Practice financial decisions before they become real ones.
Finvy Financial Labs give participants focused, guided scenarios built around everyday financial decisions. Participants make choices, see feedback connected to each one, and practice the financial skills behind them, all within the Finvy Life Simulator.
Knowing the concept is one thing. Making the decision is another.
Financial Labs turn financial concepts into decisions. Instead of reading about a budget, a loan or an emergency fund, participants work through one, making choices and seeing what happens.
A longer loan usually costs more in total.
Choosing a repayment plan when a lower monthly payment is tempting.
An emergency fund is for unexpected costs.
Deciding whether a cost is a true emergency, and how to rebuild after using the fund.
Saving works best with a clear goal.
Staying on track when friends plan a trip and the price of the goal goes up.
Financial Labs center the experience on decisions and feedback rather than grades or pass and fail results.
Eight Labs. Eight focused financial topics.
Each Lab is a short, guided scenario with four or five related decisions around one financial topic. All eight are available today, with versions for Middle School, High School, and College and Emerging Adult participants.
The eight Financial Labs
- Cash Flow & Spending DecisionsPractice balancing limited income against everyday spending choices.
- Budget BuildingBuild a monthly budget around income, bills, goals and fun, then adjust it when income changes.
- Debt DecisionsWork through a loan from start to finish, from how much to borrow to how to pay it back.
- Emergency Fund & Financial ShocksBuild an emergency cushion, then use it when something unexpected happens and plan how to rebuild.
- Credit & BorrowingWork through a first credit card, from what to charge to paying the statement and responding to offers.
- Saving & Goal PlanningChoose a savings goal, set a pace and stay on track when other wants and price changes come up.
- Income & Career DecisionsExplore financial tradeoffs connected to income and career choices.
- Investing & Long-Term GrowthSee how time, steady contributions and market ups and downs shape a long-term investment, in a simulation with one made-up set of years.
Organizations can offer all eight Labs or a selection.
Focused enough to practice. Grounded in everyday money situations.
Each Lab narrows in on one financial topic. Focused decisions give participants room to work through a financial topic without managing the entire simulated financial life at once.
- One topic
- A paycheck month, a first loan, an emergency, a savings goal. Each Lab stays with one situation.
- A few related decisions
- Four or five decisions, presented one at a time, each followed by feedback.
- Choices that carry forward
- Earlier choices carry forward into later decisions, so the scenario holds together.
Step in, decide, see what happens.
Every Lab follows the same simple path, so participants can focus on the decisions.
The four steps of a Financial Lab
Step into the scenario
A short situation sets the scene.
Make decisions one at a time
Each decision offers a few options. Some depend on earlier choices.
See what happens
After each choice, see the consequence and why it matters.
Review your result
A recap of your decisions, key takeaways, and the skills you practiced.
After every choice
- What happened
- The choice made and its consequence in the scenario, often in dollars.
- Why it matters
- A short explanation of the tradeoff behind the choice.
A short check at the start and end is not graded.
Financial decisions involve tradeoffs, not just right answers.
Choices have consequences, and often more than one option is reasonable. Feedback explains the tradeoffs, including why some choices hold up better than others.
Competing priorities
Needs and wants, saving and spending, now and later.
Constraints
A set amount of money to work with, so some options may not be available after earlier choices.
Visible consequences
Each choice shows what happened, so participants can weigh one option against another.
Review what happened and what was practiced.
At the end of a Lab, participants get a qualitative result. There is no score, no grade, and no pass or fail.
Skills are demonstrated within Financial Labs. A Lab result describes choices in a simulation, not real world financial ability.
What a Lab result includes
- A summaryA short wrap-up of the scenario and the choices that shaped it.
- A recap of decisionsEach decision, the choice made, and why it matters.
- Key takeawaysThe main points to remember from the Lab.
- Skills practicedThe skills the participant's choices touched, each marked by what those choices showed within the Lab.
How skills are marked
- Demonstrated
- The participant's choices in this Lab showed the skill.
- Still practicing
- There is more to practice. It is not a failure, and the Lab can be retaken.
Try it again, and try something different.
Participants can retake any Lab and make different choices. Each attempt has its own result, and earlier attempts are kept.
- Retake a Lab after completing it
- Make different choices and see where they lead
- Come back to a Lab in progress and continue
A financial life to experience. Focused decisions to practice.
The Life Simulator and Financial Labs serve different purposes and work together.
Life Simulator
A broader simulated financial life, where many decisions interact over time.
Financial Labs
Focused experiences around specific financial topics and decisions, each in a short scenario of its own.
