About two-thirds of college graduates have some student loans to pay off, and their average debt is about $25,000 to $28,700, according to estimates by education experts and organizations. (About 10% of those with loans owe more than $50,000 or so.)Some of the debt is acquired by students unsure of their major or switching majors. Economic models could be developed to help students find their major as a freshman in college. College should not be a place to find out what you want to do. If a student is uncertain about their major, they should attend a community college and satisfy all of their core requirements.
I'll bet that the bulk of student debt falls unequally on the ones who have the least resources to repay the loans. I would favor a debt forgiveness program for those graduates who come from families earning less than $50,000 per year. Also, debt forgiveness for those entering education and social work.
Yesterday, I read an article about a student who paid back all of his student loans in a year. A Wikipedia article explains how to manage your debt here. But the fact remains that college is a profit-maximizing firm. The colleges raise tuition because the demand is inelastic, textbooks are bundled with software to extract all consumers surplus, and many college offer online classes with no content. On top of that, there's no guarantee that a college degree will get you a job. Today's graduates would be better off starting a local community college and working a part-time job to pay for tuition.
Of course, the armed services is always an option as is the Peace Corps and missionary work. I'm glad I'm not a high school senior, but just a senior citizen.
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