By Paul Neal
Guest Writer
While college can be one of the most influential times in a person’s life, college students possibly could be sacrificing their future for a degree.
After the 2008 recession, many situations once taken for granted became uncertain. Booming corporations suddenly went bankrupt. Newly built houses became vacant lots rather than homes. And a college degree no longer could guarantee a graduate would get his desired job.
By earning a degree, a person has a better chance at getting a job in his desired career field – but that is not certain. After all, many recent graduates must take jobs in fields for which they did not study, and for less pay. I have heard of an advertising major who is now a chiropractor and a pre-med major who is now a car salesman.
Because no guarantee of the job or salary exists, paying off student loans after graduation also could be tougher than students may have anticipated.
Some people may think that going into debt is acceptable because God is willing to take care of them, but if a student goes into enormous debt for just the possibility of a satisfying career, then he may not be a good steward of the financial resources God provides. The student could be ignoring some of the real problems graduates face as well.
First, student loans could make post-college life difficult.
Fifty-three percent of those younger than 25 who earned a bachelor’s degree are either unemployed or underemployed, according to an article by The Associated Press. More than half of those graduates likely cannot support themselves financially.
Adding to the problem is that two out of three college students graduate with debt, according to an article in Forbes magazine. At least one-third of all graduates may not be able to pay their living expenses, even though they are still responsible for making the payments on their student loans.
Second, most student loans cannot be forgiven, even if a person files for bankruptcy.
The only way to be free of student loans is to pay them back. Not paying the loans could result in a devastating credit rating, which means future loans for a new car or a mortgage would be difficult to obtain.
Sometimes debt is the only solution to earning a degree, and for many students, paying off their loans for years to come after graduation is simply their reality. If this is the only option, a student should do the best he can to keep his debt under control while in school.
But consider that no degree is worth the loss of a stable future through insurmountable debt, even if that means making some tough choices as a student.
