Financial Aid: Old Methods May Not Be the Best Methods Essay

Student loan debt has become a discouraging problem throughout today’s economical foundation. “Overall debt is falling but student loan debt is increasing year-over-year and at a much faster rate,” chief executive David Stevens told The Washington Post. “[Young graduates] are already on the margin for being able to qualify for a mortgage. If you add on a

An education is one of the most important tools a person can acquire. It gives them the skills and abilities to obtain a job, earn a wage, and then use that wage to better their lives and the lives of their loved ones. However, due to the seemingly exponential increase in the costs of obtaining a college degree, students are either being driven away entirely from earning a degree or taking out student loans which cripple their financial prospects well after graduation. Without question, the increasing national student loan debt is one of the most pressing economic issues the United States is dealing with, as students who are debt ridden are not able to consume and invest in the economy. Therefore, many politicians and students are calling

A retrospective look might provide a clue as to how so many Americans landed in the whole “student loan” dilemma in the first place. As discussed in the America article “The Student Debt Crisis” as part of the plan to create a ‘Great Society’ President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law The Higher Education Act of 1965. The act provided more funding to public colleges and universities, giving them more resources so that students would be able to afford college. Hence, the birth of the student loan (2015).

After World War II and the establishment of Higher Education Act of 1965, the primary goal of equalizing educational opportunity to lower and middle income students became a national initiative (Mullhern et al. 2015). These initiative were provided through grants and financial aid. However, in recent years student loans have become an important part of the equation. Since the Great Recession in 2008, many states have not invested in higher education at pre-recession levels, which were already low from the previous recession (Mitchell, Palacious & Leachman). This has

Student loan debt relief is a controversial issue in America today. Student loan debt affects twelve million college students, roughly 60% of all college attendees, per year (Student Loan Debt Statistics). Student loan debt relief rose to the forefront of economic news during the financial market crash of 2008. The U.S. Government has developed a debt relief plan that extends payments over a 25-year period, with a full forgiveness of all remaining debt at the end of that 25-year term (Ensuring That Student Loans Are Affordable). During this repayment period, payments can be suspended during times of unemployment, giving hardship students a break from their student loan payments. Many people feel that student

When we think about college and a college education, it seems as though our first initial thought is the student loans and debt that can result in achieving a college degree. Looking back, student debt has risen drastically and has made it extremely stressful for students and families. Many people go through their entire life in debt, especially from being a student. Student debt has always existed; however, now, it is so extreme, almost all students who attend college find themselves deep in debt, and must continue paying off their debt many years after they graduate. For the past two decades, student debt has risen, illustrating how big this social problem has become. The reason student debt is a significant social problem is because of how much it can effect a person’s life, and their families lives, that can carry over to their future. Although there were many things that led up to and impacted the drastic student debt that is now being faced by many students around the world, the corporation Sallie Mae, was the essential factor in why student debt has skyrocketed to unreasonable proportions. Sallie Mae provided the first type of corporation that changed its focus from helping students, to helping themselves. The history and scope of the student debt can help us understand that the corporation, Sallie Mae, was the main cause of this problem.

Ever since it was turned into a semi-private loan service, Sallie Mae used money to lobby its way in order to become an effective profit-generating machine that fed off the student’s monthly payment while the government just watched as the well-intentioned program went down the drain. In the beginning, Federal student loan started off with the intention of providing equal opportunity in the academic world. For that reason, President Johnson (D) signed the Higher Education Act in 1965 that offered guarantees of low interest, leniency on payments, and options when the student cannot afford to pay it back. In the next presidency, President Nixon (R) expanded the educational program to make it a semi-government program

As of 2016, the average college graduate owes thirty-seven thousand dollars in loans (Glum). As a whole, Americans owe a grand total of 1.3 trillion dollars. These are figures that grow every year, and worse, the number of people who are defaulting on their payments grows as well. The issue of the student loan crisis is serious, which is why potential solutions are now being discussed. Presidential candidates for the election of 2016 have discussed solutions that range from Hillary Clinton’s debt-free college plan to Bernie Sanders’ free tuition plan funded by taxing Wall Street, while numerous scholars and business intellectuals have suggested amending the bankruptcy code to allow for discharging student loans as a solution to the crisis (Josuweit). In this essay, I will primarily discuss the numerous but limited ways amending the bankruptcy code can alleviate the crisis, and then I will offer alternate solutions to supplement the aforementioned solution.

article, “The Myth of the Student Loan Crisis” is about how college students’ loans do not

According to the article “College on Credit” written in “The Economist” journal, student debt over the years has risen tremendously. In the course of 10 years, student debt has sky rocketed from $41 billion to $87 billion in 2009. Certain states decisions to increase the tuition fees to help heal their own budget troubles will only worsen this economic crisis. The article further states how borrowing will continue, if students are unable to pay the tuition. Due to limited government funds, the ever so increasing number of students wanting to borrow loans resort to private sources.

Student debt has become harder and harder for borrowers to pay back. According to Ivanchev, student debt has increased from seven-percent in 2003 to about fifteen-percent in 2012 (2014). If you go into default on your loans you could lose your professional license in some states, or even have your driver’s license suspended. Congress needs to fix student aid so that it’ll lower interest rates, and in some cases forgive debt; according to federal agencies, student debt is creating a major effect on the economy and its borrowers.

Presently, the availability of educational opportunities at the college and university level is a critical state and personal interest given the needs of the state for a well-educated workforce which has never been greater. Too many, the focal point of attending college is receiving a high paying job in the future. Unfortunately, in most states, tuition is on the rise and students who come from low-income families find themselves struggling to fund their education. According to legislatures, “The cost of college in New Jersey, as in the nation, continues to grow faster than the rate of inflation.” (State of New Jersey 1). In the national financial aid policy resources that are typically given to the neediest families are shifting towards

In the United States today, the number of students graduating college with student loan debt is quite astonishing. In the article titled, “How the $1.2 Trillion College Debt Crisis Is Crippling Students, Parents And The Economy”, we will examine and break down the student loan debt crisis by the numbers. Today, almost two-third’s of students graduating college are graduating with an average of $26,000 in debt. For most students, $26,000 is a lot of money when the average annual income for a first year graduate is only in the mid $40,000 a year range. According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, student loan debt has reached a new milestone, crossing the $1.2 trillion mark (Denhart, 2013, Introduction, par. 2). With student loan debt levels

According to this exert from the Wall Street Journal, “More than 40% of Americans who borrowed from the government’s main student-loan program aren’t making payments or are behind on more than $200 billion owed, raising worries that millions of them may never repay.”. The government is losing billions of dollars on students who will default down the road. Unlike the mortgage crisis in 2008 there is no house to be foreclosed on, the only risk for these students who default on these loans is bad credit, and

•     Subsidized Stafford Loan - (Formerly Guaranteed Student Loan) Federal Stafford Loan funds are borrowed from a lending institution (e.g., a bank or credit union). Eligibility for this low interest loan is based on financial need. Students must be enrolled at least halftime to receive a loan. The borrower should check with the organization that holds the loan for the interest rate. Repayment begins six months after enrollment drops below half time. The federal government pays the interest on this subsidized loan while the student is in school or in deferment.