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3.5 Years since the last post and yes education is still a bubble. There are multiple parties to blame for this bubble. The universities are at fault because they offer pointless majors and require many useless Pre-requisite and elective classes as degree requirements. They also have tenured professors teaching these useless classes. Just another excuse for them to Jack up tuition. The Government is to blame because it's subsidizing these loans, which guarantees the universities get their money, which encourages them to offer bs classes to bring in more dough. The education system is to blame because kids need to have MANDATORY PERSONAL FINANCE CLASSES to graduate. Most kids have no idea how a student loan really works. The finance industry takes blame for allowing children to sign up for huge amounts of debt with no means of showing they can pay it back. Lastly, parents and students share the blame for not doing enough research on their own and thinking about how their choices Will effect their lives in the future....
If I had student loans today I would be in default. Luckily I graduated college without them.
There are just no jobs in this economy for college graduates. College grads are struggling deeply in the post recession world with finding work. Entry level jobs in most parts of the country are still being grabbed by people with years of experience and there is nothing a college graduate can do to compete with that.
Watch any TV at all and you see endless commercials by "schools" that teach for a profit. They try to make students believe they are paying to become desirable employees. And then the student invests in that with borrowed money. But if people who hire see their education as inferior, then there's no INCOME to pay back the loan. And you get defaults. I think there ought to be a threshold for a school to receive loan money. They should have to place enough students to insure their loans will be repaid. And they should be motivated to discourage a student from enrolling if they see that student won't make more money after graduating. I mean, its taxpayer guaranteed, so we deserve some due diligence on our behalf.
Students can't claim ignorance, they know what they are doing and they know it is wrong.
Schools don't care because they are paid in advance by the best customer in the world. The federal government.
If only those darn kids paid back the government, it's those kids, we have nothing to do with it, at all. The government shouldn't give us tons free money to educate a bunch of dumbasses who have no desire or reason for getting a degree, said no college ever.
The federal government doesn't care because.... well the real reasons could be debated for hours.
I paid off my wife's student loans a few years ago, totaling 16k. My education was totally free; the military paid for it. In return I had to commit to another 6 years, but I got an in demand degree and got good grades and an pay exorbitant amount of taxes like a good little patriot.
My wife had student loans and now has a good paying job someone with no degree could fill (property management). She hated the career she had longed for and she went 16k into debt trying to fulfill the pipe dream of being a teacher.
I feel conflicted about this topic. Had I not access to student loans, I would have never been able to attend college and pursue my engineering degree. And being that our society is now facing a shortage of STEM graduates, I believe that the department of education's institutional decision to invest in my education added a very real social benefit to American society. On the other hand, for every student studying high-demand fields under the assistance of government loans like myself, there is six more dumb, unintelligent, academically incompetent students studying useless concentrations such as Anthropology, Psychology, Sociology, etc. In these cases, I believe the department of education is making a terrible investment.
I do think they need to scale back the amount of money they give out on student loans. It’s ridiculous that the common idea is that "everyone" deserves an education.
I can see the statistics being right on for several reasons; you can use the student loan money for just about anything. I think it should be restricted to simply tuition, books, and housing. People will probably cry foul that they need a computer, clothes and $$ to eat out. The money should exist to provide you with the bare necessities and most universities worth their salt should be able to provide computer services anyways and most people should be able to hold down a part time job while they get an education.
Another thing is that you can use this money for any degree under the sun. Maybe come up with a list of approved majors that actually provide people with a real skill. I mean, come on, American Studies? You can learn that watching TV.
The default rate on the for-profit schools I understand is high due to the immense cost associated with it. I know an individual going to a for-profit school and am paying roughly 2x what I did at a public university. People don't need to be $100K+ in debt for a degree that would of cost them $20K+ somewhere else.
I admit, I took out student loans bringing my debt level up about $17K but I used that money only for school and books and got a degree in something that I felt could help me find a job, accounting. I also went to school at community college my first years.
My suggestions aren't the end all be all solution and I understand there will be some folks out there that just have bad luck and still may not be able to get past those student loans.
3.5 Years since the last post and yes education is still a bubble. There are multiple parties to blame for this bubble.
What exactly do you mean by "bubble"?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Time2Improve
The universities are at fault because they offer pointless majors and require many useless Pre-requisite and elective classes as degree requirements.
What degree, exactly is useless? What pre-requisites and electives are useless?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Time2Improve
They also have tenured professors teaching these useless classes.
Which useless classes?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Time2Improve
Just another excuse for them to Jack up tuition.
How so? Tuition is still more affordable than the historical norm.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Time2Improve
The Government is to blame because it's subsidizing these loans, which guarantees the universities get their money, which encourages them to offer bs classes to bring in more dough.
Which BS classes, exactly?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Time2Improve
The education system is to blame because kids need to have MANDATORY PERSONAL FINANCE CLASSES to graduate. Most kids have no idea how a student loan really works.
You mean that parents are to blame. Children learn at home.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Time2Improve
The finance industry takes blame for allowing children to sign up for huge amounts of debt with no means of showing they can pay it back.
That's the federal law.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Time2Improve
Lastly, parents and students share the blame for not doing enough research on their own and thinking about how their choices Will effect their lives in the future....
In fact, parents and students take most of the blame. The federal government takes a portion of it.
I do think they need to scale back the amount of money they give out on student loans. It’s ridiculous that the common idea is that "everyone" deserves an education.
I can see the statistics being right on for several reasons; you can use the student loan money for just about anything. I think it should be restricted to simply tuition, books, and housing. People will probably cry foul that they need a computer, clothes and $$ to eat out. The money should exist to provide you with the bare necessities and most universities worth their salt should be able to provide computer services anyways and most people should be able to hold down a part time job while they get an education.
Another thing is that you can use this money for any degree under the sun. Maybe come up with a list of approved majors that actually provide people with a real skill. I mean, come on, American Studies? You can learn that watching TV.
The default rate on the for-profit schools I understand is high due to the immense cost associated with it. I know an individual going to a for-profit school and am paying roughly 2x what I did at a public university. People don't need to be $100K+ in debt for a degree that would of cost them $20K+ somewhere else.
I admit, I took out student loans bringing my debt level up about $17K but I used that money only for school and books and got a degree in something that I felt could help me find a job, accounting. I also went to school at community college my first years.
My suggestions aren't the end all be all solution and I understand there will be some folks out there that just have bad luck and still may not be able to get past those student loans.
I'm concerned that people will read this post and take it seriously. It's full of so much nonsense that it will misguide parents and students.
I would say it is an indicator of overpriced sleazy private "schools." If the Feds dial back the student loans across the board, it will force the entire college industry to cut back on the [over]pricing.
Same as with housing -- the crazy lending drove up the prices.
Education . . . . the next bubble to pop?
How can the education bubble pop?
While there are plenty of low quality colleges out there that aren't worth a dime, the reality is that the pricing of traditional college is more affordable than it traditionally has been.
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