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[lburgis]

What is the Right Choice?

“Balancing Debt Against College Choice” is a very interesting article in the New York Times written by Ron Lieber. The article is based off a true story that reflects the struggle some students face when trying to balance debt and choice of college. The article starts off by introducing the main character, Mino Caulton. He is a dislexic boy who is 18 years old and figuring out what his path is going to be for college. He was given $18,500 in grants from Juniata College. Unfortunately for Mino, along with many other families, their household value fell 80% in a previous economic downturn and if he wanted to go to a proficient liberal arts college he would need much more money in grants. One option that was mentioned in the article was for Mino to take out a loan of around $7,000 just to help pay for his freshman year of college. Beyond any grants or loans Mino and his family would still need to pull together around $43,000. Is it worth it? This is a decision students and families all over the world have to make. Most jobs nowadays will ask about where you graduated from college, there are always exceptions, but for the majority, the high paying jobs are given to people who graduated from at least a proficient college with a degree. In Mino’s case, a good college degree can have him facing a 5 figure debt and in that case a high paying job still isn't guaranteed. Lieber mentions in the article how Mino was not a spender, but still his savings are not even a fraction of what private college would cost for him to attend for four years. Another option for Mino is taking the Community College route. Mino mentions that he can’t help but feel like the Community College route is settling for less. I believe that many students feel this way and that is a big reason why a large chunk of highschool seniors chose debt and education over saving money. The main takeaway from this article is that college sets you up for your future but also has the ability to set you back. Many people debate over the right choice and I don't think there is one with the given circumstances. Many people every year set themselves up for success and others cant afford to spare the change no matter the level of intelligence or devotion to academics. The pressure of debt vs. education is a horrible pressure that needs to be changed. I believe that schools should offer more variety of grants and financial aid or lower their prices in general.

Lieber, Ron. "Balancing Debt Against College Choice." New York Times, 24 Mar. 2011, p. F2(L). Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A252247477/OVIC?u=uarizona_main&sid=OVIC&xid=a4f1b161. Accessed 27 Oct. 2019.

[lburgis]

Drowning in Debt

“‘I’m Drowning’: Those Hit Hardest by Student Loan Debt” is an article written about the unfortunate stories of students who had such bad debt they chose to drop out of college. The main character in this article is Chavonne. She lives in Washington D.C. and is in between a few different short term jobs. The article mentions how every once in a while a debt collector will contact Chavonne and remind her of the burden on her chest. The debt she had built up from a failed education. On top of calling her and reminding her of the debt she has, the Government actually went to such lengths to seize her tax refund. The article then transitions into the past. When Chavonne was in highschool everyone around her was convincing her that the college route is worth the debt. Without a doubt, she took out a $20,000 loan and attended the University of Mississippi. Many students feel conflicted when making the decision of debt or no debt. Such a pressure is forced onto students to succeed and be wealthy, nowadays it seems only obtainable through a college degree. Unfortunately for Chavonne, college was not the glorious educational experience she was expecting. She was struggling more than she had anticipated and decided after 3 semesters she was done. At the time of this article being written, Chavonne is 5 years out of college and her debt is still weighing her down. Life after college for Chavonne consists of many bills and naturally her debt is not the first thing on her to do list. One big struggle when it comes to college dropouts is that going back to college and earning a degree will set you up with a higher paying job. But is attending college and building up more debt even worth the risk? It is an awful cycle that millions of students, just like Chavonne are stuck in. They are in debt and no longer have access to federal student aid, and can not afford to go back and finish their college education. This is a very unethical cycle that millions of unfortunate students get caught in and struggle trying to escape. Between 2014-2016 3.9 million students dropped out of college due to overwhelming debt. This is the type of statistic that only exists because of the pressure put on students by society and the government. Prices of quality education have spiked in the past decade and it is becoming impossible to keep up with.

Nadworny, Elissa, and Clare Lombardo. “'I'm Drowning': Those Hit Hardest By Student Loan Debt Never Finished College.” NPR, NPR, 18 July 2019, www.npr.org/2019/07/18/739451168/i-m-drowning-those-hit-hardest-by-student-loan-debt-never-finished-college.