Tracy Truong
M. Williams
English 1A
20 December 2013
Student
Loans
Student
loans in America have always been a problem for college students, but it is an
especially big problem now that we are in the 21st century. Student
debt from loans have skyrocketed – making it more and more difficult for
students to pay it off after they have graduated. This type of system is unjust
to those who seek further education. It affects everyone in the country because
without education, humans will not be able to progress further in life. In his
book, The Rich and the Rest of Us,
Tavis Smiley mentions how poverty in America is affected by student loans and
debt. Student loans greatly affect students and should be regulated so that
people do not have to be afraid of having “bad debt,” have an equal opportunity
to further their education, and have a fair chance of raising their social
class. The regulation of student loans gives people the opportunity to see
their hard work being paid off. Student loans are chains that bind people to
their social classes.
A
big reason why student loans affect college students so greatly is because
people are afraid that they will not be able to get out of debt later. People
are worried that they are taking too huge of a risk and that if they attend
college, they will not be able to pay off their debt later. This fear of debt
is one that is very reasonable. In The
Rich and the Rest of Us, Smiley says “Then, reality hits; you can’t find a
job in this Recession Economy or the one you secured has been snatched away”
(41). This is a very common scenario for many people and has caused a lot of
problems. College is a very expensive investment and in order to attend a large
amount of money is needed, but because people are afraid of accumulating too
much debt, they decide not to go to college and try to find jobs without a
degree. However without a degree it is nearly impossible to find a job because
society is evolving in such a way that it needs people to engineer and create
new technology. Without further education people will not possess the skills
needed to fulfill these jobs. If student loans were regulated then people would
be less fearful of taking them out and would have the chance to attend college.
This would lead to people having more opportunities to find jobs.
Student
loans should not just be regulated because it is more equal and fair to
everyone that wants to attend school. They should be regulated because there
are so many different kinds that it is difficult to inform people about them.
There are many private loans that are not regulated that can put people into a
lot of debt. Their interest rates are very high. Tavis states that “if students
had access to interest-free loans like big banks do, many young people would
flourish with less debt” (117). If private loans were put under regulation and
had a limit on how much interest they could charge then students would be able
to go to college without having to worry about accumulating too much debt. They
could go to college without worrying that they are investing in something risky.
Interest is what makes loans so dangerous. When a college student takes out a
loan, the interest adds more debt onto their plate with each passing year. When
the student graduates and cannot find a job to pay off the loan, the debt still
increases and the person that took out the loan is left with a big pile of
debt. It is unfair that this person works hard all their life and in return all
they get is a large amount of debt that they are unable to pay off.
Student
loans limit peoples’ opportunities. Without further education it is very
difficult to find a job in today’s economy. However to achieve higher education
a large amount of money is needed. “While rich kids go off to college,
America’s poor children drop out of school, wind up in the nation’s jails or
prisons, or are destined to live the lives of the working poor—or worse” (62).
America’s poor children do not have a fair chance of achieving higher
education. Since their parents do not have enough money to send them to
college, they are forced to take out student loans to try to pay off their
costs. With student loans though, they are plunged deeply into debt and when
they graduate they are weighed down with the burden of this heavy bill they
have created. On the other hand, the students with rich parents will get to
complete college without any worries. They will be given the opportunity to
study and do not have to worry about having debt when they graduate. This
leaves them with the chance to find a job and accumulate riches. Thus the rich
student just expands their family’s wealth while the poor student stays poor.
If student loans are not regulated, this unjust cycle will only repeat itself
again and again. No one is given a fair chance at higher education. People
either have an advantage in life or they do not.
It
is obvious that the system concerning loans needs reforming. The government
should regulate how a student spends money they get from loans as well as regulate
how much interest loans are allowed to charge. Also, more students should be
informed about how private and federal loans can affect them. They should be
more aware of the decisions they make so that they do not graduate and find
that they cannot pay off the loans that they took out. If student loans are
regulated then everyone has more of a chance to attend college. Students will
be more informed about what they are doing, be less afraid of going to college
and taking out loans, and have a more equal chance to move up in social class.
Student loans are like a vicious animal, if not tamed they could destroy
everyone.
