas are recommendations for districts developing local course standards and content, not statewide performance benchmarks.

  1. 01
    Guidance Focus Area 1Locally developed grades 10-12 coursePDF pages 4-5

    Financial psychology

    Evaluate beliefs, culture, information sources, advertising, social media, behavioral bias, decision-making processes, and goal setting that influence financial behavior.[3]

  2. 02
    Guidance Focus Area 2Locally developed grades 10-12 coursePDF pages 4-6

    Earning and income

    Connect education, careers, employment offers, benefits, pay statements, taxes, economic conditions, and postsecondary decisions to income and financial security.[3]

  3. 03
    Guidance Focus Area 3Locally developed grades 10-12 coursePDF pages 4-7

    Financial systems

    Compare financial institutions, products, services, payment systems, consumer protections, regulatory roles, financial technology, and access to financial services.[3]

  4. 04
    Guidance Focus Area 4Locally developed grades 10-12 coursePDF pages 4-8

    Credit and debt management

    Evaluate credit products, scores, reports, interest, loan terms, student debt, predatory practices, repayment strategies, and the long-term consequences of borrowing.[3]

  5. 05
    Guidance Focus Area 5Locally developed grades 10-12 coursePDF pages 4-9

    Risk management

    Assess financial risks, insurance products and costs, fraud, identity theft, data privacy, emergency planning, and strategies for protecting income and assets.[3]

  6. 06
    Guidance Focus Area 6Locally developed grades 10-12 coursePDF pages 4-10

    Budgeting and investing

    Develop spending and saving plans, compare investments, apply compound growth, evaluate risk and diversification, and plan for retirement and other long-term goals.[3]

Relevant law, rule, or board action

Minn. Stat. § 120B.024, subd. 1(b)

Credits and personal finance graduation requirement

Requires the covered grade-nine cohorts to complete a personal finance course for credit in grade 10, 11, or 12 and specifies eligible teacher-license fields.[1]

Notes for teachers and curriculum leaders

  • Create local academic standards for the required course; Minnesota has not adopted statewide personal finance course standards. The MDE framework is recommended guidance rather than binding benchmarks.[3][4]
  • Keep the personal finance credit separate from required mathematics and social studies credits. Even when housed in one of those departments, the course cannot double-count toward the minimum credit in that subject.[3][4]
  • Set the course credit value through local policy and ensure the assigned teacher has an eligible field license or out-of-field permission.[1][3]

Official sources

  1. 1
    Minnesota Statutes, section 120B.024: CreditsMinnesota Revisor of Statutes · statute · published 2025 · accessed 2026-09-20Locator: Subdivision 1(b)Supports: graduation requirement, 2024-25 entering cohort, grades 10-12, course for credit, teacher licensure
  2. 2
    Laws of Minnesota 2023, Chapter 55Minnesota Revisor of Statutes · bill · published 2023-05-24 · accessed 2026-09-20Locator: Article 2, section 7 and effective-date clauseSupports: enactment, 2024-25 effective school year, original course language
  3. 3
    2024 Minnesota Personal Finance Education Statewide GuidanceMinnesota Department of Education · agency guidance · published 2025-02-28 · accessed 2026-09-20Locator: PDF pages 1-10 and 34-44Supports: implementation, local credit amount, no statewide course standards, course focus, six recommended content areas, CTE options
  4. 4
    Frequently Asked Questions: Personal Finance LegislationMinnesota Department of Education · agency guidance · published 2025-04-09 · accessed 2026-09-20Locator: PDF pages 1-2, questions 1-7Supports: covered students, qualifying courses, local credit determination, separation from economics, lack of state course standards
  5. 5
    Graduation RequirementsMinnesota Department of Education · agency guidance · accessed 2026-09-20Locator: Minimum state credits, personal finance course, and credit equivalenciesSupports: current graduation requirements, personal finance course, separate subject credits
  6. 6
    Social Studies Education Standards Review and RevisionMinnesota Department of Education · agency guidance · published 2026 · accessed 2026-09-20Locator: 2021 standards status and implementation scheduleSupports: separate social studies standards, 2026-27 full implementation

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Frequently asked questions

Does Minnesota require a personal finance course to graduate?

Yes. Students entering grade 9 in 2024-25 or later must complete a course for credit in personal finance during grade 10, 11, or 12.[1][4]

How much personal finance credit does Minnesota require?

Minnesota requires a course for credit but does not set one statewide credit value. Each district determines the amount under its local credit policy and schedule.[3][4]

Can Minnesota's personal finance course replace economics or mathematics credit?

No. MDE treats the personal finance course as separate from the required economics, social studies, and mathematics credits, even when the course is housed in one of those departments.[3][4]

What standards govern Minnesota's required personal finance course?

Minnesota has no statewide academic standards for the course. Districts develop local standards and may use MDE's six recommended content areas for course planning.[3][4]

Who may teach the Minnesota personal finance course?

The teacher must have a field license or out-of-field permission in agricultural education, business, family and consumer science, social studies, or mathematics.[1]