A lifetime of student debt

Another point Wilson builds is that “it is no one’s job to talk with students about whether the amounts they are borrowing line up with their professional aspirations” (264). Unfortunately, “[c]ollege academic advisers are intimidated by the complexity of financial aid”

In the essay “College Value Goes Deeper Than the Degree” author Eric Hoover claims a college education is important to one 's well-being so they can get a job and be productive in other parts of life. Promoters of higher education have long emphasized how beneficial college’s value and its purpose. Many believe the notion that colleges teach students are life skills to apply anywhere, they also work hard to earn a degree and learn specific marketable skills which they can use to get a good job. Though obtaining a college education and a degree is helpful in countless of ways, it is not necessary to pursue a college degree in world where a college degree is seen different now, people without turn out fine, the growing average of debt that students who attend college have to pay off and people without a degree can obtain many jobs that do not require college degrees.

David Leonhardt in his article “Is College Really Worth It? Clearly New Data Say” goes over the biggest negatives of college that deter students and even returning adults from receiving a higher education and earning a degree. He talks about the struggles of finding work after college and the accumulated student debt. Daivd Leonhardt points out that “Americans with four-year college degrees made 98% more an hour on average in 2013 than people without a degree.” (Leonhardt). Which shows that as much as college costs, you get that back multiple times over after graduation and after you are employed. The stress and struggles that undergraduates face such as deciding a major, the issue of time commitment and large financial sacrifices are worth

Here in the United States, there are many forms of consumer debt, which help contribute to the large sums of debt countless Americans find themselves faced with. Directly effecting many college students is student loan debt. Student loan debt is now the second largest form of consumer debt behind housing” declares the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (Grisales). This is due to the fact that student loan debt grew 7.1% in 2014 to $1.2 trillion (Grisales). If this statistic alone is not worrisome this next one is sure to be. The amount of debt in the housing market that helped to spark the last recession was only $1.3 trillion (Grisales). Due to the increased amount of debt required by students to attend college many students are feeling the wrath. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, “In 2014, 11.7 percent of females and 17.7 percent of males between the ages 25 and 34 were living with their parents” (Grisales). The fear of obtaining massive amounts of debt is driving the current generation of student’s to put off many future hopes and dreams. While causing them to move back home to save money. The current student loan crisis is crippling the economy and ruining the lives of American students.

Many students today look towards the future scared and frightened debating their future, all of them asking the same question. Is a college education truly worth the cost and the amount of debt that a student acquires over a four-year period? Many ask what are they doing this for, a piece of paper called a degree. That’s what the articles “Five Reasons Why College is Worth the Cost,” written by Reyna Gobel and “Is College worth the cost? Many recent graduates don’t think so,” written by Jeffrey J. Selingo both address. The articles take different standpoints and views on the topic. Gobel’s article siding with the view that college is worth the cost. While Selingo’s article argues that college is not worth the cost.

A decade ago, student loans barely existed. Today, however, American students borrow up to couple million dollars a year to attend college. An entire generation is burdened with debt, and affected by the modern phenomena known as the “student debt crisis.” In recent years, student loan borrowing rates have risen notably, leading to concern about the public financial risks associated with the financial challenges faced by many students. Of late, the United States government has given out about $170 billion in financial aid annually in an effort to encourage students to attend postsecondary education. Such funding are usually supported by research that consistently finds positive and growing average economic benefits of

In “The Great Debate: Is College Still Worth It?” author Ricardo Azziz endorses post-secondary education by stating its economic advantage in today’s society. The author begins his article by introducing a survey done by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, which shows that the majority of college graduates believe college education is worth its cost. Not only are people convinced of the value of a college education, adults with a degree of some sort (bachelor’s degree or associate degree) tend to earn more than those without one. But also, post-secondary education gives people a better chance at achieving the “American Dream” through diligence and hard work. Azziz states that “college graduates were 5.3 times more likely to leave the bottom quintile than non-college graduates”. In addition, in times of an economic downturn, individuals with a college degree are often able to better cope with the difficulty than those without. However, amidst the benefits of college, Azziz does not forget to address the reality that attending college is still, without a question, an expensive endeavor.

