Federal Grants are usually based on some sort of merit, you have to earn them. Bailing out students because they took out too much loans is rewarding bad behavior. There are some innocents that get trapped into the debt game unfortunately, but a lot of students simply went to school and studied whatever with no realistic thought put into job prospects after graduating. I put a lot of fault on government guaranteed loans, as it encouraged people to go to college who otherwise wouldn't have taken out all this debt for themselves, but you cannot reward bad behavior, as you will only get more of it. If students know they are just going to get bailed out, they will still take bullshit classes, still bitch about their ever higher tuition, and still bitch about why they can't get a job with a bachelors in Art History.
^ Bingo. You have to be smart about what career you're trying to go into, especially during this time of a recession. Sad to say, but most of the time you can't do exactly what you love because you're not going to get a job for it. Like, art history.
Don't think student loan debt will be simply wiped clean nor do I think it should be. I think that perhaps 0% interest and rebates back on previously paid interest. If not 0% how about the equivalent of the Federal Funds Rate which right now is .08. The Fed loans banks money at this rate why shouldn't the federal government do the same for its citizens? I'm talking specifically about federal subsidized/unsubsidized loans only. Bachelors/Associates degrees only. No graduate/masters/doctorate programs would be included. Only for US citizens. If we are ready, willing and able to go to college we should be able to. And we should be able to despite our parents income levels. To elaborate heres an example. Your 18. Good grades but don't qualify for scholorship. Parents have good income but no savings due to economic recession (home prices slumped 401k tanked upside down in mortgage). Well parents good income screws you out of grants so all you quailify for is student loans. This sound familiar??? I don't care what anybody says THIS WILL BE A BUBBLE. Unfortunately right now the government is might be willing to defer your payments but the interest tally continues to run. This means each year you'll accrue THOUSANDS in interest charges and fees. If your fresh out of college, own your on, working a full time job with little to no benefits and making near minimum wage that's no good! You'd have been much better off making the same money with just your high school diploma and no student loan debt. Much like being up the creek without a paddle! If the interest rate were adjusted along with the Federal Funds rate then in slow periods of the economy you could take the option of deferring the payments without falling thousands behind. Which is appropriate because during times of recession like now we all know how difficult it is to find a steady job, since most places are laying people off. I mean don't get me wrong work is work. Everyone thats capable should have a job even if its temporary, but that doesn't mean you should be forced to pay debts with interest to banks. The same banks that were bailed out with our tax dollars. The same banks that aren't willing to offer loans to small businesses or individuals. In case you didn't know this people. Student Loan Debt is TETHERED TO YOU FOR LIFE! No hardships no arguements. Its there forever. Unfair interest rate policies are the real issue hear. IMHO of course! Just my two cents from first hand experience.
^ Or if you didn't give out loans to people who couldn't get them without government guarantees, you wouldn't have ever increasing tuitions and a bubble of college graduates & no jobs.
i dont believe you went to a top ten school, got a 3.8, and a relevant degree, and cant find a job. i have plenty of friends in top 10 schools. all of them have told me that literally everyone they know gets an offer, or goes on to grad school.
absolutely. the colleges will also jack up tuition as they have been doing, because the government is paying for it. im sick and tired of people crying about being unemployed despite their degree in theater from a random community college.
Agreed! But what do you expect from politicians elected by the parents. The same parents that told their children their whole lives "if you ever want to be anything you HAVE to go to college!" Oh yeah and most of these parents didn't save for college! Most thought their house had the equity to cover it. But their home values are shot because of similar government models for home loans! As Americans it would be un-American to not keep up with the Joneses!
I just had this discussion with my son last night.....He is currently in his second year of law school (I might need a lawyer someday) and is using student loans. When I first heard about this I was pissed. Why the hell should taxpayers be on the hook for student loans? After discussing this last night he brought something to my attention that has not been discussed too much. A high school diploma will now qualify you for a minimum wage job, maybe. Without at least a 4 year degree, you will not be competetive in todays job market. We fund kids education through 12th grade now. I believe that we should fund education through a bachelors degree/or apprenticeship at state schools. Private schools and advanced degrees would be the responsibility of the student. I believe that we should help reduce the amount owed on student loans but I don't think it should be a blanket forgivness program. The cost of college in the last 15 years has skyrocketed to the point that getting an education without loans is becoming more and more difficult for those who come from higher income families and almost impossible for those of more modest means. We fund kids education through 12th grade now. I believe that we should fund education through a bachelors degree/or apprenticeship at state schools. Private schools and advanced degrees would be the responsibility of the student. Once this was initiated, there would be no public help on student loan repayment. My solution would be an application for forgivness and/or reduction in student loan debt. The higher your income the less assistance would be available. This would not be a free ride!! I believe that you borrowed the money knowing fully that you would be required to pay it back. Since things have changed for the worse and so many of you will be unable to pay back your loans anyway, this would be a way for we the people to recoup some of the value of your loans that we paid. Enlistment in any active duty branch of the armed forces for four years or Eight years of active military reserve. (One weekend a month and 2 weeks in the summer) would be total loan forgiveness. If military is not an option then documented community service would suffice. For every $1000.00 of student loan forgiveness, a predetermined number of hours would be required. For example, food banks, community kitchens/rescue missions/animal shelters etc...the list is endless. Just my thoughts.
