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College Didn’t Prepare Me For This: The Realities of the Student Debt Crisis and the Effect it is Having on College Graduates
Perry, April Spencer, Cassandra
Perry, April
Spencer, Cassandra
Abstract
Student loans are like a dark cloud looming above 41 million Americans (Perna, Kvall, & Ruiz, 2017). Through young adults’ personal accounts and relevant literature, we aimed to explore how student debt has altered the lives of college graduates and what can be done to educate students before they graduate with tens of thousands of dollars in debt. To provide context, we first discuss a brief history of student loans and address what we know from the literature about the burden of student debt. Next, we address the factors that contribute to the student debt crisis and the effects of student debt. We present qualitative data throughout from an ongoing study (Perry, 2012) that explores college graduates’ experiences and perspectives of the post-university transition. Six years after college graduation, these young adults (the research participants) are sharing their personal stories about student debt.
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2018-06-01
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student loans, graduate debt, financial aid, graduate unemployment, student debt crisis, financial literacy