Educated and Indebted

Thousands of students take on huge amounts of student debt every year in federal and private loans. They believe that, in the end, it’ll be worth it. Once they get that coveted college degree, the money will start rolling in.

While this may be true for some, most students don’t get high-paying jobs straight out of college. Some may never have a financially profitable career. Yet everyone must repay student loans. Student debt has become a major burden for young people, especially if they come from low-income families. For this reason, many poor students never graduate.

The Project on Student Debt is a non-profit independent research organization that campaigns against unfair student debt and loan repayment practices. It will not get rid of your debt for you, but it can provide you with information and educate you about educational loans. In the long run, the Project hopes to influence public policy and make college education more accessible and less financially crippling for students from all socio-economic backgrounds.

Many students are unaware of their options when applying for student loans. A study by the Project on Student Debt found that two-thirds of private loan borrowers hadn’t exhausted their federal loan options. The latter are both safer and cheaper than private loans.

If you’re drowning in student debt, or are worried about debt ruining your future, the Project on Student Debt can give you the information you need to make the smart choices. Student Debt Alert (www.studentdebtalert.org) is another good site for information on how you can take action on student debt. Student Debt Alert is a project of Public Interest Research Groups. They research the problem of student debt and try to come up with pragmatic solutions. They try to raise the media profile of this issue in hopes that the government will give it the attention it deserves.