As Chris Banker puts it, financially, most people his age are too worried about paying for pizza slices or cases of beer. He said he is more worried about the ups and downs of his BB&T stock.

Banker, a junior in mechanical engineering, was first introduced to the stock market at the age of 14.

“My grandfather gave his grandkids shares in BB&T stock as Christmas presents and eventually I decided to invest my own money and bought shares in other companies,” Banker said.

While his siblings were content with their own shares, Banker said he decided to expand on what he already had.

“Once I saved up enough money over the years, I was able to buy my own stock. I set up an online account with Ameritrade,” Banker said.

He researched for a few months before investing actual money so he could spot trends and predict the outcome of risky ventures. The first company Banker bought a share of was Lowe’s Home Improvement because he said he had learned larger companies are easier to monitor.

But Banker isn’t the only student to learn about the stock market at an early age. Blake Clayton, a sophomore in biomedical engineering, said he began when he was 15. His uncle piqued his interest in the machinations of the stock market. Clayton went online, read as much as he could about the subject and even bought a few books, namely Understanding Wall Street.

Clayton said he spent a lot of time doing his research before actually investing his own money. Like Banker, he said he believes the stock market is not something that should be treated lightly and should be taken with a lot of consideration.

Mark Walker, a professor in business management, said he believes it’s important for everyone to be financially literate.

“An investor should understand what risks are associated with investments, as well as the possible returns,” Walker said. “I suggest that students spend time understanding their personal finances and how markets work instead of following the daily ups and downs of the market.”

Richard Warr, a professor of finance, suggested a glance at the money pages of the newspaper can give students a rough idea of what is going on in the market. However, he also asserted people should adequately research what they are thinking about purchasing.

“If you are buying and selling stocks without spending much time studying them, then you are basically gambling and calling it investing, which is what most individual investors are really doing,” Warr said.

Warr suggested if the ebb and flow of the stock market seems daunting, there are ways around it. A few Web sites, including Yahoo Finance, offer people the chance to create pretend portfolios to see how they perform. Warr said he believes this will convince novices beating the stock market — earning a return greater than the overall market return — is not as simple as it sounds.

Clayton and Banker both have their own benefits and reasons for following the stock market. Clayton said he believes it’s a good money-making opportunity, while Banker said he thinks it’s a responsible way to plan for the future.

Joe Brazel, a professor of accounting, said students who enter the workplace will immediately be faced with investment decisions such as which mutual funds to invest their 401(k) retirement plans into.

“With more knowledge of the market, workers are more equipped to have a more meaningful dialogue with professionals assigned to their retirement account,” Brazel said. “Following the market will also provide students with the opportunity to read about current issues in the business world and issues specifically related to their future careers.”

While the prospect of investing money may sound scary to some, both Clayton and Banker said they are well aware of the risk involved in the stock market.

“As a college student you definitely have to pace yourself,” Clayton said.

Clayton said he looks for trends in society before making an investment. His plan has led him to invest in such companies as Intel and 3M.

Banker also looks for trends by keeping up with the news. He invested in alternative energy sources during the California blackouts. He said it was a risky move, but it paid off in the end.

Both Clayton and Banker said the peak periods for their interest in the stock market happened in high school. They devoted a few hours a day to research and planning but currently spend a few hours a week to manage what they already have and to plan future investments.

Brazel said the shift to online access has made it easier for people to access publications like the Wall Street Journal or BusinessWeek online.

Warr said it’s very important for students to make regular contributions to retirement plans once they start making money.

“Putting these contributions in a stock index fund will pretty much take care of things. You don’t have to worry about what stocks to buy or whether to follow the market,” Warr said. “Like most things, stock investing can be as simple or as complicated as you want to make it.”