Cost cutting: Should U.S. cap maximum amount for student loans?

Students, promised by parents and teachers that the only way to get a good job is with a college degree, have amassed large levels of debt. If one higher education expert gets his way, students could see their loan limits capped.

Mark Kantrowitz took to Money to make the case that letting students borrow massive loans is a recipe for lifelong debt, not societal advancement.

“College financial aid administrators must be permitted to reduce federal loan limits based on the student’s enrollment status and academic major. Students who are enrolled half-time should not be able to borrow the same amount as students who are enrolled full-time,” he writes.

The uncritical consensus that access matters more than affordability has started to fall.

College remains beneficial for the average graduate. The average graduate, however, isn’t always the average student. Four-year graduation rates for a bachelor’s degree is only 39.4 percent, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Only when a six-year rate is used do American students reach a graduating majority, 59 percent.
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