Misinformation exacerbates student debt peril

As if we needed more alarming statistics in a post-recession economy, student loan debt has recently surpassed collective credit card debt in the United States.

Even more worrisome, student loan debt is projected to top $1 trillion in 2011, partially the result of poor job markets for students after college graduation. Also contributing to the increasing weight of loan debt is the rise of college tuition, another consequence of post-recession budget restrictions.

These statistics present students like us with the perilous situation of wanting college degrees to ensure future success, while also acknowledging the true lack of job opportunities and consumer protection.

Exacerbating the situation is the misleading communication of those with interest in the financial aid market, namely the Office of Student Financial Aid.

In response to the state of student loan debt, Office of Student Financial Aid Director Jim Brooks thought it worthwhile to mention MU's context in the national scheme of debt issues. Citing a national average of about $24,000, Brooks said MU's average student loan debt upon graduation is $20,689.

Although it's encouraging to hear things could be worse, it's not particularly satisfying knowing ultimately, our situations are still bad, and our incurred debt is often not just "average."

Even worse, through years of legislation, student loans have curiously found themselves in a position of unusual stipulation, as, unlike credit card debt, they cannot be claimed under bankruptcy.

Therefore, if a person cannot pay for his or her government student loans, the government has the power to dig into that person's salary until the loan is finally paid off.

As students who hope the government has a vested interest in the education of its constituents, we find it agitating that student loan policies handcuff those whose intentions are to get an education. We want a degree, we want jobs, yet we are treated with a vastly different attitude than someone who, say, wants to partake in a thousand-dollar, credit-card-funded shopping spree.

Government policy aside, though, we do not feel the Office of Student Financial Aid is adequately fulfilling their responsibility to inform us of the realities of student loans. Students need more than just cursory, basic definitions of their loan situations to navigate the difficult and paralyzing world of student loans, and we hope financial aid advisors communicate more honestly, more consistently.