your previous post actually described my scenario perfectly. except, i had excellent academic performance and got a merit based scholarship. good grades will usually land you with a scholarship. broke or not. my parents had saved for a while but could not keep up with the rise in tuition
Not necessarily true. Its based on EFC (expected family contribution). Which means parents with "income" disqualifies you from these programs. You are then either left with scholarships based on merit which only subsidize most of the time or loans. So most, in reality, are left with loans. Even for community college the implications are scary. A whole new generation of slaves!
you are perpetuating the problem for many people. your solution will cause a rise in tuition prices because the college knows that they can charge more and more because the govt. will pay for it. the system u described is the one we currently have. in which people with low income get assistance. if we got rid of that system then at current tuition prices people would not go to college because its too expensive, and tuition would fall back to an affordable price. please dont look at the surface. i encourage you to dig deeper
Yeah I got one scholarship. But it was only enough to cover books. And it was only for one year. Plus I graduated mid year that year so I only got half, and moved on to a four year university where tuition was much much higher. Its ridiculous. The school I went to had like 5 plasma tvs in every hallway. Was growing like crazy and tuition went up every year. Best part I've since graduated and I make less than I did before I went to college!
No, you give any form of a bailout to students and it will only encourage more people to go to college that have no business going, tuition will continue to go up faster and faster, and people will still graduate without jobs. When you reward bad behavior, you only get more of said behavior. If you are looking for someone to blame, go to the college board and federal government and ask them why they actively encouraged people to over-invest (borrow) in education, creating a bubble of graduates when there aren't enough positions to fill for all these students. It's tough medicine, but any form of forgiveness or state funded tuitions for all will only make college more expensive, degrees worth less, and shackle more students with debts they can't pay back.
I hate how college is something that's force fed to you by everyone from middle school on... " You have to work hard and go to college... If you go to college you'll make ______ more over your lifetime" I remember how all my classmates in high school that chose not to go to college were looked down upon like they were somehow inferior. Most of them now own houses of their own, are debt free, make more money than me, or went to college a few years later after saving up and figuring out what they want to do Back in the day, only super wealthy people/families sent their children to college, and it was only for professions where you truly need a lot of training before jumping right in.. i.e. doctor, attorney, engineer, some facets of business, etc However, now increasingly college degrees are required in the job market, but the cost still makes it impossible for anyone who isn't super wealthy to actually go and graduate debt free. I worked my asssss of. I am far from lazy, or stupid. I attended one of the best universities in the country, studied something that is actually useful, worked my ass off in college and graduated with a 3.9 GPA. I had scholarships for more than 60% of my tuition due to my hard work, but......... I graduated, and looked and looked and can't find a job anywhere, I had slightly change fields just to make enough money to survive, and my student loan payments still absorb about 55-60% of my income I know that I got myself into this position,though. and.. if I want to stay in the field I love, I need to get a masters degree. More debt... but I have no choice at this point. It's either stay in a dead end job just barely scraping by with no hope of ever owning a house, being able to afford to have a family, or ever do anything fun like take a vacation, or take on even more debt now, with actual hope to be able to pay it off AND afford to live later. If I could go back I would do it all differently, but when you're 18 you don't have enough real world experience and knowledge to know better and that's the problem. It's so stupid for people to go to college right after high school unless you are 100% sure of what you want to do, and it's something that you know you'll be able to get employed with/pays good. It's so much better to work for a couple years and really figure out what you want to do, save up money, and grow up some before furthering your education. Too many kids take out huge loans, while skipping class, taking everything for granted, boozing it up and spending more time working on their social life than their education. I see it all from a much different perspective now that I'm more mature and have some real world experience. Sorry for my long ramble
which college? what did you study? if you tell me its on this list US News & World Report | News & Rankings | Best Colleges, Best Hospitals, and more and that you studied med/law/fina/engineering/education then i dont believe you edit- i dont take the "i was to young" excuse seriously. im 18 and in colelge, and sef employed. if you dont have enough real world experience,and are naive. please speak for yourself. your type has caused me to be stereotyped to the point where everyone treas me like i am an ignorant retard that watches jersey shore all day. if you want stand by that excuse for your failure, then go ahead. but speak for yourself.
My school IS on that list and I double majored in biochemistry/music, with a minor in sociology (a wide spread.. I know. what can I say? I enjoy a lot of things)
and why didnt you go to med school? because you would have taken more loans? thats nonsense. you can make six figures easy and not worry about the debt if you became a doc.
Are you fucking kidding me? What the fuck do you mean 'my type' Nothing I posted suggested that I was using being young as an excuse. In fact, I plainly stated that I got myself into the position I'm in, I'm fully aware of it and take full responsibility. I dealt with the consequences, adjusted the plans for my life, and I work 80 fucking hours a week to pay my bills. I'm not one of thousands upon thousands of students who just let their loans default, and expect the problem to just magically disappear on its own. However, I never said that any choice I made was a failure on my part. If I could go back, I would do things differently for sure, but that's not an option and I'm still proud of everything I've accomplished. I wouldn't be me without the choices I made. So just like you said...... Speak for your damn self.