Generation Debt by Anya Kamenetz discusses how people in my generation and below are born into debt. Kamenetz is a yale graduate who is having trouble finding a job after graduation. She mentions that “debt is inevitable” in our generation with college prices raising. She made her way through by her parent’s rules of spending no more than you earn and paying off the one credit card she owns. She also elaborates on the stigma that comes with being a young adult. How our generation is branded “immature” and “lazy” without a second look at our actual personalities. Also taking the time to point out that we work hard to get by and try to make ends meet without drowning in our inevitable debt. The New York Times states 65.9% of teens who graduate high school go to college. With that 71% of those college students are in debt after graduating and only 13% of graduates get jobs fresh out of college. Most people with bachelor's, master's degrees, and even Phd’s are working in lame part time jobs trying to make ends meet. Most resorting to moving with their parents and guardians until they get their feet off the ground. There is no luxury of a savings account, 401K, or even vacation funds. Most kiss their paychecks goodbye before it is even in their accounts or hands. It …show more content…
The reason behind this was me being afraid of having piles of debt stacked onto my shoulders as soon as I graduate (or after the six month period after graduation). I am still terrified of having the crash and burn after college of not being able to find a job or afford my basic lifestyle. Even finding a basic part time job was hard for me and other people my age and younger. The endless cycle of needing experience to get a job but needing a job to get experience is tiresome. Also the cycle of needing a degree to get a job but needing a job to pay off the degree is like being in a
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
Not So Much”, explains how Generation Y is not necessarily lazy, but rather conforming to fit changing times and a changing system. Her degree in journalism from Princeton, and experience in writing about economics, politics and data-driven journalism, more than qualifies her for writing about such a topic. I was one of those people who believed that today’s generation is too dependent on their parents, always looking for a hand-out and have a sense of entitlement. After reading this, I now have a slightly different opinion about Millennials. Of course, there will always be slackers in every generation whether past, present or future, but there is always more than what meets the eye. Just because someone may not spend their forty-hour work week all in the office, does not mean that they are working any less, but that because of today’s technology they can work from almost anywhere. As for the amount of graduated college students that return to live at home with their parents, it is not necessarily because they are too apathetic to go out and support themselves, but rather the reason being the high unemployment rate among sixteen to twenty-four year olds. After the Great Recession in 2009, many Millennials either lost their jobs, or were simply unable to find one after graduation. While I was raised to believe that if you wanted something, you worked for it, I truly hope that today’s generation is still
A majority of people believe that graduating from college will result in a well-paying job. Unfortunately, a degree will not secure a job for many graduates. In the U.S., the jobless rate for college graduates in 2012 was 7.7 percent, and has further increased in the past five years(Robinson). With such a large pool of unemployed citizens for employers to choose from, recent graduates are facing fewer opportunities for work due to little or no previous work experience(Robinson). Although many graduates are faced with unemployment, the majority do receive the opportunity to work. Sadly, many must work jobs they do not enjoy for salaries that make it difficult to make ends meet(Debate). Students are faced with mortgage-sized debts upon graduation, making it difficult for them to start businesses, buy cars or houses, or make other investments that would better the
Individuals are struggling nowadays to acquire an education higher than a high school diploma. One of the main reasons for this issue could be very well the price it is to attend college. Prices have skyrocketed throughout the years. A lot of the people who attend college have to take out a “student loan,” just so they can get by. I believe one should not need to be in serious debt before they even graduate, all because they want to go out and further their education, and become successful in their life.
Mark Kantrowitz indicates in his article, Why the Student Loan Crisis Is Even Worse Than People Think, that “Student loan debt is increasing because government grants and support for postsecondary education have failed to keep pace with increases in college costs”(Why 1). This means that the government no longer covers for college tuition fees. College graduates are 20% more likely to work at a job that is outside of their major by the debt they are in. Kantrowitz also mentions that “students who borrow to attend college, it appears that more than a quarter (27.2%) of them are graduating with excessive debt” (Why 1). In reality, leads to student saying that the financial cost was worthless, ending up with a job that is especially not what they went to school
... quickly discovering that maybe college isn’t the way. The American dream isn’t so dreamy. Student loan debts aren’t worth it when they could be better off without a college degree. The loans are destroying Americans hopes and ruining their lives. The government needs to remove it’s self from this and let the banks take over and compete with each other. It’s the only way to lower the tuition and costs of everything. The college degree is even losing its face value and hyperinflation is right around the corner. It’s time to wake up. College could be a good thing. Our government is too greedy to see it the way it needs to be handled an it is high time that anyone seeking a college degree look at College Degrees to determine if it really is worth the time and money and stop being indentured slaves paying on worthless degrees and a lifetime of paying on student loans.
