When a child grows up, he/she is misguided with fairy tales, love, and student loans. In Robin Wilson’s article “A Lifetime of Student Debt? Not Likely,” Wilson puts an end to one of those misconceptions. She exposes the falsity of student loans and how much burden the students really have. Wilson claims that students and advisers are fully aware of the struggles in college: struggles with obtaining student loans, managing debt due to the student loans, and borrowing too much money.
According to Wilson, advisers are aware of the intricacy in student loans. She explains that even education counselors know the difficulty of obtaining and managing loans (264). Jacqueline E. King, assistant vice president for policy analysis at the American Council on Education says, “College academic advisers are intimidated by the complexity of financial aid” (qtd. in Wilson 264). King’s claim helps support Wilson’s point. Wilson also advocates that with so many students taking out student loans, managing the amount of debt students are in becomes more and more complex. She uses the University of Syracuse as an example and says that 63 percent of the university’s students took out loans, which would mark the university as the school with the most students borrowing money (264). Donald A. Saleh, vice president for enrollment management at Syracuse University, states, “We can advise students about what we think is right, and we will caution students. But if they have the legal ability to borrow the money, we can’t prevent that from happening” (qtd. in Wilson 265). This goes to show that counselors cannot stop students from taking too much money; they can only educate them. Wilson stresses the point that student mortgages are more complex than students realize.
Robin Wilson also strikes a point that students believe their debt is much larger than it really is. Those who borrow money for a four-year degree are, on average, in debt with about $18,432. This goes to show that not all students are left with $100,000 in debt, although there are a few cases, but Wilson explains that those students only have that debt because of the occupation and school they choose (258). In Wilson’s view, “Part of the confusion over the student-loan issue is that undergraduate debt is frequently conflated with graduate and professional-school debt--which is typically much, much higher” (259). This adds that people mix up the debt by combining higher education with lower education. Wilson proves that student debt in today’s society is blown out of proportion.
A final point Robin Wilson makes is that borrowing money does not scare people, but the amount of people borrowing is scary. Wilson explains, “In 1993, [Project on Student Debt] has found, fewer than half of graduating seniors had loans, compared with 65 percent in 2003-4” (261). Wilson addresses that the number of students borrowing money has increased throughout the years. Wilson also helps point out that some students neglect to pay attention to how much they borrow and how much they could really be saving. Many Americans are adding to the pile of debt because of how many are borrowing money.
In conclusion, students and advisers know that managing student loans, staying out of debt, and not over-borrowing is hard. In this case, Robin Wilson makes valid points on the allusion of student loans. She makes clear the fact that a student can lower their own debt, so while fairy tales and love may be common misconceptions, student loans cease to be misunderstandings.
Works Cited
Wilson, Robin. "A Lifetime of Student Debt? Not Likely." They Say I Say With Readings. By Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein. Ed. Russel Durst. 2E ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2012. 256-273. Print
According to Wilson, advisers are aware of the intricacy in student loans. She explains that even education counselors know the difficulty of obtaining and managing loans (264). Jacqueline E. King, assistant vice president for policy analysis at the American Council on Education says, “College academic advisers are intimidated by the complexity of financial aid” (qtd. in Wilson 264). King’s claim helps support Wilson’s point. Wilson also advocates that with so many students taking out student loans, managing the amount of debt students are in becomes more and more complex. She uses the University of Syracuse as an example and says that 63 percent of the university’s students took out loans, which would mark the university as the school with the most students borrowing money (264). Donald A. Saleh, vice president for enrollment management at Syracuse University, states, “We can advise students about what we think is right, and we will caution students. But if they have the legal ability to borrow the money, we can’t prevent that from happening” (qtd. in Wilson 265). This goes to show that counselors cannot stop students from taking too much money; they can only educate them. Wilson stresses the point that student mortgages are more complex than students realize.
Robin Wilson also strikes a point that students believe their debt is much larger than it really is. Those who borrow money for a four-year degree are, on average, in debt with about $18,432. This goes to show that not all students are left with $100,000 in debt, although there are a few cases, but Wilson explains that those students only have that debt because of the occupation and school they choose (258). In Wilson’s view, “Part of the confusion over the student-loan issue is that undergraduate debt is frequently conflated with graduate and professional-school debt--which is typically much, much higher” (259). This adds that people mix up the debt by combining higher education with lower education. Wilson proves that student debt in today’s society is blown out of proportion.
A final point Robin Wilson makes is that borrowing money does not scare people, but the amount of people borrowing is scary. Wilson explains, “In 1993, [Project on Student Debt] has found, fewer than half of graduating seniors had loans, compared with 65 percent in 2003-4” (261). Wilson addresses that the number of students borrowing money has increased throughout the years. Wilson also helps point out that some students neglect to pay attention to how much they borrow and how much they could really be saving. Many Americans are adding to the pile of debt because of how many are borrowing money.
In conclusion, students and advisers know that managing student loans, staying out of debt, and not over-borrowing is hard. In this case, Robin Wilson makes valid points on the allusion of student loans. She makes clear the fact that a student can lower their own debt, so while fairy tales and love may be common misconceptions, student loans cease to be misunderstandings.
Works Cited
Wilson, Robin. "A Lifetime of Student Debt? Not Likely." They Say I Say With Readings. By Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein. Ed. Russel Durst. 2E ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2012. 256-273. Print