It’s no secret in America that many college graduates are struggling to pay off their student loans. While looking at the statistics for how much is owed and how many college graduates are affected, it is clear that student debt is an issue and the need for a solution couldn’t be more urgent. The latest data show that across the country there are over “40 million borrowers” who share in “$1.2 trillion dollars” of student loans (Life Delayed). According to those numbers, that means that the average borrower has $30,000 dollars to pay off. With college tuition ever increasing, it is not hard to see how borrowing more money has becoming inevitable. According to Alan Greenblatt, a staff writer for NPR and CQ Researcher who focuses on

There are several governmental issues facing the American people in this day in age. Many of these issues have come to the fore front during the Presidential Campaign of 2016. One of the most popular and important issues in the United States is student loans. Colleges are full of expensive fees such as tuition, textbooks, and room and board. Many college students can’t afford to pay all of these fees and are forced to take a student loan. However, the interest rates on student loans are rapidly increasing each year. This leaves many college graduates in the open world with great debt that takes a long time to pay off.

With the recovery from the Great Recession the labor market has refueled the controversial debate about the value of a college degree. Is a college degree worth the amount of debt that will compile over four or more years of higher education? Even though an individual who obtains a college degree has an unemployment rate below the national average, there is evidence that many recent college graduates are struggling to find acceptable and well paying jobs. At the same time, college tuition is steadily rising, while college graduates are finding themselves without employment and swimming in a substantial amount debt from student loans.

Researchers have found that a majority of workers with bachelor degrees or higher have higher salaries than those without. The downside of these statistics is that student debt has climbed to over 1.3 trillion dollars. Colleges have been working to aid students by cutting tuition costs and offering more scholarships, but the hopes of potential students look to be declining (Mitchell). From this journal, I learned that the value of a college degree is an opinion that varies among different social classes, social grounds, and political groups. When I read that less and fewer Americans are finding the value in a college degree, I decided that the next step in my research would be finding out the opinions of those who do see the value in a college degree.

Nowadays, we are always bombarded with the constant studies that show the economic benefits of going to college. For example, one study suggests that the average earnings gap for a high school graduate and someone with a bachelor’s degree working full time is about $15,000 (Owen and Isabel 210). But, all these sources only focus on the economic benefits and they make it seem that the only way to succeed. However, they don’t mention as much the possible negatives and that it might not be for everyone. The biggest obstacle, especially for the lower class students is the high cost of tuition. Which has caused student loan debt to become the second highest form of debt in the U.S, surpassed only by mortgage debt (Owen and Sawhill 212). Even if the student figures that out then there’s the problem of finishing school. Studies show fewer than 60% of students finish their 4-year degree within 6 years, if they finish at all (Owen and Sawhill 218). Then for those who do obtain their degree there’s the

In recent conversations of the increment of the student loan debt, a controversial issue has been whether a college degree is worth getting. On the one hand, some argue that earning a college degree is a major life achievement that some consider to be part of the American dream. From this perspective, we can see that a college degree opens up more opportunities and possibilities of employment with a higher pay and position. On the other hand, however, others argue that many people succeed without college degrees. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, of the 30 projected fastest growing jobs between 2010 and 2020, five do not require a high school diploma, nine require a high school diploma, four require an associate’s degree, six require a bachelor’s degree, and six require graduate degrees. In sum, the issue is whether a college or career path is worth the debt or not.

“Over the past decade, the total volume of outstanding student loan debt has tripled and is now over $1 trillion” (Jaquette and Hillman). This alarming trend illustrates the immediate need to address the issue of college graduates suffering from excessive financial burden as a result of student loan debt. According to Ozan Jaquette, Ph.D., assistant professor of higher education in the Department of Educational Policy and Practice, and Nick Hillman, Ph.D., assistant professor of Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis, “When borrowers default, they face a wide range of additional penalties, including lower credit scores, garnishing of wages and tax refunds, and the payment of collection agency fees.” Not all graduates are faced the

Debt can make one’s life become a stressful thing. There is a constant worry the debt will continue to grow or dealing with the struggle of having to pay every last penny back plus more. Colleges are finding fewer reasons to lower prices and more reasons to raise prices. The college perspective is understood by many in this matter though. Colleges, as well as any other business, needs to make money also. The affordability of college is the second most important thing about a child’s college education, right below the actual education itself. “… the cost of college will remain unaffordable, tuition will continue to rise, and the 18-year-olds… will ‘get to’ continue paying for college with student loans” (college cost act does not…). Does it really pay off to go to college though?