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All Debt November

10/30/2011

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It's been a few weeks again since posting, so we're due for something new. November is right around the corner and while many people will be recovering from Halloween parties and many young men will begin their quest for the biggest No Shave November beard, we here at World Zeal are going to dedicate November to talking about Student Loan Debt.

Some interesting facts right off the bat about Student Loan Debt in America:
(All information was taken from the American Student Assistance webpage)
  • In each school year between 2000–2001 and 2006–2007, an estimated 60% of bachelor’s degree recipients borrowed to fund their education. Average debt per borrower rose 18%, from $19,300 to $22,700 over this time period. Average debt per bachelor’s degree recipient increased from $10,600 to $12,400.                    (Source: The College Board, Trends in Student Aid, 2008)       
  • In 2007–2008, lenders provided about $17 billion in private loans, a 592% increase from a decade earlier.(Source: The College Board, Trends in Student Aid, 2008)
  • In 2008, 84% of undergraduates had at least one credit card, up from 76% in 2004. The average number of cards has grown to 4.6 per student, and half of college students had four or more cards.                            (Source: Sallie Mae, How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards, 2009)
  • Undergraduates are carrying record-high credit card balances. The average (mean) balance grew to $3,173, the highest in the years the study has been conducted. Median debt grew from 2004's $946 to $1,645. 21% of undergraduates had balances of between $3,000 and $7,000, also up from the last study.
    (Source: Sallie Mae, How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards, 2009)
So in a nutshell, 3 out of 5 people have to ask for some sort of help funding their higher education. Frankly, I was surprised this ratio wasn't higher. The majority of people my age I talk to had to take out some sort financial loans and are still paying them back. However, even though 3 out of 5 doesn't sound horrible to me, it's not an encouraging number, especially considering that the average debt per borrower is a litte more than $12,000. $12,000 added to whatever credit card debt a typical student is racking up means the majority of degree earning students are leaving school with incredible amounts of debt. Living in Europe, whenever I mention to locals that most kids my age leave university with debts in the thousands of dollar range, they usually look at me with a clueless look, as if saying with their faces, "Why would you do that?". Hopefully this month I'll be able to do some research and compare the European university model and the American model. I think it will be interesting to see the differences between our systems.

So, November is coming upon us and it's time we start taking a look into a very serious issue in America, Student Loan Debt. Stay tuned for some interesting stuff! Now go to work and start paying back those loans!
1 Comment
CFNM link
7/14/2012 06:55:44 pm

Found this from the Weebly directory, great blog.

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    As a kid I moved all over the country due to my dad being in the Army. I had the good fortunate to see a lot of the US and even spent 3 years in Germany when I was young, which my parents made sure my brother and I saw different parts of Europe. All of that moving and travelling led me to studying International Studies (IS) and Spanish in college at the University of Iowa. In May of 2010, I graduated with B.A.s in both IS and Spanish and an International Business Certificate. On the surface, that all looks great, but as I soon found out, applying for jobs with abstract, theoretical-based degrees, I wasn't quite suited for any particular job. My skill set invloved reading theoretical texts on human rights issues, speaking a somewhat decent Spanish, and basic knowledge of international finance.  Again, that sounds great, but I didn't have any practical skills to bring to the table. After being shut down by all the companies that I applied to during my last semester of college- I say shut down not because I was told they weren't interested in me, they just never responded back to my cover letters and emails- I decided to apply for a teaching English position in Spain. Not having any teaching experience, I applied to a program run by the Spanish Ministry of Education that contracts people from all over the world  to come and work as language assistants that work alongside language teachers in elementary schools, high schools, and in higher education settings. The only requirements needed are any type of Bachelor's degree, a good bill of health and not have committed a serious crime. Luckily, I fulfilled all of those (they didn't catch me!) and spent the last year, from October to June, working in a city called La Coruña, in the northwest part of Spain. 

    At the moment I'm unemployed and without health insurance, however, I do have another contract as an English language assistant that begins on October 1st, this time in a suburb of Madrid, Spain. As I'm writing this, I'm in the process of finding an apartment in Madrid and plan on making Madrid my home until my contract runs out at the end of June, 2012. Over the course of the next year, I'll be trying to shed light on the economic issues going on over here in Spain and in Europe in general. Even though I have a job, I'm like any other recent college graduate, broke, scraping by, and from time to time, relying on help from my family. I've got the good fortune of having a supportive family amidst these turbulent economic times. However, like other, middle-class kids, I struggle with the guilt of having to ask for help from my parents, even when they're eager to help. I hope this blog and project can be a place where all of these issues are confronted and explored.

    Cheers to All,
    Will

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