Fixing Student Loans

[Tonitrus]

There are plenty of rich, older men who want to help young women get an education.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/29/seeking-arrangement-college-students_n_913373.html

What's the worst that could happen? Beyond rape or death, that is.

US military recruitment is at more than 100% of its goals. It has a loan repayment program, tuition assistance for future courses every year of service, and an additional GI Bill that covers full cost of 4 years of college + a living stipend.

I suppose joining the U.S. military is a lot like entering a sugar-daddy arrangement with some Hampton's millionaire, trading cheap sex for money.

[Ideologue]

Maybe it's not technically a discharge?  But in any event, they go away.

My bad.  I thought you meant *any* borrower who paid under IBR for 10 years got the balance forgiven.

They still do eventually, after 25 years, but the balance is credited as income under the tax code (fortunately, the insolvency provision would, I believe, prevent them from basically crushing a borrower like a bug).

[dps]

Forgive student loans for national service. 

Seriously - medical, engineering, teachers, etc etc.  Think of it as an extended form of work study or something.

They do that already.  Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.  And now, you can go on Income Based Repayment for ten years (often with zero dollar payments), then discharge at the end of a decade.

Your solution is missing a pretty critical factor, unfortunately, isn't it?

Also, Yi's not wrong that it only solves the problem for the individual, by moving it onto the government's ledger.  I'm for this, but it isn't a magic bullet.

Ank's solution misses 2 things.  First, as pointed out, it would just shift the burden from the individual to the taxpayers, and second, it wouldn't do anything to control the rising cost of college (without which, you might well not need the loans in the first place).

[OttoVonBismarck]

Why would anyone have student loans? I got my B.S. without taking out a single dollar in loans.

[Phillip V]

If the student is smart and hard-working enough, scholarships and grants should cover most of their tuition and sometimes board. If the students sucks enough that they qualify for little, then maybe they should rethink going to university...

[Baron von Schtinkenbutt]

If the student is smart and hard-working enough, scholarships and grants should cover most of their tuition and sometimes board. If the students sucks enough that they qualify for little, then maybe they should rethink going to university...

The problem is, with tuition so high, even covering most of the cost can still leave $10,000+ per year up to the student in some way.  I gave up Rose-Hulman because, despite giving me significant aid, I would still have been short $10,000 to $12,000 per year, and I didn't like the idea of coming out of the gate with $40,000+ in student loan debt[1].  Instead, I took the free ride to Florida International (later to Florida Atlantic).  My wife did choose to take the debt in order to go to Holy Cross.

[1] In hindsight, I wish I had taken the loans and gone there anyway.

[Ideologue]

Forgive student loans for national service. 

Seriously - medical, engineering, teachers, etc etc.  Think of it as an extended form of work study or something.

They do that already.  Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.  And now, you can go on Income Based Repayment for ten years (often with zero dollar payments), then discharge at the end of a decade.

Your solution is missing a pretty critical factor, unfortunately, isn't it?

Also, Yi's not wrong that it only solves the problem for the individual, by moving it onto the government's ledger.  I'm for this, but it isn't a magic bullet.

Ank's solution misses 2 things.  First, as pointed out, it would just shift the burden from the individual to the taxpayers, and second, it wouldn't do anything to control the rising cost of college (without which, you might well not need the loans in the first place).

Well, then it's missing three things, since "the existence of public service jobs" is far from being a given.

[Ideologue]

If the student is smart and hard-working enough, scholarships and grants should cover most of their tuition and sometimes board. If the students sucks enough that they qualify for little, then maybe they should rethink going to university...

What the fuck are you talking about?

Oh, undergrad?

Whatever, fuck those guys.  "I HAVE $20,000 IN DEBT HOW WILL I EVER REPAY IT?"

[Barrister]

If the student is smart and hard-working enough, scholarships and grants should cover most of their tuition and sometimes board. If the students sucks enough that they qualify for little, then maybe they should rethink going to university...

The problem is, with tuition so high, even covering most of the cost can still leave $10,000+ per year up to the student in some way.  I gave up Rose-Hulman because, despite giving me significant aid, I would still have been short $10,000 to $12,000 per year, and I didn't like the idea of coming out of the gate with $40,000+ in student loan debt[1].  Instead, I took the free ride to Florida International (later to Florida Atlantic).  My wife did choose to take the debt in order to go to Holy Cross.

[1] In hindsight, I wish I had taken the loans and gone there anyway.

Wait... your wife?

You've been holding out on us...

[Ideologue]

More like Beeb didn't read or forgot he read any of the dozens of posts where moltke has mentioned his wife.

[Admiral Yi]

I didn't know there was a frau Schtinkenbutt.

[Capetan Mihali]

I knew.