My college didn't cost me much besides the books and the traveling. That's a fair viewpoint to take, but I'm not blaming the kid that was encouraged to pursue the degree by their teachers/parents/guidance counselors, when those folks should have told the kid the truth. Couple that with the morphing of secondary education into a massive business that profited off these bad decisions and would literally take anyone as long as the check cleared, regardless of their aptitude. It's a mess, and a failure on many levels.
...and the dot com "colleges" that were fronts for predatory lenders, with parents not having to pay for their kid's college. Sounded too good to be true. I remember telling friends "your kid'll be graduating college with a mortgage!" The final straw was that unlike other debt, college loan debt is ineligible for bankruptacy...
So the administration forgives all these loans. Now what? Kids are going to college, taking out loans and will probably expect that their loans should be forgiven. No fix by the administration over the bloated cost of college. Want a solution? Colleges should be the ones giving the loans. Then they would be sure that kids signing up would be getting a useful degree or they would be on the hook. Besides many have multi billion $ endowments that should cover it.
I didn't do an in-depth search, but I found that Harvard U has a large enough endowment fund that it could afford to be tuition-free. It isn't, but pretty much any student who is accepted and is from a middle-class family or less can expect some financial aid. Harvard also doesn't give athletic or merit scholarships. I take merit to mean that the prospective student has done really well despite facing some serious adversity. And yes Virginia, a Harvard degree will help you get a very good job, but the real ticket to success is the networking opportunities for students. And no, I did not attend Harvard, but I could see it from my classrooms on the other side of the Charles River.
Ha - Made me think of Dirty Water: "Down by the banks of the river Charles Aw, that's what's happenin', baby That's where you'll find me Along with lovers, muggers, and thieves Aw, but they're cool, too Well, I love that dirty water Oh, Boston, you're my home" - The Standells
Send your kid into the military. They will love you for it, WHY? Military benefits. Collage paid for if your kid chooses it. Trade school paid for. I selected that route. VA home loan. No down payment. I opted for that, I didn't have 20% for a down payment at 28 years old. Military builds maturity for a young teen. If you're lucky, may get a skill you can use in the private sector. I only see plus-ups if one goes for it. Vet (Navy)
My wife's uncle David Rodman solved the money problem by seeking and getting an appointment to Annapolis. His two sisters graduated from the University of Illinois and also joined the Navy as officers. My mother-in-law, David's sister was an armed guard at a facility (as I recall it was called the Model Basin or something like that) who checked IDs as people came and went. My father-in-law was into high-speed photography and was working on a project to figure out why so many of our torpedos didn't explode when they were supposed to. My mother-in-law met my father-in-law by checking his ID every day.
I've been to the Model Basin, many years ago. Amazing naval work they do there and a cool place too. Vet
When you have to pay in, waiting to mail the checks in is a good thing. Mine are sitting on counter, waiting to drop in mail on the 12th.
Since this has turned into the student loan thing - this latest effort helps borrowers who have been paying down their student loans for 20 years or more. It will help more borrowers by eliminating interest past the original loan amounts. That means that loan sharks who charged so much interest that the balance is larger than the original loan after borrowers have been making payments. Remember back in the 70's the government stopped giving money to colleges to help defray the costs. Also, look up how many professors make $100K+ salaries...
A full professor in an accredited college will almost certainly have a Doctorate in whatever subject he or she is teaching. That means there is approximately 10 years of post-High School education. There's usually some financial assistance for the Bachelor's degree, but the aid diminishes rapidly for the Master's and the Doctorate. Unless the prof comes from a well-to-do family, he/she is going to have a big number of college debt to pay, plus he/she is giving up much or all of six year's salary. I don't think that $100,000 per year is at all extravagant; if anything, it's a bit on the low side.
A couple things.. I would have no problem paying taxes, if our money was managed correctly. Not wasted by the billions like it is now. So in the future, I am going to do what my mother did for many years. She would figure out her tax debt in December, and then she would find a worthy cause, and donate nearly exactly the amount she was going to owe the IRS to that charity for the tax deduction.. She figured she had spent a lifetime working and paying into Social Security and Medicare, so anything she received from them, she had long ago paid for. Secondly, I am not opposed to helping the last couple generations out of an often crushing student loan debt. But it can't be free for the individual that benefits from such a program. I do believe that we could put together a program of compulsory Military Service, Local law enforcment service, or community service jobs for the able bodied to"work of their debt" so to speak. Once that program is established, kids coming out of high school and wanting to go to college, will have the choice to invest a couple years of their lives serving our country, for dramatically reduced tuition rates at State schools. JW
My degree came compliments of 3 years in the Army one of which was in Viet Nam. Used my Veterans bennies to get my Bachelors degree.
I remember spending 30-45 minutes to complete my income tax forms for my first full time job 50 years ago. It was four pages back then. I still doing mine by completing all the forms in pen. Once satisfied they're accurate, I'll download all the needed forms in pdf fillable format from Service Canada's website. Then I fill in my numbers, save and print two copies, one for me, and one for Canada Revenue Agency. Dropped it off March 19th. Sure that's time consuming but I have loads of time on my hands now. I overpay my income taxes each year so my refund can pay my property taxes. Lost a lot on potential interest income that way, but I don't care. I also start rough calculations several months in advance to see what my tax obligations could be. One major key is keeping all receipts and records in one well organized location.
Yeah - my recollection is a little off. I last looked at it 10 years ago. GMU professors (Doctorate) is $125K average, highest is $247K. That's salary before grants, royalties, consulting, etc. My point is that public and private colleges spend money like a drunken sailor. They say the campus must be beautiful to attract the best students. Every college that I've been to thats not a community college is attractive, even beautiful. Thats not cheap. Admins get $1M. Construction of new buildings is a constant. Many are now at $100K per year for tuition. And don't get me started on college sports. Rant over...
