Student Loans | College Admission

A welcome reality check on the subject of student loans

Posted on Thu, 05/01/2014 - 17:40

"It is not uncommon to read stories about college students who say, “I woke up one day and realized I had $50,000 in outstanding student loans and had no idea how I got there.” And yet nobody would accept at face value someone stating, “I woke up one day driving a Mercedes and had no idea how I was $50,000 in debt.”

Finally, some straight talk on the subject of student debt from Donald E. Heller, dean of the College of Education at Michigan State University, via Valerie Strauss' The Answer Sheet at the Washington Post -- Is the $1 trillion student loan debt really a crisis? Right now, thousands of families are considering financial aid offers -- most of which include loans. Heller cuts through the media madness surrounding student debt with a look at the facts of the situation, the value of a college degree, and what the future will hold. It's a welcome reality check in the face of the hyperbole from the headlines to the White House hyperbole. If you and your family are looking at a financial aid award which requires some indebtedness, don't miss this! You can see the entire column here.

College Admission in Sauk Valley Media

Posted on Wed, 05/09/2012 - 20:36

Thank you to Bridget Flynn of Sauk Valley Media and the Daily Gazette for the wonderful coverage of Christine VanDeVelde's presentations to students at Newman Central Catholic High School and Sterling High School in Sterling, Illinois. You can read it here.

Losing Perspective on Student Debt?

Posted on Wed, 03/14/2012 - 00:03

File this one under "Media Madness." In a recent article from the Chronicle of Higher Education, Sandy Baum and Michael McPherson take on the latest thought contagion in college admission -- the level of concern surrounding student debt. Baum is an independent higher-education-policy analyst and senior fellow at the George Washington University School of Education and Human Development, and McPherson is president of the Spencer Foundation, which is dedicated to education research. Check out their debunking of this most recent example of urban myth and college admission.

Later this week, Jon Boeckenstedt, DePaul University Associate Vice President of Enrollment Management and Marketing, will address the cost of a college education and how much is too much when it comes to loans.