In the current world economy, finding a job is becoming a difficult opportunity for many college graduates. There are more than 44 million borrows who collectively owe $1.5 trillion in student loan debt in the U.S. alone (Friedman, 2018). This translates that almost one out of two people in America are paying off student debt. The biggest issue here is the amount of debt facing Americans due to the thirst for a college degree. The government has been easily providing loans to students without considering the plans for future repayment. Many graduates are still asking themselves whether it is worth accumulating debt to obtain a higher education or not.
Perhaps, parents should start teaching their students on how to use the internet even in grade 5 because it is through the internet that people can learn how to make money without going to college. In the 1970’s, students were able to afford college tuition without student loans. They were working part-time jobs year around or over the summer on their time off. Therefore, accumulating debt is not worth when a student is better off without a college degree. Nevertheless, a college graduate has a higher ability to make more money than a high school graduate. This is because a college student is well exposed to many skills and knowledge as well. Earning a degree makes a college graduate develop more and better employment opportunities. People with bachelor and associate degrees typically earn more than high school graduates.
Student debt is one major common problem for college graduates. Today, the majority of college students are graduating with a big amount of debts. Nearly 44 million college graduates in America have a total of $1.5 trillion student debt. It implies that one out of three American adults is swimming in debt. The amount of arrears accrued by the time an average student is graduating is around $37,172 (Friedman, 2018). This amount is big enough for buying a new home or a new car or starting a lucrative business. The way Americans spends and live their lives is significantly affected by these financial burdens. According to The Federal Reserve (2017), home ownership has decreased as a result of the increasing amount in student debt.
The burden of increased student debt lead to delay the age of retirement. However, experts predict that by 2020, 70% of the jobs in America will need a large increase in skilled labor and all job opportunities in the American economy will need skills beyond high school (Lochner, 2016). Therefore, students will have no option but to hit the books and accumulate debts to meet the demand that comes with the labor market. Even though obtaining a higher education is valuable, still it is worthless to accumulate debt for a college degree.
Finding a job is becoming a hard thing for many college graduates. The amount of debt the Americans are facing because of degree they were told they should require is the biggest issue. The government is issuing loans to students without even considering what are they going to pursue or if they have a plan to repay the debt in the future. On the other hand, colleges have been increasing the prices of everything from books to tuition. According to Celente (2015), it makes no difference to have a college degree, and it is a wrong mentality that business and corporations cannot hire someone unless he or she possesses a college degree. It is important for individuals to have minds and think for themselves. Most young people think they can only achieve their American dream by having a degree.
High schools prepare students to get into college, but they don't expose them to other paths away from obtaining a higher education. We need high schools in our country that teaches students how to invent their product or start a business. The students at the high school level should be educated on how to use the internet to become more knowledgeable about various things even without going to college. We should be like in the 1970’s where a college student in America could afford his or her college tuition without getting financial assistance from his parents or student loans. A student was able to pay by working part-time job year around or working over the summertime on his time off. The government has destroyed this by offering easy student loans upon application. No credit is required for taking the loans out. According to Pringle (2018), the costs for four-year College tuition is $29,497 and by the time an average student is graduating, will have accumulated a total of $39,173.
Colleges, on the other hand, are offering deferments to avoid being accountable which makes students halt payments without becoming delinquent. When a student is better off without a college degree accumulating debt is not worth. The borrowers should quickly discover that American dream isn’t so dreamy. Accumulating debt is destroying the hopes of American and ruining their lives. The government should let the banks take over and compete with each other and remove itself from this. That is the only way to reduce the cost of tuition and everything. According to Celente (2015), hyperinflation is right around the corner, and the college degree is even losing its value. A college could be a good thing if the government is not too greedy to handle it the way it needs to see it. It is high time for anyone seeking to obtain a higher education to determine if it is worth to accumulate debt otherwise he or she might end up being an indentured slave paying on worthless degrees and a lifetime of paying on student's loans.
Accumulating debt for higher education is worse if it does not lead to gainful employment. It is worse than noxious credit card debt. If people don't pay it off, they will stay with it for decades even into retirement. The burden of college loans to over 50 million Americans is getting worse over time. The borrowers cannot buy homes and settle down. People are getting burnt even more by a damaged credit rating when they go into default. According to Chen and Wiederspan (2016), an individual who is struggling to repay his or her debt is mostly damaged by the student loan. Penalties, fees and accumulating interests are imposed on delinquent borrowers, and those who default on their loans are facing ruined credit and a debt that is always more times than their original debt balance.
However, many people believe that higher education is a worthy investment. Tilsley (2013) argued that a college graduate has a higher ability to make more money than a high school graduate. In today's society, more jobs require college degrees. Earning a degree makes a college graduate develop more and better employment opportunities. According to Ma et al. (2014), people with bachelor degrees are known to earn 58% more than high school graduates while individuals with an associate's degree used to earn 25% more than high school graduates over the past four decades.
Moreover, for a person to become a successful graduate they need to have self-discipline. Graduates tend to be healthier and live longer. Individuals with a bachelor degree have a higher annual median income than a person with only a high school degree (Hershbein & Kearney, 2014). Holders of associate degree are more likely to be employed than those without any post-high school degree. Despite the challenges of student debt, attaining university degree is still the best investments in future income and well-being.
Student debt is one major thing in common among college graduates. Accumulating debt to obtain higher education is not worth because a degree is no longer the surest and the quickest way to a well-paid job. The burden of student loan debt has made college student question the need for a college degree. Currently, there are a high number of unemployed Americans with bachelor degrees. The volume of debt accrued by the time an average student is graduating is enough to put down a payment on a home. People should be educated on how to use the internet to become more knowledgeable about various things even without going to college. However, earning a degree makes a college graduate develop more and better employment opportunities, have the ability to make more money and live a healthier and longer life.