Unsubsidized, accreditation, enrollment, disbursement, subsidized, lender, principal, capitalization, APR. Any college student dependent on student loans is probably very familiar with most of this financial jargon. Growing up, I heard that attending a university was an expectation and that higher education was the only way to ensure a secure future. I listened, and applied to 19 schools for my undergraduate degree (I’ll wait for you to pick your jaws up off the floor). I made my ultimate decision based on the financial aid I received. The university I committed to wasn’t necessarily my dream school, but it afforded me the opportunity to go to school without loans. Over time, the scholarships, work-studies, and grants I received were replaced with loans, and as I enter my second to last year as an undergrad, I’m nearly $20,000 in debt. And I’m one of the fortunate ones.
An article published by Time in February 2014 chronicled the experiences of a 2012 Ithaca College graduate named Julia Handel. Working full time as the marketing manager for celebrity chef David Burke, Handel makes $40,000 a year, but she also has more than $75,000 in loans, and estimates that she may be nearly 40 by the time she has paid off her debt. For now, Handel has moved back home and is pinching pennies to make her $700 monthly payment.
“'Whenever I do anything, loans are always in the back of my mind,” she says. “It controls what I do every day and what I spend my money on.'”
In September of 2014, CNBC published a similar story regarding a 57-year old woman, Rosemary Anderson. Anderson borrowed $64,000 in student loans in her thirties, and over the course of the past two decades, interest has raised her debt to $126,000. She estimates that she will be 81 by the time her debt is paid off, and that she will end up reimbursing $87,487 more than she originally borrowed.
In the end, it's the borrower's responsibility to pay attention to the amount he or she borrows as well as interest rates. But it's also Congress’ responsibility to develop practical relief options without making loan debt partisan.
Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren has made this her central focus. Her bill, the Bank on Student Loans Fairness Act (pdf), would allow students to borrow at the same rate banks borrow money from the Federal Reserve, 0.75%. This is a shockingly low interest rate compared to the 3-7% interest rates most students are paying today. Another proposal from Senators Tom Harkin and Jack Reed would maintain the current 3.4% interest rate for two more years, regardless of the government’s financial status.
Every generation owes money on student loans. American seniors owe an appraised 43 billion of the 1.3 trillion total owed by US graduates. But my generation differs in that the average household makes less while the cost of higher education is rising. So what can be done to eradicate this discrepancy?
To both borrowers and Washington, the message is clear: take action.
Students: Get informed and ask hard questions, even if it's for help. Consider Warren's proposal and the Harkin-Reed bill. Hold yourselves accountable by paying close attention to which and how many loans you take out and their interest rates. And legislators: Do something. This situation will only worsen, and America can't afford for its newest generation of workers to be highly educated, but crippled in debt before they start their careers and their adult lives.
