Sliding Scale Self-Assessment Tool
This is a short quiz to help you figure out how to navigate the sliding scale and determine what fees make sense for you to pay. This quiz is totally anonymous and does not get submitted to or read by anyone but you. There are many elements of class and access that are not included in these few questions, so please use this as a general guide to think about your access to resources (or lack thereof) and make an honest and self-loving evaluation.
Step 1: Take the Quiz
Q1. How I cover my general expenses
A. I live entirely on passive/gifted income (passive/gifted income = inheritance, trust fund, investments, rental properties, family support)
B. I live partially on passive/gifted income or voluntarily work part time or for less pay
C. I work full time or involuntarily part time
D. I support other people with my income
E. I receive SSI/SSDI or am currently accruing survival credit card debt
Q2. My family of origin has assets such as
A. investments / multiple properties
B. a home that is paid off / retirement income
C. a home that they're paying for
D. I help support my family financially
E. No assets or no access to family
3. Student loans (if applicable)
A. My loans are paid off or I went to school without loans
B. Student loans for professional/post-secondary education in my current field
C. Student loans and most people in my family have higher education
D. Student loans and I'm the first person my family to go to college
E. Was unable to pursue post-secondary education due to finances
3. My career
A. My career is stable and moving forward
B. My career is stable
C. My career is unstable or I don't have a career but will in the future
D. I have a job, not a career
E. I get work where I can and rarely have labor protection
4. My expendable income
A. I can cover my basic needs and plenty of extras (extras= meals/drinks out, air travel, vacations, non-essential clothing, organic or higher priced foods, etc)
B. I can cover my basic needs and regular extras
C. I can cover basic needs and occasional extras
D. I can cover my basic needs and nothing else
E. I struggle to cover my basic needs
5. My privilege(s)
A. My race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, and physical/mental ability positively impact my income
B. My race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, and physical/mental ability does not impact my income
C. My race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, and physical/mental ability has few negative impacts to my income
D. My race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, and physical/mental ability has some negative impacts to my income
E. My race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, and physical/mental ability has many negative impacts to my income
6. Annual household income
A. over $200,000
B. $125 - 200,000
C. $75 - 125,000
D. $25 - 75,000
E. less than $25,000
Credit: this form is borrowed with permission from https://phillyosteopathic.com and heavily informed by the resources at http://ridefreefearlessmoney.com/
Step 2: Pick Your Tier
Go back through your answers (Cosmo-style) and see how many of each letter you circled. You know your financial situation better than any scale could ever measure. Note: One common pitfall with a sliding scale is that people with family wealth but temporary personal scarcity often select a lower rate than people with temporary abundance but no safety net.
mostly A's - Tier 1 - $300 - 350
mostly B's - Tier 2 - $225 - 300
mostly C's - Tier 3 - $150 - 225
mostly D's - Tier 4 - $75 - 150
mostly E's - Tier 5 - $25 - 75