Is a high school course with personal finance concepts required to be taken as a graduation requirement? No, personal finance is not included in the graduation requirements, either as a stand-alone course or embedded in another course, and schools are not required to offer financial literacy courses. The MassCore, which is the state's recommendation for subjects to be taken prior to graduation, does not specify economics or personal finance. See: Massachusetts MassCore Recommendations.
Massachusetts has curriculum frameworks for social studies, which includes a framework for a Grade 12 elective in economics. However, there are no personal finance concepts included in the curriculum framework. See: Massachusetts Social Studies Framework (pages 81-84).
In 2012, the state legislature established a Financial Literacy Advisory Committee to advise the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education on the development of a three-year financial literacy pilot program for high schools in gateway municipalities. In 2013, grants were awarded to 10 high schools to pilot innovative personal finance programs. See: Massachusetts Financial Literacy Innovation Grants. The advisory committee has evaluated the success of the high school pilot program and issued a report on its effectiveness. See: Massachusetts Financial Literacy Pilot Evaluation. Since 2005, Massachusetts legislators have introduced more than 20 bills that attempt to have financial literacy taught in the state's schools. So far, none of these bills have been passed by the state legislature.