Is Forgiving Student Loan Debt A Good Idea?

“Ensuring quality higher education is one of the most important things we can do for our future generations” (Ron Lewis). There are more students enrolling in post-secondary schools than ever before and consequently there are more students acquiring large debts. Once a student graduates, they enter a $33,000 or more student loan debt (Students Loan Resources). These student loans continue to place graduates into large debts, which is largely caused by their lack of knowledge of available resources, and this impacts their everyday lives and future generations.

In her essay “Is Forgiving Student Loan Debt a Good Idea,” Kayla Webley argues that forgiving debt could be a bad idea. Her article was exceptionally influential in demonstrating the way that the payment would put the nation in a bad position. It would send the wrong message to individuals who attended a university and the individuals who didn’t. Webley touched on Robert Applebaum’s petition to provide a one-time bailout of student loan debt.

“Is Forgiving Student Loan Debt A Good Idea?,” an article written by Kayla Webley in a 2012 issue of TIME magazine, discusses the solution of a one-time student loan bailout for all college students, and argues that, even though this solution is not the best, it is an answer nonetheless. Webley supports this claim by introducing a petition started by Robert Applebaum, a student burdened with $88,000 in college loan debt (130). However, she argues against his propositions, stating that the bail-out will not be an efficient stimulus politically or economically, many students will eventually be able to pay back their loan debt, and there are government programs already in place to give students financial

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

Today, the number of people who have borrowed money to pay their expenses for college, has been rising. In addition, colleges have been increasing the amount charged on students who receive an education. An article states that “tuition is increasing at a rate double that of inflation”, for this reason, the amount of money a student has to pay back has been increasing (Webley). According to the article “Even if you don't have student loans, you should want them to be forgiven”, the author, Lisa Schmeiser, states that “Approximately 44 million people in the U.S. have borrowed for student loans... debt standing at approximately $1.3 trillion today”.

With the ever-increasing tuition and ever-tighten federal student aid, the number of students relying on student loan to fund a college education hits a historical peak. According to a survey conducted by an independent and nonprofit organization, two-thirds of college seniors graduated with loans in 2010, and each of them carried an average of $25,250 in debt. (Reed et. al., par. 2). My research question will focus on the profound effect of education debt on American college graduates’ lives, and my thesis statement will concentrate on the view that the education policymakers should improve financial aid programs and minimize the risks and adverse consequences of student loan borrowing.

Because of the nation’s national rising debt, student loan forgiveness has been a significant topic of debate because of how much it can affect our nation’s debt and doesn’t always help the student. Student loan debt is one of the highest debt causes, but sometimes we forget that we are the ones that sign the line on the contract to be in years of debt. This is because we value our education. But this does not mean that just because we can’t find an amazing, high paying job right out of college that we should have our loans forgiven. We want the easy way out of something that isn’t easy, so why should the government pay for our debt? Yes, college is very expensive and that is the governments fault, but again we are the ones that signed the line on the loan papers. (Sam Adolphsen, 583)

I owe $40,000, I owe $60,000, I owe $100,000. Isn’t that a lot of money for one person to owe? Graduates have been faced with a serious problem brought about by the constant borrowing of money to gain a reputable education. The debt of loans varies from person to person but the extreme amounts that individuals owe is something the media finds worth gossiping about. Little does the public know, in reality, all the commotion and conversation about these debts are not accountable for the majority of college borrowers. According to A Lifetime of Student Debt? Not Likely by Robin Wilson, she intrigues her targeted college audience by giving examples and providing

The education correspondent for Time magazine, undergraduate at the University of Washington, concentrating on journalism and political science, and graduate work at Northwestern University, specializing in new media, Kayla Webley, in her essay “Is Forgiving Student Loan Debt a Good Idea?” states Robert Applebaum’s solution for student loan debt is a “radical and wildly unfeasible solution” in both economically and politically. Applebaum’s proposal is to “provide a one-time bailout of student debt…as a way to stimulate the still-limping economy.” However, Webley counters the solution has to have “the purported benefited and fairness of a one-time student loan bailout.”

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.

When it comes to achieving success in the work force and finding a fulfilling and lucrative career there are few things more important that higher education. Going to college and getting a degree is essential in finding success in the work force. The problem is when the cost of gaining that degree outweighs the financial compensation the career that follows is able to supply. Very few people are able to pay for college out of pocket. The result of this is that students seeking higher education are forced to take out massive student loans. This means that they are entering the work force

Attention Step: Haley Edwards, author of the article titled “But Can America Afford This Approach to Solving Student Debt?”, from the Time magazine, published November 30, 2015, tells a story of a woman named Allison Minks, who owes an amount of $99,326 in federal student loans. Mink is a 35-year-old mother of two and her full-time job as a counselor at a nonprofit clinic does not begin to cover her student loan debt. Tired of being in debt, Mink went searching for a solution and she found a program that says if she works in public service, she can get loan forgiveness after just 10 years. In other words, because of this program, Minks now pays an affordable amount each month and she’ll be scot-free before she is 45. But, Mink is only covered

In the article “Is forgiving student loan debt a good idea” by Kayla Webley, a writer for Time, Webley feels that from a human standpoint forgiving student debt holds some appeal (2). Kayla Webley refers to Robert Applebaum who started a petition in 2009 with a petition of nearly 670,000 signatures. The comments from persons posting the petition are quoted as “guessing this will never happen but it can’t hurt to sign on” (1). Burdened with an estimated $88,000 in debt, Applebaum’s proposal is to provide a one-time bailout, of student loan debt-as a way to stimulate the still limp economy (2). Webley goes on to explain that such a plan has a problem. The problem being is that with an educational bailout most borrowers who can and should pay off their student loan would take this bailout, along with the students who really can not afford their loan payments and need the relief from their student loans. In Webley’s words “If forgiveness from a bailout was offered, who wouldn’t take the handout (3).

Kevin Carey’s goal for writing this essay was to reach out to college/university faculty, and Student Affair professionals to call to their attention the crushing problem of students loans and debt and emphasize the need for income-based loans in favor to the system that is now in place that causes students to fall further into debt due to high

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