College is expensive, and with the economy currently in shambles it’s even more difficult to reach the sacred degree we are all working towards in order to get the job that pays well, so we may all live our American dream. The process itself is turning into the American nightmare.

The cost of going to college has always been seen as an absorbent amount to merely learn valuable knowledge. You spend thousands of dollars to have three letters appear at the end of your name.

Even at  N.C . State, the land grant university that aimed to create affordable education for all students, the sticker price for education is becoming increasingly difficult to pay for. It is continually rising, especially when the general assembly hikes up the cost; ensuring the state gets their dues from it.

Barely any student can graduate without owing money to the banks, or worse, the government. According to information gathered by Degree Central, the average college graduate owes about $23,700 for their college education. For a bachelor’s degree, a graduate’s average income straight out of college is $47,000.

Taking into account the necessary cost and standard of living for a recent graduate, we can subtract an estimate of $22,000. This leaves $25,000 for other expenditures, including payments towards student loans.

This is not taking into consideration if the graduate wants to get married, have kids or even put money towards retirement. With the rise of interest rates, as well as the increasing cost of living and education in America, graduates cannot afford to pay off their educational debts until years after they graduate, causing the national student debt to hit $1 trillion this summer. This is not due to private institutions. In a College Board study, the public schools’ increases to tuition exceeded those of  private universities.

To combat this debt, President Obama’s new plan for student loan payments aims to cap annual loan payments at 10 percent, rather than the current 15 percent. It also attempts to consolidate multiple payments into one payment a month, with the hopes to put more money back into the pockets of nearly 1.6 million students, in another feeble attempt to stimulate the economy.

This plan will take effect in 2012 and affect the majority of students at  N.C . State who use loan money to pay for school.  

If the costs of college and current economic situation are so bad that our federal government must find ways to bail out the education system, something must be done. A significant change must be made to the student debt problem.

The atmosphere surrounding higher education in the United States is not one of learning and gaining knowledge, but rather how much it costs to receive it. This is what needs to change, and it can be done by lifting the burden of finances onto education. 

University systems in other countries demonstrate their importance by creating a more feasible learning environment, focusing on knowledge of the material without the added pressures of finances to fund the learning. For example, in the United Kingdom, college tuition for home students is capped at 3,375 euros , which is equivalent to tuition here. The difference is that the government subsidizes this cost, allowing students to go to school for a lower cost. This results in more students graduating, and thus more graduates pursuing postgraduate degrees.

Obama’s new plan will help students pay back their loans at a lower rate, which is necessary for education in this economy. However, a change should not only be made to student loans, but more broadly to the exorbitant price of college itself. College is tough enough without the cost of it rising.

The specifics of the plan not only lower the interest rates on loans and consolidate payments, but it also forgives the borrower after 20 years rather than the current 25 years. Along with these conditions, the plan provides student borrowers with more information on finances and the various options of taking out loans.  

While this plan seems to be the solution, the feasibility seems bleak. To lower interest rates and combine payments only gives universities more of a right to increase tuition. The real way to resolve this issue is focus on college tuition by keeping it capped at a more manageable amount. This way, loans would not even need to be a question, and we could keep students in school while keeping them in good credit standing. As a country, we should not allow money to dictate our education, but rather knowledge.