Biden Student Loan Plan

[RoyalSpade]

Who else is excited for Biden to do an executive order and get rid of 10k in federal student loans? Do y'all think he's actually gonna be able to do it? I heard he wants congress to forgive close to 50k

[StoicJ]

The federal debt is already near $28000000000000. I really think it could approach $40000000000000 by the time President Harris leaves office in about 4 years. Or maybe she'll stay, who knows. Social Security and the Medi's cost about $2,380,000,000,000 per YEAR. The federal government could forgive all outstanding student loans in one fell swoop and it would be less than what goes into SS/Medi in 9 months.

To me it's all monopoly money at this point anyway. Just put it on our tab, and we'll see how it all plays out. Just wish I had a couple of nice retreats in some remote, overseas hinterboonies.



"Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard." - H.L. Mencken

"The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly is to fill the world with fools."- Herbert Spencer

[MNomadic]

I wonder how it would work for current students...

[ss20ts]

I would prefer something done to the interest rates. The interest rates are ridiculously high. That's what's causing people to owe 3 times their loans by the time they graduate. They make payments on interest for 10 years and get nowhere.

[dfrecore]

The federal government really needs to stop encouraging people to take out loans in the first place. How about telling people to work through college? Or take a couple of years to save up some money before going to school? Or go to 2 years of community college first? It just seems like everyone actually tells kids to take out loans without telling them what their life is going to be like at the end, trying to pay these damn things off. There needs to be some common sense applied by SOMEONE (anyone?) so that we're not forgiving loans now and then sitting right back in this fiasco in 10 or 20 years.

[rachel83az]

"Working through college" isn't really an option when 40 hours a week @ $15/hr only equates to about $30k/year before taxes and that's nowhere near enough to go to "most" "worthwhile" schools. If you haven't got a college education (and most of the students who are struggling with student loans are probably first-generation college grads) then it can be hard to find a job that actually pays well.

I do agree that something needs to be done. But encouraging students to worth through college, especially when college is already a stressful time, isn't the solution.

[ss20ts]

"Working through college" isn't really an option when 40 hours a week @ $15/hr only equates to about $30k/year before taxes and that's nowhere near enough to go to "most" "worthwhile" schools. If you haven't got a college education (and most of the students who are struggling with student loans are probably first-generation college grads) then it can be hard to find a job that actually pays well.

I do agree that something needs to be done. But encouraging students to worth through college, especially when college is already a stressful time, isn't the solution.

At one point in college back in my youth, I did work a full time job. I made minimum wage which wasn't anywhere near $15 an hour. I also really struggled to get my school work done because I worked so much and my grades suffered. I also had bills to pay - car insurance, rent, groceries, etc. There was not a dime left to save. I was at a community college which wasn't free. Not even close. Today that same community college is almost $800 per class for a 3 credit course without any labs plus the textbook. 

Everyone doesn't come from a happy home life with supportive parents. Many parents never contribute a dime towards their kids' college education. My sister worked 3 jobs when she was in college. She didn't have any money leftover to save. There were months she didn't have money for food. I always made sure she had food. I couldn't help with her tuition, but I could make her food. She had a partial scholarship, grants, and student loans and still struggled to pay for college and a place to live. 

Sounds great to get a job paying $15 an hour while in college, but the reality of it is that most college students won't be able to find a job paying that much. In many parts of the nation, minimum wage is still $7.25 an hour. In those areas, you'll need a college education to earn $15 an hour. In areas where minimum wage is higher, the cost of living is also higher so everything costs more. It's not nearly as easy as many people make it sound. 

[dfrecore]

"Working through college" isn't really an option when 40 hours a week @ $15/hr only equates to about $30k/year before taxes and that's nowhere near enough to go to "most" "worthwhile" schools. If you haven't got a college education (and most of the students who are struggling with student loans are probably first-generation college grads) then it can be hard to find a job that actually pays well.

I do agree that something needs to be done. But encouraging students to worth through college, especially when college is already a stressful time, isn't the solution.

Practically every person on this board is working through college, most probably full-time, plus add in marriages and kids and everything else.

As an 18yo, I worked in college, as did every single one of my friends.  ALL of us worked part time or full time through school. 100%.  None of us was getting a free ride through school, and back then it wasn't a thing to take out loans.  They existed, but you did whatever you could to not take them (including not going where you couldn't afford).

