 she does not need the money to fund her emergency reserve fund because that's already set. If she hasn't, remember, she needs enough money to cover 6 to 12 months of living expenses just in case. She needs to pay down any outstanding debt, which from the sounds of what's going on for her is highly unlikely. Presuming she's got the emergency reserve and no consumer or student loan debt, then I think just opening a brokerage account makes most sense for her.