Is student debt the salvation for many students that wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford college? It most definitely is. However, in recent years, many graduates have stepped forward and said: “If we could go back in time, we would definitely not get those student loans! They are more of a burden to us than an actual help.”
The claim is backed by a recent Gallup poll, which found that graduates who took on the highest amounts of student debt, $50,000 or more, are less likely than their fellow graduates who did not borrow for college to be thriving in four of five elements of well-being: purpose, financial, community, and physical.
Saturday Night Live’s Finesse Mitchell is one of many people who took on too many student loans. He attended the University of Miami, but according to statements that he gave, having all of those loans caused a lot of stress, the loss of his driver’s license, and countless other problems due to his constant battle with collectors.
Mitchell’s story, like the Gallup study, demonstrates the fact that not only are the financial lives of students affected, but so is their general quality of life. Why do graduates who take loans of over $50, 000 have so much to suffer, you might ask. Well, the answer is quite simple – because of the heavy burden that a significant loan means, they often can’t buy a house or a car, or even get married.
Even politicians have taken an interest in the situation of students taking these loans, and the reason is quite obvious – graduates who experience financial difficulties because of these debts can't contribute in a very significant way to the national economy as consumers. When Washington D.C. gets involved in wanting to help students, you know there's a big picture reason.
