Guess Which President Was The Smallest Spender Since Eisenhower...

[JVB]

The only portion of federal student loans that the public incurs is the interest accrued while the student is enrolled full time. And even that is only for subsidized Stafford loans. The principle and subsequent interest are repaid by the borrower.

I think there are bigger battles to fight, are there not?

You seem to be forgetting the cost of the inevitable bailout. Student loan debt has become one of the biggest drags on the economy and just last year it eclipsed credit card debt for the first time ever. Most experts have accepted the fact that a bailout is inevitable. There are tons of articles about it: http://www.businessweek.com/finance/...dent_loan.html and http://www.cnbc.com/id/47171658/Stud...e_Next_Bailout or just google it for yourself to see. It's coming.

[Zacha341]

Indeed this is going to be one of 'many' debt battles we going to have to deal with. Thanks for posting the information.

You seem to be forgetting the cost of the inevitable bailout. Student loan debt has become one of the biggest drags on the economy and just last year it eclipsed credit card debt for the first time ever. Most experts have accepted the fact that a bailout is inevitable. There are tons of articles about it: http://www.businessweek.com/finance/...dent_loan.html and http://www.cnbc.com/id/47171658/Stud...e_Next_Bailout or just google it for yourself to see. It's coming.

[TKshreve]

Now that we're on the topic....

Why don't we examine the factors that have influenced the mushrooming costs associated with education?

Why does a textbook cost $300 and remain in service for only two years? Seems like a racket to me.

Why have tuition rates annually risen 2%-3% faster than the rate of inflation for this entire century?

It's been said that through heavy competition between private schools to be the best, spending increases seem to hold higher value than cost reduction and cost efficiencies.

This bubble wouldn't exist if it was in the best interest of Colleges and Universities to reduce tuition costs first and foremost while maintaining and/or raising the quality of learning.

[rb336]

textbooks used to be subsidized until the Reagan administration. They are expensive to produce, from the graphics to the usage rights for copyright covered material. The best reflect the most current thinking on their subject matter as well as the current thinking on the most effective way to learn that material.

Tuition rates have risen recently [[I haven't seen stats for the entire century, but I'd love to look at them)due in part to cuts in funding. Further, maintenance and renovation costs for old buildings, including upgrades for energy efficiency, have risen. Most colleges and universities have a high proportion of old buildings. Adjunct faculty in many colleges are taking pay cuts

[TKshreve]

Tuition rates have risen recently [[I haven't seen stats for the entire century, but I'd love to look at them) due in part to cuts in funding.

JVB
If the subsidies went away, most colleges would be forced to compete on price for the fewer number of students and prices would come down.

Good to see we're all on the same page. Bottom line...... tuition continues to climb at an accelerated rate, out pacing inflation and especially cost of living. On the same page, access to a quality paying job upon graduation has declined. Students are graduating with so much debt it would take decades to repay these loans, if not a lifetime.

I will add that the student loan debt is not the bubble, but the spiraling cost of education is in fact the next tsunami headed to our shores. It ends with a sharp decline in college bound youth.

Something is wrong with this equation. [[and it's not just Fina Art majors)