How much is the burden of student loans affecting the personal lives of students after completing their education? The degree to which a person will have a financially successful future is largely depended on getting a good education. However, not everyone can manage to pay for that education. Therefore, students often resort to taking out student loans to help them compensate for their education. According to some sources, the average amount of student debt is equivalent to the price of a new car. Like many other Americans, Wearing Thin faces the same problem of repaying those student loans without family support and claims that the loans “are the cause of almost every stress in [her] life.” Not only does she associate her student loans with stress, but also states that her life is defined by her student loans. In the article “A Big Life”, Thin seeks advice and reaches out to Cheryl Strayed, a writer, and asks her for her perspective on the situation. Cheryl, referred to as “Sugar” in the article, writes back claiming that she too is a victim of student debt. She forms a connection with Thin and provides hope by advising her to accept the student loans and to move forward from there. By establishing her credibility through sharing her life experiences and appealing to emotions through the use of empathy, Sugar attempts to inspire in Thin a sense of hope for a brighter tomorrow.
Sugar, in order establish ethos in her response, immediately asserts her credibility by claiming that she too has been through the same phase as the one Thin is currently in. Sugar starts off her essay with a personal anecdote saying that Thin’s "freaking out” about student load debt is useless. She claims that she too “received zero funding from [her] p...
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...e her a better person, it “gave me faith in my own abilities…They made my life big. They contributed to an education that money can’t buy.” Sugar makes Thin believe that despite all her tribulations, there can also be a positive side to the issue. By providing a sense of optimism for the future, Sugar hopes to be encouraging to Thin by helping her find a way to triumph over her problems.
Paying off student loans is a huge burden to bear especially for young people like Wearing Thin. However, Sugar uses appeals to emotion and asserts her credibility by sharing her story in the hopes of making Thin realize that everything will be fine, if only she lets it. Not only Thin, but thousands of other Americans are going through the same problem of paying off student loans. Sugar’s letter not only serves as a spark for one, but thousands of other people all over the world.
What those student did actually changed the policy and made it easier for families to afford college without heavy loans. This showed others that activists can make a difference, something she presses on in this
Martin and Lehren’s article “A Generation Hobbled by the Soaring Cost of College” addresses the issue faced by current and former college students dealing with large amounts of debts due to student loans. The article presents the reader with stories of former college students who have either graduated or dropped out, and their struggle to pay off their student loans. The article also talks about issues such as students not being informed about high amounts of student loans and why student debts have increased. Martin and Lehren also make the issue of student debt more intimidating by giving examples
Vivian knows that in society her own effort is the key to supporting herself and eventually securing a better future. She wants to set up a life in the city and tries very hard to look for a job. Due to lack of a skill, although she is willing to do heavy or dirty work, she is not able to find a job with enough pay to support herself. Her goal in life is simply to support herself by her own effort instead of letting somebody else arrange and control her life. This, in it self, represents a spirit of active effort for someone like Vivian. In addition to her efforts in trying to support herself and realize her own goals, Vivian also endeavors to help others. With a part of the $3000 windfall she earns from her week with Edward Lewis, she presses her friend Kit to pursue her long-dormant desire to become a beautician. And her most significant achievement is helping Edward Lewis, the corporate raider, rediscover his humanity, so he can build things instead of dismantling the work of others for profit, and find a more meaningful life other than locking himself in work. The two aspects discussed above display the changes of emphasis on self-...
...hew , and Debbie Cochrane. "Student Debt and the Class of 2012." Institute For College Access and Success. December (2013 ): n. page. Web. 12 Dec. 2013.
An education is one of the most important tools a person can acquire. It gives them the skills and abilities to obtain a job, earn a wage, and then use that wage to better their lives and the lives of their loved ones. However, due to the seemingly exponential increase in the costs of obtaining a college degree, students are either being driven away entirely from earning a degree or taking out student loans which cripple their financial prospects well after graduation. Without question, the increasing national student loan debt is one of the most pressing economic issues the United States is dealing with, as students who are debt ridden are not able to consume and invest in the economy. Therefore, many politicians and students are calling on the government to forgive their student loan debts so that through their spending the slowly recovering economy can finally return to its pre-2008 strength.
It may conclude that student who pay by student loan feels more pressure to getting a job after graduate to be able to pay back for the loans. This motivates them to study hard because they realize that how much the importance of academic performance to get a job.” What does this mean? Those who are having to use loans are more pressured to find a job and work to pay off their debt, seeing as how it could last a lifetime and are having to work hard to maintain financial aid. Yet, for those who go to college with their parents funding their education, there isn’t as much pressure to succeed because the family has the ability to fund
“Unless you have a 4.0 GPA and a 36 ACT” ,she exclaims, “you are never guaranteed a full ride.” Instead, she focused on “out of school scholarships” which means scholarships for specific students not offered by colleges. Diana says, “ I applied to around 80 scholarships...won about 40 of those scholarships.” Also even with all those scholarships,She has $12,000 dollars in debt. This shows incoming freshmen that student debt will not be easy to avoid in college and that many students will have debt after college.
