The Importance Of Student Debt

Although debt is a bad thing, it is not unavoidable for everyone. People will fall into debt because not everyone has a solid financial backing. More than seventy-one percent of students graduating from a four year college are graduating with debt (A Look at...) . Setting a cap would cutthat percent far down so the students would have a chance to break even with the income they receive after college. Because there is no student loan debt cap, colleges take advantage of this or they set the cap very high so the students will keep having to pay the college for years. “One reason graduate school debt has grown is that students have nearly unlimited borrowing capability from federal programs — with few credit checks or examinations of ability to repay…” (The Washington Post). Students use the loans unknowing what pay they will get from their future job. By setting a student loan cap, students would take less of a risk with coming back from

In the article “Debt Education: Bad for the Young, Bad for America”, Jeffrey J. Williams explains the damage student debt causes past and present college students. Williams argued that more than half of the college students and their families are in debt from having to make such large payments toward the rising costs of colleges. Though, Williams also states a higher degree or education will lead to a high income and all around better jobs, the risk of being unemployed after college is too great. This is considered to be good for individuals, as it will maximize their economic potential. It is also good for society as a whole as people are getting better education, and rising to greater expectations in the world. Williams mentions the opportunity

In this day and age, it is assumed that the majority of high school graduates will be attending college, whether a two year community college or a four year college or university. The problem with this expectation of young people is that college is expensive, which is why numerous people are pushing towards free college for all, not just for the academically talented. While overall publicly funded college is unrealistic, this country could slowly overcome this issue of college debt by providing more two year community colleges across the nation with the tuition of these community colleges drastically reduced.

The total U.S. student loan debt now surpasses $1.2 trillion and there is more than 40 million recipients owing on federal and private student loans (Malone). Most of the college students in the United States can’t afford their education by themselves and, as a result, students end up drowning in student loans in order to earn a degree. Student debt is a major problem in the US, and it is a major influence on the gap between rich and poor. A more accessible college education would help reduce the gap between rich and poor in the United States.

College is one of the most important and life changing times in the life of an American. Leaving high school behind and venturing out to the adult world is an amazing experience that every individual should experience. However, young adults from every corner of the country leave college with crippling debt or do not go to their preferred college of choice. College education should be cheaper as it will help families and students financially and give them the satisfaction with having the opportunity to go to their first choice for college.

Society often believes college is a necessary experience for a better future, but I argue that the future will not be any better when student debt becomes a part of life for those who follow that mainstream belief. Most parents often dream of the great colleges and universities that their children will get accepted into; however, they fail to think of the cost to attend those institutions. Financial aids! Financial aids! Yes there are financial aids that students can apply to lessen the student debt. Yet the amounts of financial aid they receive are generally never enough for most students, and they continue to carry the debt for most of their miserable life.

Many people dream of a life filled with riches, but that dream is hard to obtain without a college degree. It is somewhat ironic how people dream of being a successful student and going to college but the cost of tuition turns that dream into a horrible nightmare. It is not a shock to most people when they that college tuition is expensive, but in the past few years it has increased to an all-time high. Lower and middle class students have now begun to realize that college tuition is holding them away from their dreams. Even though college tuition could provide opportunities for job creation and economic growth, tuition is not affordable for the average American household which in effect, prohibits students from taking opportunities like going to college in the first place. Since tuition has risen 3 times higher the rate of inflation in the past 10 years, this increase a student’s chances of not being able to afford higher education and also gives them a better chance of accumulating debt post-graduation.

As the school year comes to a close and the only thing on a senior’s mind is how are they going to pay for college? Throughout our high school careers we always get asked what our plans are after high school and never how are you going to pay for that next step of your life after high school. We barely get prepared for the real world in high school we are forced to take classes the school thinks will be good for us not what we think or what will be best for what we want to study for in college. How are high schoolers supposed to be able to pay for college when they don’t get prepared enough in high school to go on to that next level of schooling and have to more than likely go into debt just to be able to pay for it. Colleges should no longer cost an insane amount of money to go there.

The cost of going to college is getting ridiculous. If a student were to apply to an out of state public college in 1997 they would be paying on average $8,840; now at the same out of state public school they would be paying around $26,010. Are we expecting people who have little money to stop their education even if they want to keep going or be in a huge amount of debt? If colleges were tuition free or had minimized costs the economy would be better or could improve and so would the lives of millions of people.

Currently, the U.S. has accumulated roughly one trillion dollars worth of debt from student loans. (cite) But, what if student debt was forgiven overnight? Now if student debt was eliminated all at once it would be an enormous expense for private lenders and the federal government. Yet, people continually suggest the dissolution of student loans with a one-time payment plan from the government. This notion seems politically appealing for those on the left wing side of the argument, but overall no one wants to accumulate debt. Many of the young progressive college students and graduates would love for their student debt to dissipate. Student debt has become a crushing and often unavoidable generational crisis. But why not just forgive all that

So many successful adults till this day are paying back their college debts. Over the years, some are able to pay back their debts in college and others are not able to and are still struggling, due to having to pay other debts that they may have. In some cases, some people drop out of college just so they will not have to owe so much money, but to drop out for that reason is not good. There are several of ways to stay away from college debt and that is getting scholarships, saving money before going into college, and also attending a community college instead of jumping to a university.

Student loan debt loads have been spiraling, doubling over the last decade, and the enrollment rates of young people from lower socio-economic groups are rising far slower than middle and upper groups. Governments must recognize the renewed public investment in post secondary education is an economic and social imperative. 6.7 million borrowers in repayment mode are delinquent (Snider 1). The sad fact is that many lenders aren't exactly incentivized to work with borrowers. Unlike all other forms of debt, student loans can't be discharged in bankruptcy. Forgiveness programs can be lifesavers for borrowers drowning in student loan debt (Snider 1). However, jobs for recent grads are harder to find and salaries are lower, but that won't last forever; in spite of all of this, the data make clear that getting a college education is still a good idea. College graduates earn more and are more likely to have a job in the first place, and is especially important for some Americans (Webley 2). According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2010, the unemployment rate was 9.2 percent for those with only some college and more than 10 percent for those with just a high school degree, but it was 5.4 percent

"By making college unaffordable and student loans unbearable, we risk deterring our best and brightest from pursuing higher education and securing a good paying job" (Pocan, 2016). High school seniors advance into college with little income and no knowledge of managing large expenses. Although college incurs significant debt, it has positive lifelong benefits such as a better job, higher salary with benefits, and obtaining an opportunity for a fuller life.

Every student's circumstance is different; therefore, they should all have different solutions. Some students do not enjoy of a good economy, which provokes them to borrow more money than other students. Also, there are some students that will study careers that do not have a great income, or are very rare in jobs. Their solution would be to maintain the cost of student loans at a reachable price. In this case, every student would be able to pay off their loans without any

Rising college tuition costs is an issue that hits close to home for many of us. Being a student, will always coincide with money struggles. During ones college search, numbers are all we are told to focus on. These numbers include ACT scores, GPAs, AP tests scores, and the biggest number of all, the cost of college itself. The rising cost of college has three main effects; debt through student loans, less people attending college, and an increasing number of college graduates moving back home. Raising tuition year after year will cause a drop in applicants and affect current students’ retention rates. That is because tuition is already at an all-time high, making it harder for underfunded students to even think about entering higher education.