If the government shutdown had lasted one more day, America would have defaulted.
Among other things, of course, this means student loans would have been frozen and students around the country would have been out of luck.
And since there’s a chance we’re headed for this scenario again in January, here are five of the most dire consequences college kids would face with a longer lasting shutdown:
Dropping out left and right
There are a lot of students out there who rely on student loans to get them through the year. While it probably isn’t the most financially sound decision, there are many out there who get through college through whatever means necessary, even if it means years of debt.
Even those with scholarships might not have enough to get through.
Danielle Smith, a junior at the College of Charleston, says she “probably would have had to leave school because my scholarships wouldn’t be enough to cover costs.”
Even more starving college students
Meal plans are expensive, and even without them food itself is something fairly expensive. For the students who were able to stay in school, having accessible food would be pretty difficult without the money buffer that student loans offer.
“I would have had to scramble to figure out what I was going to do regarding money as well as how I would pay for college, food and rent,” said James Robeson, a CofC senior.
Food would be tough to come by, not only that but…
Affordable living made even harder to find
…people need money to pay rent.
Let’s be honest, while there are students who have jobs, it’s incredibly difficult to find a part-time job that pays enough for rent. Rent is hard enough, but rent and tuition? That’s pretty much impossible. On top of all the stress that school brings, worrying a place to live from month to month would be a tragedy.
No more work-study jobs
While this isn’t directly related to loans not being offered, it is still incredibly relevant. There are a number of students who start off paying their loans by working on campus. Jobs at the library, dining halls and tutoring services would disappear due to lack of federal funding.
So not only would many students not have loans to help them out, they wouldn’t have a work-study job to help pay for school.
Less party money
Let’s get real again – students can find many alternatives to actually buying textbooks. So those with loans generally use that little extra cash for drinks or other “study aids.”
Now with no loans, how can they throw that next party? They might not even have enough money to throw a party, which might be the biggest tragedy of all.
-by Robert Andoga
Related articles
- Student debt tops one trillion dollars (kfor.com)
- Digging out of debt: Graduates stuggling under student loan pressure (kfor.com)
- Are student loans the next big bust? (stltoday.com)
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