The Student Loan Scam

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Every member of this class, this university, this collegiate atmosphere, has most likely accumulated debt to achieve higher education. I certainly had the feeling that entering into the University of Massachusetts as a freshmen this year would involve relatively little debt which I would pay off upon graduation–a simple affair in which I received an education for a fair price. Yet, looking even at the comparatively “small” expenditures I have to deal with, examples of educators, students, and parents all paint a portrait of the devastating and deceiving nature of debt involved in the collegiate system in this country. Systemically, culturally, and personally, the system of debt associated with virtually every modern college experience of all but the highest socioeconomic echelon wrings the resources of the average college student dry.

In the context of how the system works, the only conclusion to accurately draw is that the odds are effectively stacked up against the college student of average means, especially considering the rise of lending organizations like Sallie Mae and the fall of Consumer protections (Collinge 4-5). Since the advent of the GI Bill and the understanding of the common virtue of education in the post-WWII era of the U.S. the message behind the collegiate experience has gone full circle. Since the 1970’s, with the continual amendments to the Higher Education act, lending companies have only become more powerful, enacting “draconian collection” strategies while simultaneously subtracting seemingly all consumer protections including bankruptcy protections, statues of limitations and refinancing rights (Collinge 4.) All of these factors make the modern student loan complex “an inescapable and profitable...

... middle of paper ...

...d be more heartily aware and should consider more closely.

Works Cited

Collinge, Alan. The Student Loan Scam: the Most Oppressive Debt in U.S. History, and How We Can Fight Back. Boston, MA: Beacon, 2009. Print

Ross, Sarah, Jennifer Cleland, and Mary Joan MacLeod. “Stress, Debt And Undergraduate Medical Student Performance.” Medical Education 40.6 (2006): 584-589. Academic Search Premier. Web. 17 Nov. 2011

Supiano, Beckie. “When Life Gets In The Way Of Paying For College. (Cover Story).” Chronicle Of Higher Education 57.22 (2011): A1-A20. Academic Search Premier. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.

Williams, Jeffrey. “The Pedagogy Of Debt.” College Literature 33.4 (2006): 155-169. Academic Search Premier. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.

Williams, Jeffrey J. “Student Debt And The Spirit Of Indenture.” Dissent (00123846) 55.4 (2008): 73-78. Academic Search Premier. Web. 17 Nov. 2011.

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