Originally posted by camdenlawprof:
I don't think anyone thinks of a loan that must be paid back as "free candy."
Well, they actually have with the artifically high rates (way beyond the students debt service capacity) and the "pay what you can model" with debt forgiveness at 25 years. But that's not what I was getting at with the term "free candy"....I was getting at the easy access without any recognition of the future trap students are entering into. It looks a lot like "free candy"...because everyone is doing it and who care about the future...
why is the cost of higher education escalating at the rate it is?
answer: an arms race to build the newest and the best to attract students
How do students and families afford this?
answer: unbridled student loan debt without regard to whether it can ever be paid back
Are people making smart choices about education when payback on their degree is taked into consideration?
answer: not really. Nobody is connecting the dots between "sign on the dotted line for this student loan" and the repayment requirements after school versus the earning capacity of the student after graduating from that school and major.
conclusion: student loans have become the "free candy" propelling the educational arms race.
solutions:
1) rein in student loan accesibility which will make students more selective in looking for value
2) put more $$$ into state schools and junior colleges
3) let supply and demand break the "keep up with the Joneses" syndrome
4) start steering towards a model that balances opportnity with capabilities with ecpense of education with returns from education. Somehwere between the German model and out model
Our current model isn't sustainable and will collapse within 10 years.