Millennials are well on their way to redefining the “American Dream.” In a world where they have to constantly exercise critical thinking to financially survive the debts the average Millennial life incurs, suggesting that their reluctance to fall into the status quo will hurt them is a stagnant, inflexible view. It only hurts those entrenched in a narrow worldview limited to one accepted lifestyle and standard of living. To this life, Millennials are thoroughly disillusioned. They’re causing all these economic ‘problems’ because they aren’t buying into the hazy suburban complacency that the traditional dream represents. It’s not just that it costs too much to get there, it’s mostly that it’s hardly achievable. Contemporary high school is less of a system for education as it is an Olympic triathlon. Students must jump through every well-nigh arbitrary hoop, competing against each other for the most scholarship money based on the right opinion said in the right words. Who was in the most meaningless clubs at the same time? Who happened to attend a school with the most extra-curricular activities or AP courses? When school – that
Credit card debt is one of this nation’s leading internal problems. When credit was first introduced, and up until around the late 1970’s, the standards for getting a credit card were very high. The bar got lowered and lowered to where, eventually, an 18 year-old college student with almost no income and nothing to base a credit score on previously could obtain a credit card (much like myself). The national credit card debt for families residing in the United States alone is in the trillions (Maxed Out). The average American family has around $9,000 in debt, and pays around $1,3000 a year on interest payments (Maxed Out). Many people have the concern today that these interest rates and fees are skyrocketing; and many do not understand why. Most of these people have to try to avoid harassing collecting agents from different agencies, which takes an emotional and psychological toll on them. While a lot of the newly recognized “risky” people (those with a doubted ability to make sufficient payments) are actually older people who have been customers of certain companies for decades, the credit card companies are actually consciously targeting a different, much more vulnerable group of people: college students. James Scurlock produced a documentary called Maxed Out on this growing problem, in which Senator Jack Reed of (Democrat) of Rhode Island emphasizes the targeting of college students in the Consumer Credit Hearings of 2005
Noted authors, Brandon Chambers, is quoted saying, “If you are going to fear anything fear success. Think about what you are doing and when you succeed what life you will have.” There are several different reasons why I could stay home, work and not go to college; I could go to work every day and make more money for the house, it’s easier, and I would be less stressed. Now, on the other hand there are many reasons why I should go to school; such as further my education, make my family proud, and make myself proud. I am attending college for several different reasons. One reason is to further my education. I hate feeling like I don’t know something, I like being the person everyone comes to for information. Also, because I want to be better prepared for my major, I want to be better then the next person with the job credentials. I want to major in Social Work and Criminology. I dream to be a counselor or an clinical service social worker. I want to help people who need someone there for them someone who can guide them or even just talk too. Another reason is because I would be the first in I would be the first in my family to go to college. I feel in some type of way I am setting an example for my parents and my brother that they too can go back to school. Lastly is simply because I love school. I love knowing more and more each day. College is not for everyone, but I will be successful by grasping the benefits, preparing for the problems, taking heed from experts, and working on strategies to be successful.
Children of the twenty first century spend nearly 13 years in school, preparing for what is college, one of the only ways to achieve the so-called “American Dream”. College is the best way to start an advanced career and go further than one possibly could if college degrees were not available, allowing people to achieve their view of the American Dream; whether it be large houses, shiny cars, multiple kids, or financial comfort, college is the stepping stone to achieve the American Dream. But all great things come with a price, college dragging along debt. Students who attend college struggle to find ways to pay for it, leading to applying for student loans. These loans a great short term, paying for the schooling at the moment but eventually the money adds up
Everyone would think getting an education is easy so you wouldn’t need a minimum wage job, but it isn’t. College tuition has gone up and so have private schools and catholic schools. Some private schools are at the cost of some colleges. Education has become very expensive, that people decide not to attend college and rather work a low paying job to get by. Some young adults are responsible for college payments if they want to further their education to make something of themselves because their parents do not have the financial funds to pay for it. People may think that parents just don’t want to pay for it, but that’s not the case, they just cannot afford it on their minimum wage job so young adults are forced to get jobs in areas such as department and grocery stores, or
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).
When a student gets out of college the game plan is supposed to be, get a job in the field that you went to school for and make money so you can start your life. That particular situation is rare considering not all students get a job fresh out of college. For the students that don’t, they have to go back home and settle for a regular job and start paying off their giant student loans and put their life on hold. Even with having the job they wanted the student loans come right around the corner. After college is when the student’s life is supposed to start and the part where you get a car payment, pay rent, utilities, but none of that is possible when you add the enormous amount of money that the student will be in debt by. With the amount the students have to pay fresh out of college, more students are sacrificing more time struggling to pay off the student loans then they spent in school. Student loans are set-up in a way to be flawed and not always completely necessary to the student.
Most kids that have graduated high school have never been educated on the subject of personal finance, so they don’t know things like how to pay bills, or even how to do something as simple as applying for a job. According to a family friend of mine, Ron Hart; who happens to also be an award-wining author and TV/radio commentator, believes that students in high school don’t learn anything about how to get a job or get prepared financially. He states that, “ Students should prepare for a job. Maybe, instead of taking a fifth field trip to the Trail of Tears site, do one to learn about real jobs in an area they might want.” Hart believes that most basic high schools aren’t teaching students how to become financially stable for their future, which can cause major issues. He claims that “few schools teach about the value of hard work, ingenuity, gumption and entrepreneurship. Those lessons are as rare as Donald Trump bumper stickers in the faculty parking lot.” Hart also goes on to talk about how high school does not prepare you for life the same way college will. There are so many more lessons to learn there that people are missing out on. College is very important due to the fact that it will teach students more skills about finance and job seeking that most high schools don’t. In college, kids will learn how to save and budget their money, pay for their own expenses, and prioritize their needs verses their wants. Learning financial responsibility is also something that kids will carry with them throughout their jobs and their life. Having more freedom to understand the concepts of person finance will allow students to make mature decisions while easing their way into real world
Individuals in my generation that decide to go away for college may graduate with a degree but they also graduate with debt and have a hard time finding work in their area of study. College graduates are young and many may not have much experience in their field. It is a bittersweet option to go to college and further your education, I am all for it, but I am not for getting yourself in tons of debt, that will cause you to live your whole life paying off student loans and such. Which is one of the reasons why I chose to stay at home and go to community college, I’m saving money while still getting a great education. In earlier generations, people may not have felt that college was important because they needed a job to support themselves and their families. That is understandable because in the early years becoming an adult meant turning of age, 18, getting a job, moving out and starting your own family, but now turning 18 doesn’t mean you automatically are an adult and can move out and start your own life, I have friends that went to college, have a job but still are not able to move out on their own even in their