Student Debt after College

Sonoma State University announced a recent study published by The Institute for College and Success showing that 2015 at Sonoma State University that 51 percent of graduates had debt. The average debt of the graduates who took out a loan was $20,779. Students are forced to take out student loans due to the large cost of attending college. Tuition cost for the 2015 academic year was $5,472, this is not including the cost of living, bringing the total estimated cost of attending Sonoma State $23,655. These cost are not going down, they are going up creating financial hardships during and after college.

During a congressional town hall meeting at Sonoma States University, East Bay Rep. Eric Swalwell, and North Coast Rep. Mike Thompson discussed issues most important to the students- “debt”. According to the U.S. Department of Education, Federal student debt is now about $1.3 trillion. This burden adds to the financial obstacles young people face with the high costs of living in the Bay Area and North Coast.

Swalwell asked how many expected their student loan debt to exceed $10,000, many hands shot up and a lot of those remained when he increased the expectation to $25,000, $50,000, and $75,000. Both congressmen showed how debt was also personal for them. Swalwell, 35, shared with the audience how his student debt is still nearly $100,000 and how he still rents a home in the area he grew up. Thompson, 65, shared how his son who works in public service in Napa is considering buying a home 100 miles away.

The issue of student debt is not unique to Sonoma State University, all universities across the nation have students accruing debt.

Think about your senior year of college, graduation is right around the corner and you have so many mixed emotions about how you are going to pay off your student loan debt. Yes, you’ve received your degree that you have worked so hard for, but your asking yourself was it really worth all the loans that I have taken out? What if I don’t get a well paying job right after college? What if I can’t afford to by a house? Am I going to have to seriously live with my parents until I’m 30 years old? All of these are real issues that college graduates are facing today. Student debt after college is a problematic reality, and this is not something that students can just run away from.

Colleges of course are more than willing to arrange loans for students, however they never tell you the negatives that are going to come in the later years. Financial aid does not have the best interest for the students, regardless of what they tell you. In the real world, your employer could care less on how much debt you are in for getting your degree or what school you got it from, all that matters is that you have a degree. Student debt puts a delay on life decisions such as buying a home, getting married, having children, being able to save for retirement, and having the ability to enter a desired career field. Students are not happy, and fear for their future. Blame is on the big banks, corporations, and government for the student loan crisis, college will always be all about money rather than the importance of education.

Miranda Garihan is a Senior at Sonoma State University. She will graduate in Spring 2017 with a degree in Sociology.