Students Need Real Relief From Loans

At present, over fifty percent of recent college graduates are unemployed or underemployed.  With even more college graduates becoming a part of this statistic over recent weeks, student loans are a big issue for young adults. 

Without adequate employment or worse, unemployment, these young adults are left saddled with debt they are unable to pay back easily.  Many students in this situation resort to deferring their student loans, which allows them to halt their monthly payments but does not stop interest from accumulating on the loans.

This means that when individuals who deferred their loans begin repayment, they are paying back at a higher monthly rate than they did before deferment.  There are also many other young adult who, for whatever reason, cannot defer there loans and wind up defaulting because they have no means to repay. 

And to make matters worse, there is a chance the interest rate on student loans will double come July.  While this rate increase will not have an effect on loans from previous years, it will no doubt hurt thousands who are currently in school with student loans they will eventually have to pay back. 

The skyrocketing cost of attending college is also not helping the matter.  While I was in college, tuition was increased almost every year and has continued to increase since I have graduated.  This is the general trend at many colleges and universities across the country, whether they are public or private schools. 

Unfortunately, when the discussion of student loans comes up, there is often a lack of sympathy or concern for those saddled with debt they cannot handle.  Usually the response is more akin to arguing that college graduates didn’t need to go to college if they couldn’t afford it and they should just get a job in order to pay for these loans. 

Attending college may not be an entitlement, but it is becoming a basic requirement if you want to secure a job.  At the same time, with so many students graduating from college, the workforce is oversaturated with skilled workers.  There simply are not enough jobs to go around with many companies hesitant to hire new employees after the economic crisis and more qualified workers still seeking work. 

There is no easy solution to the problems young adults are facing due to student loan debt.  In terms of practicality, it is not exactly feasible to forgive all student loans.  Deferment and forbearance of student loans are options for those who cannot repay immediately, but that only postpones when repayment begins, and simply adds to the amount the borrower owes which does not help the situation. 

Young adults already have been postponing common adult milestones such as moving out, getting married and having children due to factors that include the debt piled onto them from student loans.  Student loans should not be hindering young adults from progressing in their lives, which is what is happening to many who were forced into thousands of dollars of debt while still in their teens.