My 18yo daughter is now working through college even though we are paying for it.  She works close to 40 hours a week, and when her boss had Covid, she worked 52 hours for 3 weeks.  No problems, she has maintained a 3.0 with a full load (and she's not a superstar student, she's just conscientious and dilligent).  And, most of her friends are also working part time.  The only ones not working are the ones whose parents are paying 100% - and even some of them are working part time.

My best friend's daughter worked through senior year of high school and 2 years of community college, fast food and house/dog-sitting, to save up enough to be able to pay for 2 years at a state school away from home.  She had several friends doing it as well.

To say that kids can't work while in college is just silly.  Many studies show that students who work part time in college actually do better than ones who don't work at all.  Better grades, and a better resume.  More likely to stay in school.  They finish faster.  Less time spent playing beer-pong, more time actually studying because they care more.  All kinds of stuff going on there.

And, BTW, I have lots of friends who have kids with student loans, not a single one is a first-generation college student.  Many just didn't have the money to pay for all of college, but paid for some.  Many think their kids should have skin in the game.  There are many reasons why kids take out student loans, but saying that all, or even most, of them are 1st-gen college - I don't think that's true at all.  As a matter of fact, many kids who are first-gen college fall into the lower-income range and qualify for financial aid that the kids I know don't qualify for.  If you're middle- to upper-middle class, you either have to have money saved up for college for your kids, or take out loans.  Or have your kids work.

[rachel83az]

Practically every person on this board is working through college, most probably full-time, plus add in marriages and kids and everything else.

Yes, most people here are working through college. But we've also found the "secret" to both cheap college and being able to go at our own pace. Unfortunately, changes seem to be in the works to make that much more difficult and expensive. The average student trying to work through college is not going to have the same luxuries that we have.

As an 18yo, I worked in college, as did every single one of my friends.  ALL of us worked part time or full time through school. 100%.  None of us was getting a free ride through school, and back then it wasn't a thing to take out loans.  They existed, but you did whatever you could to not take them (including not going where you couldn't afford).

Your experience of working through college was at least 18 years ago (based on the age of your kids) when college/university was not as expensive as it is now. 20 years ago, it was still marginally possible to work through an average college degree. Not as much now.

My 18yo daughter is now working through college even though we are paying for it.  She works close to 40 hours a week, and when her boss had Covid, she worked 52 hours for 3 weeks.  No problems, she has maintained a 3.0 with a full load (and she's not a superstar student, she's just conscientious and dilligent).  And, most of her friends are also working part time.

This is a luxury and a privilege. Being able to work part-time and still attend college is just not possible if you have to pay for everything yourself. Your daughter doesn't have to deal with the stress of wondering what will happen if she loses her job, if she'll be able to even eat, to live. That makes "working through college" a lot easier. Toss her out on the street, pay for nothing, and she would probably flunk out of everything. That's just what stress does to a person.

To say that kids can't work while in college is just silly.

You misspelled "realistic".

Many studies show that students who work part time in college actually do better than ones who don't work at all.

Probably because, in order to attend school while working only part-time, they came from extremely rich and privileged backgrounds. If you get everything handed to you, you're not going to have a very good work ethic once you graduate. So, yes, if you have money, then working part-time through college may be helpful. If you are a first-generation college student whose parents just barely break even and who can't even give you money for food, your outcome is going to be drastically different.

[ss20ts]

This is a luxury and a privilege. Being able to work part-time and still attend college is just not possible if you have to pay for everything yourself. Your daughter doesn't have to deal with the stress of wondering what will happen if she loses her job, if she'll be able to even eat, to live. That makes "working through college" a lot easier. Toss her out on the street, pay for nothing, and she would probably flunk out of everything. That's just what stress does to a person.

When Jon Bon Jovi started sending his kids off to college, he learned about food poverty and how it impacts college students. It hit him in such a way that he opened a FREE restaurant on a Rutgers University campus. The college students there are allowed to get free meals if they can't afford to pay. They repay the restaurant by working there - doing dishes, making food, prepping food, cleaning, etc. He has opened up a few of these restaurants in New Jersey. The students there say this made a huge impact on their lives and they know they don't have to go hungry like many college students do. They get an actual healthy meal too. Not a container of Ramen or microwave mac & cheese. If this guy who is a multimillionaire can see this problem, why can't people on here?