After Jay Dacey graduated from St. Thomas in 2002, he signed up for a free credit reporting service.

“It kind of burned me because it was a trick where after 30 days, they started billing you $19 a month,” he said.

He called to cancel the service, but the company continued to charge him. After a year, he had wracked up $200 on his credit.

“I didn’t believe I need to pay that,” he said. “I just kept arguing with the company [to get rid of the charges].”

When he went to buy a house, that $200 haunted him. He had a 640 on his credit score—the equivalent to a C.

“I had a little bit of a difficulty getting a mortgage because that was on my credit score,” he said.

Now, Dacey wants to help prepare students for finances in the real world by helping out with the Undergraduate Student Government’s “Money Talks” series, three alumni-led discussions about different financial subjects that are important to undergraduate students before and after graduation. The first session was Wednesday night in the 3M Auditorium.

“There’s really no secret to personal finance,” Dacey said. “It’s really about not spending more than you make.”

Senior Scott Hansen helped plan “Money Talks” with hopes of easing stress for students.

“Pretty much anybody has had stress about their finances at one time or another,” he said. “It’s only going to become more stressful if they don’t know what’s going on. … Taking the wisdom from our alumni, and taking the foresight that there will be some major expenses over your lifetime, this is one resource students can go to.”

According to a Wellness Center survey, finances are the No. 2 stresser for students behind academics, Hansen said.

“Finances are more stressful than personal relationships, intimate relationships, family issues,” he said. “This is a big deal for St. Thomas students.”

Wednesday’s session will focus on asset building and short-term planning, Hansen said.

“I imagine that a lot of students are going to want to buy a house, have kids or get married in the next 10 years,” he said. “So it’s planning your money and your budgeting correctly so given your income, or lack of income, you’ll be ready for those.”

The second session, “Kicking Your Debts After Graduation,” will be on April 20, and the last, “Your Money as an Undergrad at UST,” will be on April 27.

All sessions will have free food and prizes. Each event will have alumni experts to give advice and share personal experiences, Hansen said.

“The way we have the program set up and the energy that we’ve seen from our alumni, I really believe that the majority of students who attend these sessions will benefit greatly,” he said.

Dacey, who works with mortgage banking in the Twin Cities, will speak at the second session, and he said he is happy to pass along advice to help students.

“Don’t get too overwhelmed with personal finance,” he said. “It’s really more about managing yourself and making smart decisions. There’s no magic bullet that will help you get rid of your student loans. It’s just the decisions you make everyday to get ahead.”

Mary Kenkel can be reached at mlkenkel@stthomas.edu.