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Right. It’s become a government backed bubble. Somehow we need to pop it softly. I’m sympathetic to all the current student debt holders and providing relief to
by erentz 8y ago
Right. It’s become a government backed bubble. Somehow we need to pop it softly. I’m sympathetic to all the current student debt holders and providing relief to them but if we do that without putting and end to these guaranteed loans we’re just perpetuating (and making worse) the problem.
Doing something like making community college and trade school level degrees free and leaving everything else to private loans sorta makes sense. (Arguably 80% of university graduates really didn’t need their degree for their job.)
- chrisseaton 8y agoWhy do you think community college and trade school level degrees should be free? It sounds like you think they're less wasteful somehow?
- maxkwallace 8y agoOn average, they must be less wasteful simply because their tuition is so much lower. There's lower margins so less room for waste. They are also not a luxury good (college is) so they are more subject to market pressures.
- skh 8y agoCommunity colleges have lower wages for their permanent faculty compared to universities and 4 year colleges. Community colleges usually have very little in terms of athletics. Athletics at most universities are a huge sink in terms of expenses. Very few universities generate enough money to pay for their athletic departments and none of them as far as I know generate enough money to pay for the buildings and stadiums they use. Community colleges mostly focus on teaching classes and lack the accoutrements that universities generally have.
- orev 8y agoPeople may not have jobs that match their degrees, but in many cases you need a degree to get a job. It’s an HR hurdle you need to clear to prove you can manage your time and eventually reach a goal you set for yourself.
- lsd5you 8y agoBut this is a completely zero sum consideration, and as such from a policy point of view it makes no sense to make any allowances for this.
- Coding_Cat 8y agoThere is a rather simple way of stopping the ever growing tuition bubble, one that is employed in the Netherland, but I feel like it won't be popular in the US: Cap the tuition a college is allowed to charge and restrict them from charging additional fees.
- ashelmire 8y agoActually, the simplest way to put downward pressure on tuition in the US is to allow the loans to be dischargeable in bankruptcy.
- p1esk 8y agoWhy?
- ashelmire 8y agoSee the other comment: Banks will lend less, to people they think will pay it back. Which means schools will have to charge less, particularly for non-profitable majors.
- prklmn 8y agoThe govnement is the creditor, not the banks like they would be for a traditional loan.
- ashelmire 8y agoHmm, I didn't realize that federal loans were the overwhelming majority of the student loans (I guess the pseudo-governmental status of Sallie Mae and getting federal loans serviced by banks was a bit confusing). That does complicate matters, and suggests that universities are enjoying the government guarantee of funding to increase costs. Making them dischargeable in bankruptcy would mean the programs would have to change.
- TrinaryWorksToo 8y ago
- dgzl 8y agoHere's an idea for 'slowly popping it': Innovate in trade schools and start convincing high school students to take that path instead of University.
- ganoushoreilly 8y agoSomewhere in the early / mid 90's VO-TECH was changed to being a dirty word. I would even argue that some computer science related programs should take a vo-tech structure.
- adriveatrain 8y ago> making community college and trade school level degrees free that's a tax on the non-attendees, why should they pay for your education when it significantly raises your earning potential?
- nazgulnarsil 8y agopotentially because the taxes tend to fall on those who benefit hugely from an educated workforce. Not sure I agree with this argument, but it's worth noting the justification so that it can be discussed seriously rather than more confusing arguments.