Financial Labs are part of the Finvy Life Simulator. Participants open them from within the simulation and can return to it at any time.
One set of Labs. Versions for three audiences.
Every Lab has versions for Middle School, High School, and College and Emerging Adult participants. Scenarios, wording and amounts are written for each, from a first part-time job to a first credit card.
In Debt Decisions, for example, participants borrow for
Middle School
A bike for pet-sitting jobs
High School
A first car
College and Emerging Adults
A certificate program
Finvy sets up the version that fits each program, and participants use the version configured for their program.
Practice that fits facilitated programs.
Participants choose Labs within the simulation, and facilitators see group-level results. Because participants in a program work through the same scenarios, Labs give a group common ground for discussion.
Participation
How many participants started and completed each Lab.
Group skill results
Skill patterns across the group, once enough participants are included.
Group views
Results for the whole program or for a single group.
Individual participants' choices and results are not shown in facilitator reporting.
See how a program uses Financial Labs.
Lab activity contributes to Organizational Impact Reporting, so organizations can understand how their program uses Financial Labs.
Participation
How many participants started each Lab.
Completion
How many completed each Lab, and how many completed at least one.
Group skill results
For each Lab, how often participants demonstrated its skills, using each participant's most recent completed attempt.
Skill results describe what participants did within Financial Labs.
Detailed group results appear only once a minimum number of participants is included, and small groups are withheld.
One part of a connected financial learning experience.
Financial Readiness
Understand where participants begin.
Explore Financial ReadinessLife Simulator
Experience financial life decisions over time.
Explore Life SimulatorFinancial Labs
Practice focused financial decisions.
Organizational Impact Reporting
Understand program activity and measured results.
This is not a required sequence. Organizations choose the combination that fits their program. Financial Readiness, Financial Labs and Organizational Impact Reporting are part of Life Simulator programs.
Financial Labs FAQ
What are Finvy Financial Labs?
Financial Labs are eight short, guided scenarios inside the Finvy Life Simulator. Each focuses on one financial topic. Participants make decisions, see what happens after each choice, and review the skills they practiced.
How are Labs different from the Life Simulator?
The Life Simulator connects many decisions across a simulated financial life over time. Each Lab focuses on one topic in a short scenario of its own, so participants can concentrate on a specific kind of decision.
Are Financial Labs quizzes?
Labs are built around scenarios, decisions and feedback rather than test questions. Each Lab also includes a short warm-up check and final check with multiple choice questions. These checks are not graded, and there is no score.
How many Financial Labs are available?
Eight. All eight are available today, and organizations can offer all of them or a selection.
What topics do the eight Labs cover?
Cash Flow & Spending Decisions, Budget Building, Debt Decisions, Emergency Fund & Financial Shocks, Credit & Borrowing, Saving & Goal Planning, Income & Career Decisions, and Investing & Long-Term Growth.
Who can use Financial Labs?
Participants in Finvy Life Simulator programs whose organization includes Financial Labs. There are versions for Middle School, High School, and College and Emerging Adult participants.
Are Labs available for different audience groups?
Yes. Every Lab has versions for Middle School, High School, and College and Emerging Adult participants, with scenarios, wording and amounts written for each. Finvy sets up the version that fits your program.
Can participants complete more than one Lab?
Yes. Participants can explore any of the Labs their program includes, in any order.
Can participants repeat a Lab?
Yes. Participants can retake a Lab and make different choices. Each attempt has its own result.
What happens after a participant completes a Lab?
They see a short summary, key takeaways, a recap of their decisions, and the skills they demonstrated or are still practicing. There is no score. They can then return to their simulation, try another Lab, or retake this one.
What can facilitators see?
Facilitators see group-level Financial Labs results: how many participants started and completed each Lab, and group skill results once enough participants are included. Individual participants' choices and results are not shown.
Can organizations choose how Financial Labs are configured?
Yes. Programs can include all eight Labs or a selection, and Finvy sets up the audience version that fits the program.
Do organizations have to use Financial Readiness to use Labs?
No. Financial Labs and Financial Readiness are separate options within Life Simulator programs, and Labs do not affect the Financial Readiness Score.
How are Lab results used in organizational reporting?
Organizational Impact Reporting shows Financial Labs participation and completion, and group skill results within the Labs, using each participant's most recent completed attempt. Skill results appear only for groups large enough to protect privacy, and they describe what participants did within Financial Labs.
How does an organization get started?
Request a demo. We'll learn about your program and set up the Financial Labs that fit it.
Turn financial concepts into decisions participants can practice.
Explore how Financial Labs can be part of your Finvy experience, alongside the Life Simulator and the other capabilities that fit your program.