Comments on: Corrupt Student Loan Programs Stain Higher Education

By: Michelle

Michelle — Mon, 02 May 2011 15:51:08 +0000

I have to say that while I do think that perhaps the loan process and the expense of the loans is on the verge of unethical, the fact of the matter is that paying back the loans is not that expensive. My friends dad took out almost 40,000 in loans to get his bachelors and he's paying about 120/month. That is NOT unreasonable. People seem to come off feeling like higher education should be a right, like k-12 education and that just isnt' the case. You have to choose your path wisely, taking out thousands of dollars to get an art degree is not a wise investment. I'm not some right wing nut with a heart made of stone, I'm a realist. A girl I know just got 10,000 in BP money (we live on the gulf coast) and went and bought a motorcycle but is waiting around to get federal money to pay for her schooling. That is wrong, and so is the way that many college students spend their loan money. We need to quit attacking the establishment and hold some people accountable for their actions. As I said, spend the money wisely while you're in school, take a loan against a degree that will be worth something and budget to be able to pay the loan amount back. I understand that 120/month for a 40,000 loan translates into never paying it back, but that is the minimum that he can pay, not what he should pay. I seriously think that some of that college education needs to be translating into pos-graduate behavior.

By: Erin Chavez

Erin Chavez — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 02:34:01 +0000

Yeah, I am pretty sure I will be retired and still paying on the loans. My graduate school was pretty expensive. For my undergraduate, it wasn't too bad. Looking back, I would have done things differently but now I am stuck. Maybe someday the government will forgive the loans. Doubtful, but I can always hope.

By: Tamer ElSahy

Tamer ElSahy — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 22:09:58 +0000

I know exactly how that is. Although I do not personally get any student loans for my education (graduated abroad and got help from my dad), my wife has been enrolled in a pretty expensive undergraduate program here in California. Although the debt keeps mounting we are pretty happy that she can get up to $5500 in pell grants, and up to $1100 in cal grants (only for california residents that maintain a decent gpa average) and some other assistance that has been kept afloat because of Obama's legislation.

One thing that your article brought to my attention though and I am surprised to find myself thinking about this for the first time now. How long is it actually going to take us until we can pay it all back?? Its hard to calculate it using the expected median income for her profession but I guess thats one way to do it. Another is to just hold your breath.

Not holding my breath though. We might be turning grey by the time we get em payed off.