Nov 09 Some colleges are totally unaffordable, and this tool proves it By Jon Marcus, The Hechinger Report After years of escalating costs and stagnant earnings, new data show that some colleges have finally grown conclusively, decisively and categorically unaffordable for many Americans. Continue reading
Oct 09 Watch 6:45 Aging Maine repays college debts to attract younger workers By Hari Sreenivasan Maine, land of lobsters and lighthouses, is also the nation’s oldest state. With a median age of 43, roughly a third of its population is in or approaching retirement. To counter its aging workforce, the state is attempting to attract… Continue watching
Oct 04 Trump administration makes another move to revive the for-profit college industry By Paul Fain, Inside Higher Ed The Education Department is recommending restoring a controversial college accrediting agency, giving it a year to resolve remaining concerns. Continue reading
Oct 01 4 ways parents (and their students) can avoid the college debt trap By Beth Kobliner As I crisscrossed the country on a recent book tour, parents repeatedly expressed worry about catapulting college costs. No wonder: Average sticker prices are now $19,000 per year for public four-year schools (in-state) and $47,000 per year for private schools. Continue reading
May 21 Analysis: Student loan debt and an astonishing number no one’s talking about By Paul Solman Do student loan defaults pose a systemic threat analogous to the subprime default wave that helped trigger the Crash of ‘08?… Continue reading
Oct 05 For-profit college students twice as likely to default on loans, report says By Maria Danilova, Associated Press The report comes as Education Secretary Betsy DeVos rewrites rules that had been put in place by the Obama administration to protect students who said they were defrauded by their for-profit colleges. Continue reading
Sep 18 Graduate programs have become a cash cow for struggling colleges. What does that mean for students? By Jon Marcus, The Hechinger Report Simmons College could barely meet its payroll. Now it has tens of millions of dollars in annual surpluses. So what does this financial solution mean for grad students who face escalating debt?… Continue reading
Sep 13 Twitter chat: Millennials stagger under extreme debt, but why? By Lora Strum What role do student loans, budgeting and salary play in the millennial generation's struggle to become financially solvent? And just what can be done to decrease this debt? To answer those questions and more, the PBS NewsHour will host a… Continue reading
Sep 01 Century-old ‘work college’ model regains popularity as student debt grows By Timothy Pratt, The Hechinger Report Work colleges, where students get paid or gain credit toward tuition, are drawing renewed interest, thanks to rising student debt, skepticism about the financial payoff of a liberal arts education and employer complaints that graduates aren’t prepared for jobs. Continue reading
Aug 24 How students with school debt but no degree get stuck in ‘purgatory’ By Meredith Kolodner and Sarah Butrymowicz, The Hechinger Report In a vicious circle, debt and low-paying jobs make it tough to earn a way back to college. The numbers of students with school debt but no degree are large enough that the financial impact goes beyond individual struggles and… Continue reading