A Highschooler's Lament
This is coming from the perspective of a fifteen year old girl who doesn't really know much about anything. But it seems to me that the government doesn't want kids these days to go through college without ending up in serious debt. Even though I'm a sophmore in highschool, I'm already thinking about college and how I'm going to get through it without landing in the deep and slippery-sided pit of debt.
First of all, it's hard for kids like me, who want to pay their way through college, to earn the money to do that. The best most of us can do for a job is part time work in a fast food restaurant, or maybe a grocery store. That is if we're really committed. But if we're not, the government practically begs to pay a our way through college. So some of us breeze through college, all costs paid, and graduate with $50,000 or more in debt. That much debt doesn't make for a good start, and gets graduates stuck in an endless cycle of borrow some, pay off a little, borrow more, pay off a little more, as they struggle to pay off their debt from college. That cycle could effect them the rest of their lives.
Some of us refuse government loans so we can stay as close to debt free as we can. But because of state budget cuts, the cost of college these days is almost impossible to pay without getting financial aid. Most of us don't have the motivation to work hard and get through by themselves when the easy way through is so attainable. We don't have to think about the cost until it's too late to do anything about it.
In another direction, this actually increases the nation's already hurricane sized debt. If the government doesn't stop handing out money to each and every kid who wants an education but can't pay for it, that hurricane will continue to grow and will flood our shores with more debt.
It's like a merry-go-round. Kids can't afford college, so the government gives them money to do so. In turn, our nation sinks deeper into debt, the cost of college rises, and so more kids need government loans. More kids than ever before are taking out loans and ending up in debt .
But now that I think of it, this is perfectly natural. After all, we're only following in the government's debt-heavy footsteps.
First of all, it's hard for kids like me, who want to pay their way through college, to earn the money to do that. The best most of us can do for a job is part time work in a fast food restaurant, or maybe a grocery store. That is if we're really committed. But if we're not, the government practically begs to pay a our way through college. So some of us breeze through college, all costs paid, and graduate with $50,000 or more in debt. That much debt doesn't make for a good start, and gets graduates stuck in an endless cycle of borrow some, pay off a little, borrow more, pay off a little more, as they struggle to pay off their debt from college. That cycle could effect them the rest of their lives.
Some of us refuse government loans so we can stay as close to debt free as we can. But because of state budget cuts, the cost of college these days is almost impossible to pay without getting financial aid. Most of us don't have the motivation to work hard and get through by themselves when the easy way through is so attainable. We don't have to think about the cost until it's too late to do anything about it.
In another direction, this actually increases the nation's already hurricane sized debt. If the government doesn't stop handing out money to each and every kid who wants an education but can't pay for it, that hurricane will continue to grow and will flood our shores with more debt.
It's like a merry-go-round. Kids can't afford college, so the government gives them money to do so. In turn, our nation sinks deeper into debt, the cost of college rises, and so more kids need government loans. More kids than ever before are taking out loans and ending up in debt .
But now that I think of it, this is perfectly natural. After all, we're only following in the government's debt-heavy footsteps.
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