Student loan debt in the U.S. keeps climbing without any real end in sight. At last count, the amount of student loan debt in the United States was somewhere near $1.2 Trillion. This is something that President Obama wants to put an end to, and it’s also a topic that Obama brought up nearly two years ago.
The Promise
Two years ago, President Obama told the press that he would be ranking colleges based on the amount of federal aid given compared to the amount of academic success graduates from those colleges had. It has taken a full two years to compile the list, but the White House has finally released these rankings.
The new “College Scorecard” can be accessed here, and it aims to give future college graduates a better overall look at the price of college compared to the amount of successful graduates from those colleges have overall. Students can search for colleges based on a degree, the size of the college, location, and other factors. It is also possible to enter the name of a college directly into the database for additional information.
The Details
When searching through the database, students can see things like the average cost to attend a school, the number of graduates, and the average salary that can be expected after attending and graduating from a school. The idea is a good one - and it aims to cut back on the amount of student loan debt - but some colleges have not yet been entered into the database.
The Reason
The new database is a good way for students to learn how much it costs to attend a school as compared to the amount they can be expected to make when graduating. The idea is that if a student sees that the cost of attendance is far higher than the average salary, that student may not choose to attend that particular school. Will it work?
It’s too early to say whether or not the new scorecard will be effective. However, it is a first step towards lowering the amount of student loan debt accrued in the United States. At this time, however, the scorecard does not help students that are already facing financial distress as a result of too much student loan debt.
Getting Out of Student Loan Debt
It can be difficult (and frustrating) to get out of student loan debt once that debt starts piling up. A large number of students default on loans simply because they cannot afford to pay back those loans. If this sounds like the situation that you are in, know that you are not alone. You should also know that we can help.
