I’m not American so the concept of a college loan is very alien to me. In my country we either pay for college tuition up front, apply for financial aid if our grades are high enough and your family is needy enough, or you don’t go at all. And In some public universities, tuition is either wholly or partially government subsidized.
I’ve heard of Americans complaining how they’ve got thousands of dollars in college debt and in some cases they take your whole adult life to pay off. So why are college loans even a thing in the US and what happens when you’re not able to pay it off?
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College costs a lot more in the US than elsewhere because there are less government subidies, financial aid, etc. And because Americans more often go away to college, the costs also typically include housing, meal plans, etc. on top of just classes and books.
There is also often a lack of understanding on the dollar amounts borrowed, the impact of interest on that balance, realities of job market/income after graduating, the costs of adult life, etc. So some 18 year old wants to go to University of ____ and signs for $80k in loans to help cover it, without really grasping how that’ll costs them $1000/mo of their $3000/mo take home pay for the next 10 years.
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