During years, American people have heard a very simple story: you should go to college and work hard and financial stability is guaranteed to them. Generations were made out of that belief. Nowadays, the reality seems to be much less definite. Millions of students are not only learning not to work, but increasingly going into debt–in many cases tens of thousands of dollars in debt–before they can get their first paycheck. What used to be perceived as a brilliant investment is beginning to appear like a risky business venture. It is not only whether college continues to pay off, but whether the system itself is perhaps silently trapping young Americans into long-term financial strains before their lives have even commenced.
The Price Explosion
College tuition has not only increased, but it has gone beyond the rate of inflation and higher education has become to an extent a luxury item, instead of a civic right.
Borrowing as a Default
To a lot of students, it is no longer a decision to take a loan, but it is the price of admission.
Degrees Losing Power
A diploma does not act as a guarantee of a stable job anymore. Most of the graduates end up being under-employed in jobs, which do not justify their tuition fees.
The Interest Trap
Student debts silently increase with time. What may seem as a manageable sum will be doubled, extending the repayments into decades.
Middle-Class Pressure
The middle-income families make too much money to be on a freebie, but too little, to afford on-the-spot and end up making financial choices with lasting repercussions.
Life on Hold
The purchase of a house, having a family and even saving money is postponed, not because of a choice, but because of the monthly payments on loans.
Mental Weight
Debt does not only influence the bank accounts. It influences the decision-making process, restricts the desire to take risks, and produces an atmosphere of constant stress.
Shifting Alternatives
Online learning, certification, and hire based on skill is challenging the assumption that the four year degree is the only way to success.
A System on Debt
Critics believe that the model lives on borrowing. With the availability of loans, institutions are not pressured to keep costs down.
Follow the Money
As students are struggling to keep pace, universities grow and lenders get rich- posing a greater question of who is indeed gaining in the system.
