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America Should Pursue Redefining Education Through Lowering The Cost Of College

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Good afternoon, 21 million students attended college in the fall of 2014 ("Back to School Statistics"). The total student debt in America is 1 trillion dollars, the majority held by members of the middle class ("Back to School Statistics") (Carrns). Student debt is negatively affecting the economy by encumbering the middle class with absurd financial burden thus widening the wealth gap and decreasing social mobility. America should pursue redefining education through lowering the cost of college and reevaluating social stigmas attached to states schools or community colleges. Middle class Americans who do not qualify for a lot of financial aid and who cannot actually afford the cost of college are forced to take out student loans; these students are often ignorant about matters of long term investments, like college education, and make ill-informed decisions. The average student debt upon graduation is about $35,000 (Levin). Students applying for loans in the 2014-2015 school year will pay an interest rate of 4.66% for federal student loans whereas the current mortgage rate as of 10/8/2014 is 4.18% (Carrns) ("Current Mortgage Rates"). The projected student loan interest rate for 2017 is 6.8% (Carrns). The government made 50.6 billion dollars in profit off student loan interest last year alone (Levin). While private loans can sometimes advertise a lower interest rate, they are far more unpredictable and do not have payment plans fitted to annual income making them a greater

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