Answers: Student debt

IOWA ONCE AGAIN RANKED AMONG THE WORST IN THE NATION FOR THE NUMBER OF STUDENTS GRADUATING WITH STUDENT LOAN DEBT. WHY DO YOU THINK THIS CONTINUES TO BE A PROBLEM AND HOW WOULD YOU TRY TO FIX IT?

FROM OUR INBOX

I wonder if this is a case of our ethic of financial responsibility coming back to bite us in our hind quarters.

Choosing to deny ourselves many of the extras in life in order to save up for the education of our children, as well as seeing to it that they earn and put away money for the same purpose, leaves them in a position where they do not qualify for many of the grants and scholarships available to those whose parents chose a lifestyle that makes for a much more 'attractive” statement of financial need.

Having planned and budgeted to provide for the higher education of our children leaves them unqualified for assistance and leaves them no choice but to take out loans to make up the difference between what we are able to provide and what is needed.

John R.

Belle Plaine

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FROM FACEBOOK

' Margie L.S.: Financial education should be required course material. Teach students how to prevent debt, manage debt and how to achieve graduating without more debt than you can handle.

' Geo H.: The U.S. lags behind better European countries. If we provided free tuition to our citizens, we would eliminate poverty and crime. An educated society is a great society.

' Nick F.: I think it's a matter of students not aware of grants/scholarships available to them. There were plenty of grants/scholarships I earned because I was the only one to apply for them.

' Karen U.: Tuition rates keep rising faster than our income. Maybe other states have more grant and scholarship opportunities than Iowa?

' Paul S.: Students need to go with a career in mind. It's reasonable that an 18-year-old doesn't know what they want to do, but they can go to Kirkwood for or take time off to work and save money living at home after high school. There's really no disadvantage to getting a degree at 24 as opposed to 22. With so much money on the line, you have to think about your career rather than just going to school just to go.

' Carrie E.D.: How about a cap on the interest rate and an option to consolidate multiple federal loans? My mortgage interest is 3 percent lower than my student interest rates. After paying 10 years on time, perhaps just erase my loans?

' Brian M.: Get a job. I put myself through UI working full-time. Didn't need one single loan.

' Christi C.: I came from a single parent home and had no financial help from that parent. I managed on loans and grants and never defaulted on the loans after graduation. It can be done!

' Andrew H.: Learn a trade and they'll be paying you to go to college. Have no debt and get a great retirement.

' Kelley G.: Not only find a way to get all students to submit their application to the university for a consolidated list of scholarships (as UNI does), but also try to include as many as possible in the group. And make scholarship searches easier to access safely. Some of them are scams and tends to be overwhelming. Students (and parents) tend to give up.

' Wendy P.: I think it's an issue of having all that debt, your degree in hand, but no one wants to hire you due to your 'lack of experience.” So, you take any job you can get just to pay the bills and your degree is a just a piece of paper hanging in a frame on the wall.

' Nikki B.W.: If school loans were kept strictly for direct school expenses that would help monumentally.

' Courtney W.: Our population in Iowa is concerned with getting a good education and often continuing on to higher degrees. We value education. However, there are not a ton of opportunities to use that education in Iowa. This causes lower wages than those who live in other areas for the same work/degrees. The parents in Iowa then cannot afford to help their own children financially through college. This creates the need for the next generation to again rack up the student loan debt.

' Shelby D.K.: When I went to college in 1988 there wasn't much of a cap on how much the student could borrow from the US Dept of Ed. Now today, I paid the lionshare of my loans, but the US Dept of Ed. will only loan students a small percentage - making them have less debt and I get to pay the lionshare twice. Is this about them being more in debt relative to cost of living or just that institutions have gotten out of control with hikes or both?

' Pam B.: We need to find a different way to fund education other than on the backs of the students. There are some countries where graduates don't owe the equivalent of a mansion for a decent

' Corby M.: Quit telling fictitious stories about job placement and wages expected, more kids should learn a trade.

' Danny E.: Free tuition and have a more educated workforce. That will save this country.

' Ann C.: Iowa schools charge just as much or more than other places but the pay here is lower. Also, banks are able to borrow at a lower interest rate than students and student loan debt can't be refinanced. How is that fair?