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A comment on More than 1M fewer students are in college, the lowest numbers in 50 years. Parent comment

Re:More than 1M fewer students are in college, the lowest nu... by vorpalhex on Thursday January 13, 2022 @11:30AM (#29922649)
Part of the issue is that you can get these loans regardless your program. Chemical engineering? Here you go. Studying gay romances in 14th century literature? Yup, here's your 50k too.

One of those people can pay that loan off in two years. One of them is likely never going to pay it off without a career change.

Of course, we probably don't want loan officers picking what poor people can major in either.

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Re:More than 1M fewer students are in college, the lowest nu... by giaour on Thursday January 13, 2022 @11:50AM (#29923024)
The person studying gay romances in 14th century literature is probably a PhD student with a stipend and full tuition remission. They're getting subsidized by MBA tuition dollars, not by loans.
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Re:More than 1M fewer students are in college, the lowest nu... by ativzzz on Thursday January 13, 2022 @12:20PM (#29923551)
Sure, but they go through an undergrad in English or something similar before they are a PhD, for which they take the loan, then they don't earn any money (just enough to subsist) while the interest on their undergrad loan accrues. Or the interest may be deferred but the loan is still there.
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Re:More than 1M fewer students are in college, the lowest nu... by rdtwo on Thursday January 13, 2022 @12:50PM (#29924014)
The chemistry undergrad has similar career prospects sadly
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Re:More than 1M fewer students are in college, the lowest nu... by Sohcahtoa82 on Thursday January 13, 2022 @03:52PM (#29926668)
I'm an advocate for requiring career counseling before taking out student loans.

I would not say that people should be denied based on their chosen major, but prospective students should be shown statistics on the average salaries, unemployment, and usage rates of the major they're interested in and compare it to the projected costs and resulting loan debt.

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