Many Questioning the Wisdom of International Student Loans
Release date: 12 Nov 2010
The costs of a college education continue to rise and with the global economy still in a tailspin, many are wondering if this cost is worth it. Many others are wondering if it makes sense for students to seek out the even higher costs of taking out international student loans.
Many students dream of studying overseas. This is a valid dream. Not only will these students pick up the book learning that they’d get from any college, they’ll also pick up knowledge of how the rest of the globe works. It’s hard to learn about far-off countries from watching TV or reading about them but by traveling to them and studying in them? That’s a great way to learn about a different culture.
Studying abroad also makes students more attractive to employers. These students have a wider view of the world. This view can help them when they’re making important decisions while working their new jobs.
While it’s expensive for students to attend college in their home countries, it’s downright outrageously costly for them to attend college in a foreign land. In addition to the normal costs of college, students have to take into account the costs of transportation, meals, and lodging. It’s why the vast majority of international students need some type of international education loans to pay for their year or more of studying abroad.
The question is this one: Do the benefits of studying internationally outweigh the added costs in today’s shaky global economy?
Students who take out international loans will have a heap of debt to pay back after they earn their degrees. With the job market in such a state of flux, there’s precious little guarantee that these graduates will be able to land a job that pays well enough to help them pay back the costs of their international college loans.
Students graduating domestically, of course, are facing the same challenges. However, their student debt, while potentially overwhelming, is usually smaller than the debt levels faced by their peers who studied at least part of the time in another country.
All students interested in taking out international student loans will have to study the pros and cons of such a move a move carefully. It’s no fun for students to start their careers burdened by a mountain of student loan debt. This might not be the best economy for students lured by the attraction of studying internationally.
Source: Credit Loan