A college degree is now a pipe dream, an unattainable goal without the help of federal government loans. A young man came to me a few years ago and asked where to go to get money (loan) for college. I told him he has a rich uncle and go see him for the cash. The rich uncle is Uncle Sam. But I also added, if you do take the money, remember, you must pay your debt – the debtor is slave to the lender. If you don’t like that idea, don’t take the money.

The college financing bubble is growing and growing and is now part of federal government jurisdiction — it’s one of the biggest financial threats in the U. S. today. According to government records, there is more than $1.4 trillion in loans outstanding. Comparatively, that is nearly four times bigger than all the debts of Greece! And it is growing at nearly 20% a year. On top of that bad news is about 30% of this debt isn’t being repaid or is already in default (bankruptcy).

The Wall Street Journal reported in January 2017, the government overstated student loan repayments due to a “technical programming error.” Was anybody responsible for the error disciplined, suspended or fired for incompetence? It wasn’t reported anyone was held responsible. I’ll bet not only were they not disciplined, but probably given more responsibility and pay to do a lousy job. Ahh… ain’t public service great?

More than half of the students had defaulted or failed to pay down their debt within seven years, based on the students that were supposed to start repaying loans in 2006 and 2007. Across all colleges, 40% of borrowers haven’t paid a single dollar toward these loans within seven years. This is only getting worse by the day.

I remember my first day of college. Each semester hour was $40, and you could work it off by working for the college. At the end of four years, with careful saving and working your college debt down, you could graduate with a sheepskin paid in full. You were free and clear to find a job and keep what you earned. Of course, the semester hour rate at the end of my time there was $75 per semester hour, but you could still pay it off if you were a good saver and managed your money.

Just the books now cost well over what I ever paid per semester hour. Books good for about three to four years until a new revised edition was required to take a class. Much of the information in the previous edition was in the new edition, just that it had a new picture on the cover and new photography or business charts/matrices inside.

Speaking with a janitor that a friend worked with, he was also a student 20 years before, but he quit school, kept his janitor job at the college and started working full-time with benefits. When asked what he made for salary, he said he was union and made more than many professors. He indicated when he found out what janitors made there, he secured a full-time position that was open (he was a shoe-in because he worked there for two years previously as a student) and quit college. Many said he was nuts to quit.

Now he is retired after working 35 years with a fully paid beautiful house on the Thornapple River, free and clear 2015 Ford ¾-ton truck, and fully paid 2015 Mustang for the wife (they bought the truck and car the same day for cash – they drove “junk” for years and saved their money) and has a high six figure 401K balance, and his wife is a retired teacher from a local high school. With the children gone, they travel when they want and winter in Sarasota, Fla. He also said he had a hefty cash fund in the bank for emergencies.

Guess he did well and didn’t need college to be successful.

I’m all for education, the more you want, the better. Learning is a lifelong habit; reading is a never ending love affair with books. As Nike commercials used to say “Just Do It.”

But to think there is only one way to success, if you define success tied to financial riches; college is but one way. Technical/trade schools are another however, not many students are steered that way by high school counselors (and I don’t know why). Going into the armed services is another way to earn and learn at the same time. A friend of mine was commissioned as an officer once he graduated from college in “Operation Bootstrap,” where he went to college full time in engineering at Cal Poly and had to serve two years for every year of assistance while in college. Last I heard, he retired as a Lt. Colonel after a 30-year military career. Great guy, great family.

Everyone in our family has at least a four-year bachelor’s degree. That’s what I was told I needed to be successful. I find that is half true, it only stamps your ticket to success for job level entry. You have to apply yourself to your work and produce what is needed or you won’t be there long.

I know people with whom I work with no college at all. I don’t know what they make for salary, but I’m sure it is close to what I make or maybe even more. They are competent and resourceful, working hard to achieve success and remain employed. And nobody knows they lack degrees unless they reveal the fact.

To those about to enter college, look long and hard at the risk and reward of your endeavor, especially if you are borrowing federal money for college. And if you do take a loan, pay it back. It isn’t your money.

I think there ought to be a severe penalty for borrowing money, receiving a degree from loaned money, and then never attempting to repay the loan. Maybe President Trump will get to that once all the other urgent tasks are completed. I hope so, because this is a bigger and growing problem as time passes.