Special to the View

Last year alone, approximately 2 million students graduated from high school and headed to college. Many were ill-equipped on the subject of financial literacy.

According to a 2007 survey by Charles Schwab, fewer than half of teens considered themselves knowledgeable on how to budget money (41 percent), how to pay bills (34 percent), or how credit card interest and fees work (26 percent).

The Better Business Bureau recommends that before parents wave goodbye to their college bound students, they sit down and discuss four key rules for managing personal finances:

— Be responsible with credit cards. According to a U.S. Public Interest Research Group (U.S. PIRG) survey, two out of three college students report having a credit card, of which about two-thirds are responsible for paying their monthly bill. Overall, freshmen responsible for their own cards had average credit card balances of $1,301.

— Start saving money now, even if it's just a small amount every month. Developing good saving habits early on will help a college student reap the benefits throughout his or her life.

— ­Pay your bills on time. U.S. PIRG found that more that 40 percent of college students who managed their own credit cards had paid bills late or paid at least one over-the-limit fee.

Credit card companies often charge late fees as high as $40. Add to that any accruing interest, which can be upwards of 30 percent, and college students will quickly see how much can be lost by not paying a bill on time and in full.

Aside from the immediate benefits of paying bills on time – specifically, reducing needless spending on fees and interest charges – it is an important way for college students to begin building a healthy credit report.

— Guard your personal information. When comparing the age demographics of ID theft victims in the U.S., young adults between the ages of 18 and 24 were the second highest age group at risk for fraud according to an annual survey by Javelin Strategy and Research.