Student Debt
Student Loan Interest Rates Were Just Lowered. Why Does the Government Charge Interest in the First Place?
The federal government isn't a private bank, but it has reasons for charging interest on student loans.
Want to Save the Humanities? Make College Free.
It's time to shift the social contract of education away from short-term job training toward long-term development. And free college has to be part of that shift.
Elizabeth Warren's College-Debt Plan Is Also a Blueprint for Addressing Racial Inequality
Progressives often debate whether universal or targeted policies are best suited to create a more equal society. Warren's college plan brilliantly combines them both.
As Graduate School Costs Skyrocket, the Student-Debt Problem Is Getting Worse
Universities are increasingly turning to graduate programs to balance their books. Students are shouldering the costs.
Medicare for All Might Require Student Debt Relief to Work
High doctor pay keeps American health-care costs high. Without debt relief, it will be hard to get doctors on board for lower pay.
Of Course Public Confidence in Higher Education Is Down
As Americans' faith in higher education reacts to rising costs, mounting debts, and the growing sense that preparation for the workforce need not take a four-year degree, the post-World War II ambitions of higher education may prove to be a noble failure.
Dear Betsy DeVos: Calling Us 'Customers' Doesn't Solve the Student Debt Crisis
Far-right orthodoxy on education casts students as customers paying for a service. That rhetoric tricks students into chasing bad options.
Solving the Student-Debt Crisis
Is there a bubble? Should we be worried about defaults? Your questions, answered.
Raising the Bar on Higher Ed Debates
The real higher education reform effort of the future won’t be about left vs. right. It will be about public-minded lawmakers working to overhaul the entrenched special interests of existing schools.
Who Keeps Billions of Taxpayer Dollars Flowing to For-Profit College?
Accreditation agencies are supposed to make sure that colleges are putting students in a position to succeed. That’s not happening at schools overseen by one accreditor in particular.
Colleges Flush With Cash Are Saddling Their Poorest Students With Debt
A ProPublica analysis of newly available federal data shows that some of the nation’s wealthiest colleges are leaving their poorest students with plenty of debt.
The Soup to Nuts Approach to Financing College
The presidential campaign trail is littered with ideas for making college more affordable, but none of them address the potential game-changer of a wealth-based approach to financing an education.
The Disturbing Reason Higher Education Lobbying Groups Are Supporting For-Profit Colleges
Traditional colleges and universities have become unlikely allies of the beleaguered for-profit industry as each group tries to fend off the government’s push for more accountability.
One of the Hidden Culprits Behind Rising Tuition
Previous explanations as to the rising cost of higher education—focused on salaries and amenities—haven't placed enough blame on those who are profiting.