ON STUDENT DEBT
(thread)
1/ The worst possible outcome is forgiving student debt without changing the structural problems that led to this situation.
This would only make tuitions higher & reduce access to higher education, as described below.
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(thread)
1/ The worst possible outcome is forgiving student debt without changing the structural problems that led to this situation.
This would only make tuitions higher & reduce access to higher education, as described below.
https://twitter.com/DellAnnaLuca/status/1112606446846271488?s=20
[1/9]
2/ As a general principle, solving the symptom of a problem without solving the underlying causes is a terrible idea. It removes the urgency to solve the problem once and for all, making it grow larger.
3/ One question worth asking is, why is student debt not a problem in Europe?
The naive answer: government subsidies to students.
The real answer: contained costs.
The total operational costs for my ex-university in 2018 were "just" $7.8k / student / year.
The naive answer: government subsidies to students.
The real answer: contained costs.
The total operational costs for my ex-university in 2018 were "just" $7.8k / student / year.
4/ How do we contain the costs of imparting high-quality education?
The thing is, tuitions were lower, 30 years ago. In the last decades, they rose higher and higher.
Then, the right question becomes:
What conditions made them grow, and how do we remove them?
#vianegativa
The thing is, tuitions were lower, 30 years ago. In the last decades, they rose higher and higher.
Then, the right question becomes:
What conditions made them grow, and how do we remove them?
#vianegativa
5/ One answer would be: student loans made tuitions grow.
One solution could be to limit their number and/or their amount.
(not a perfect solution, of course, for it would limit access to the best universities, those that can keep tuition high)
One solution could be to limit their number and/or their amount.
(not a perfect solution, of course, for it would limit access to the best universities, those that can keep tuition high)
6/ A second question would be to ask ourselves, do we really need 4 years of studies?
Should all degrees have the same length regardless of the complexity of the underlying field?
Shorter degrees = less debt & more access.
Should all degrees have the same length regardless of the complexity of the underlying field?
Shorter degrees = less debt & more access.
7/ Apprenticeships could be an ulterior solution to lower student debt and increase education access.
Including hybrid forms of apprenticeships.
Example: for 3 years, you spend one month at the uni and one at a company. The company pays for the uni time.
Including hybrid forms of apprenticeships.
Example: for 3 years, you spend one month at the uni and one at a company. The company pays for the uni time.
8/ Another consideration: forgiving student debt wouldn't only be a money transfer from who paid their debts to those who didn't,
But also from those who decided not to go to college in order not to take any debt (and are now perhaps working on a lower-wage profession).
But also from those who decided not to go to college in order not to take any debt (and are now perhaps working on a lower-wage profession).
9/ Of course, I do not know the answers (I do not even live in the US), but I hope to have raised a few questions worth pondering.
10/ Forgiving student debt without changing the conditions that led to would be akin to taking a debt (with future generations).
It would solve the immediate problem, but let the underlying one grow larger and larger.
It would solve the immediate problem, but let the underlying one grow larger and larger.
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