Tens of thousands of dollars in high-interest, non-dischargeable debt, an unfavorable employment market, and no experience... yes, I believe we agree on the nature of the problem.
It's hard to complain about high interest rates when someone gives you something at a 50% (or more) discount.
If you graduate with $60,000 in debt on an education sold to wealthier individuals at $120,000, then the interest rate would have to be about 16% for the education to cost you the same amount. Anything less than that and we're discussing the value of a top tier school as an investment in general, and being poor has little to do with it.
Ideally I would like to see private banks making educational loans based on their assessment of individual student risks. Smart kids studying in-demand fields should see very low rates in a system like that. Under-qualified students would pay more, as would students studying fields with lower earning potential. This has an added benefit of discounting the study of fields predicted to be in-demand, and thus better matching educational choices with what our businesses need.
