[Domenic_S]

> actual children

18-year-olds are not "Actual children".

> taking on huge burdens with little to no guidance

I don't know if this is still the case but when I took out student loans nearly two decades ago I had to go through "entrance counseling" and "exit counseling", explaining very clearly and meticulously what I was getting myself into.

[kaesar14]

Sure, not legally, but relative to the life experience required to even somewhat competently navigate the complexities of the modern world, 18 year olds are functionally children. Your entire life to that point is school, for many people, sheltered from the harsher realities of life and finances.

That entrance and exit loan counseling is a privilege for sure. I just graduated from a top 25 ranked private school and was never given loan counseling, and none of my peers were either. Thankfully I picked a high paying field, succeeded in it, and had parents with a ton of financial knowledge to help me effectively plan how to pay for it all, but the vast majority of my peers had no such luck on those three fronts. It’s especially telling that you went to school two decades ago, as no one going to school right now legitimately thinks the college student loan process is clearly presented in terms that are easy for the AVERAGE 18 year old to understand. Meanwhile, the costs have gone up...I don’t know, at least 100% since you went to school? Shit, tuition went up 4 grand while I was still in school.

[mgkimsal]

> as no one going to school right now legitimately thinks the college student loan process is clearly presented in terms that are easy for the AVERAGE 18 year old to understand

I went to university nearly 30 years ago, and I didn't take out any loans the first few years. I did the last year, and even then I didn't think the process was remotely understandable. I remember getting a check and there was a pretty hefty fee that had been taken out, reducing my net by a moderate percentage. I couldn't find any good explanation of this, nor anyone at the school who could explain it.

I had no 'entrance' and 'exit' loan counseling.

[Domenic_S]

> That entrance and exit loan counseling is a privilege for sure. I just graduated from a top 25 ranked private school and was never given loan counseling, and none of my peers were either.

Entrance/exit counseling is required for any federal student loan. Perhaps your loans weren’t federal?

> Meanwhile, the costs have gone up...I don’t know, at least 100% since you went to school? Shit, tuition went up 4 grand while I was still in school.

UCLA, one of the top schools in the world, costs $13k in tuition for the year for residents. Think about that, a world-class education for a little more than $1k/month.

[kaesar14]

Nope, I had federal loans. No counseling. Not sure what to tell you. A quick search of my student email account reveals a "required" exit counseling session, which I was not aware of until searching for it in my email at this very moment. No other attempt to contact me to get the counseling, and I very much successfully graduated without going. So seems the school at least doesn't really care too much.

As for your last point, I'm not sure how that matters? By my count, 14 of the top 25 universities globally are American private institutions. Not all of us were lucky enough to be raised in states with the caliber of public universities of California, and for us, the chance at a better life was one of those top private universities. That was a dream sold to me by the educational system my entire primary and secondary school life, and while it did work out for me, it's not working for thousands of young people and needs to be changed.