This is an example of Jeannette’s parents trying to keep their children as optimistic as possible.They knew that their life would be rough and tough based on what they had gone through however if they always kept the positive mindset it would make things a lot easier for
It is a norm and expectation in society today for students to pursue higher education after graduating from high school. College tuition is on the rise, and a lot of students have difficulty paying for their tuitions. To pay for their tuitions, most students have to take out loans and at the end of four years, those students end up in debt. Student loan debts are at an all time high with so many people graduating from college, and having difficulties finding jobs in their career fields, so they have difficulties paying off their student loans and, they also don’t have a full understanding of the term of the loans and their options if they are unable to repay.
In that year, the number of college graduates was only 432,058 (Sourmaidis) and ever since the demand continually increased as did price. This trend allowed for the student loan crisis to occur, which is a problem we face today. As of 2016, American students have accrued a massive 1.3 trillion in student loan debt. Just 10 years ago, the nation’s balance was only $447 billion (Clements). This ever-present cumulative burden has caused many post graduate Americans to delay important life events such as marriage, homeownership and children because of this substantial encumbrance (Clements).
Being forced to move back home after college graduation is one of many obstacles students face while getting accustomed to the new debt they inherit after school. Imagine, upon graduation of high school the excitement one must feel about finally being away from the watchful eye of mama and papa bird. Headed to college to live on their own, freedom to be an adult and make decisions as such. If lucky enough to be one of the one’s who will make it through the entire four years of higher learning with a degree, evidence of long nights, dedication, and hard work, great rewards are expected, right? Wrong, many students in modern society will be met with a harsh reality and be bound to the nest which they took flight from four years prior. Student loans will become the new chain holding them captive to their parents. Unable to afford to live independently right after college graduation is a price some must pay for pursuing higher education.
In the essay, he states that he sees “four kinds of pressure working on college students today: economic pressure, parental pressure, peer pressure, and self-induced pressure” (398). He goes on to explain what goes through the minds of college students when dealing with the four stated pressures as well as academic pressures. While putting the thoughts of college students on display, Zinsser emphasizes the stress that they are forced to succumb to due to the stated pressures. He explains, “Today it is not unusual for a student, even if he works part-time at college and full-time during the summer, to accrue $5,000 in loans after four years--loans that he must start to repay within one year after graduation. Exhorted at commencement to go forth into the world, he is already behind as he goes forth” (400). In the quote, Zinsser explains the economical aspect of the four listed pressures. He clarifies that most students who pursue higher education do not graduate unscathed from school loans. He then questions his audience on the rationality of a college student going through school without thinking about the large sums of money that must be repaid by them: “How could he not feel under pressure throughout college to prepare for this day of reckoning?” (400). This description helps Zinsser effectively explain to his audience the hardship of dealing with just one of the four pressures he enumerated. Zinsser also uses rhetorical questions to let the audience know that he respects their point of view but also to further his own point. When explaining how parents would rather their children enroll in courses that will lead them to a financially fulfilling degree, Zinsser answers the question that audience members are thinking: “Where’s the payoff on the humanities? It’s not easy to persuade such loving
With the ever-increasing tuition and ever-tighten federal student aid, the number of students relying on student loan to fund a college education hits a historical peak. According to a survey conducted by an independent and nonprofit organization, two-thirds of college seniors graduated with loans in 2010, and each of them carried an average of $25,250 in debt. (Reed et. al., par. 2). My research question will focus on the profound effect of education debt on American college graduates’ lives, and my thesis statement will concentrate on the view that the education policymakers should improve financial aid programs and minimize the risks and adverse consequences of student loan borrowing.
She explains how her son was just pushed through school. “Our youngest, a world-class charmer, did litter to develop his intellectual talent but always got by” (559). He got through school by being a good kid, he was quiet and didn’t get in trouble. This was how he made it to his senior year until Mrs. Stifter’s English class. Her son sat in the back of the room talking to his friends; and when Mary told her to just move him “believing the embarrassment would get him to settle down” (559) Mrs. Stifter just told her “I don’t move seniors I flunk them” (559). This opened Mary’s eyes that her son would have to actually apply himself to pass. He wouldn’t be handed a passing grade. After the meeting with her son teacher, she told her son if you don’t try you will fail, making him actually apply himself. This made Mary understand that Failure is a form of positive teaching tool. Only because her son had to work for it and, now he actually came out of high school with a form of
...loan payments added to our monthly expenses. I am reminded of my desires and cravings everyday that I go to work and hear the bells of unfulfillment toll. My educational path will be a long one, but I am prepared and extremely motivated for the path ahead. My financial hardship keeps me at a job that is unfulfilling and moot; however, I am grateful for the fuel it provides to my passion in achieving my educational goals.