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That wasn't a big problem before 1998. There are many disincentives to bankruptcy which is why people who are not broke or those with prospects to earn aren't

That wasn't a big problem before 1998. There are many disincentives to bankruptcy which is why people who are not broke or those with prospects to earn aren't lining up to do it. If a college actually prepares a student for the job market they would be insane to do this; if it doesn't they may have no recourse. Very few forms of debt are excluded from bankruptcy. IMO it's far from humane to make college, of all things, in that category. Should those who pay huge $$$ for American degrees and then can't get jobs be forced to pay the bloated costs despite having to go back to a retail job where they can barely survive? The original act takes a civil liberty, which most people enjoy, from a vulnerable group. Young people just starting out who may have made a huge investment that didn't pan out... being unable to declare bankruptcy prevents such young people from getting back on sound financial ground for potentially decades. It's embarrassing that the Clintons haven't taken more heat for this, arguably nothing but an act of crony capitalism.

dmitrygr 9y ago
What sort of the job does a bachelor's degree in art history or classic greek literature prepare one for? (A PhD in those fields could make one a professor, but a BA does nothing)
- threepipeproblm 9y ago
  If lenders didn't expect to be repaid unconditionally, they would be less likely to lend money to college degrees that were likely to be financially worthless. This is as it should be. Before the modern financial aid situation, some people still managed to get degrees with more of a classical academic focus (i.e. without regard to market considerations). There were fewer of them, but then the odds they had to go work at Denny's afterwards were also probably lower.
- samcodes 9y ago
  As someone with degrees is math and physics, I used to think this. I don't anymore. I think that those fields offer many opportunities to examine and analyse ideas, and that is important.

dmitrygr 9y ago

What sort of the job does a bachelor's degree in art history or classic greek literature prepare one for? (A PhD in those fields could make one a professor, but a BA does nothing)

threepipeproblm 9y ago
If lenders didn't expect to be repaid unconditionally, they would be less likely to lend money to college degrees that were likely to be financially worthless. This is as it should be. Before the modern financial aid situation, some people still managed to get degrees with more of a classical academic focus (i.e. without regard to market considerations). There were fewer of them, but then the odds they had to go work at Denny's afterwards were also probably lower.
samcodes 9y ago
As someone with degrees is math and physics, I used to think this. I don't anymore. I think that those fields offer many opportunities to examine and analyse ideas, and that is important.