When people think of students who have the most issues with student loans, they likely think that low-income students face the most challenges. Indeed, low-income students often do not have relatives who can afford to help with educational expenses and this can lead to a high debt load among low-income students. Of course, high-income students have less to worry about when it comes to educational expenses because their parents can often assist with educational costs. Nevertheless, middle-class students fall through the cracks sometimes and face unique challenges with student debt.
During my college and law school career, I likely would have been considered a low-income student. My estimated family contribution after completing the FAFSA was zero, which basically meant my family was not expected to make any contribution to my educational expenses. Although my grandparents were able to give me money at certain times, I basically had to rely on myself to fund my college and law school expenses.
Middle-class students fall through the cracks because programs are available for low-income students who may be having trouble funding their college and graduate school careers. For instance, I received very generous need-based financial aid as a college student, which greatly reduced the amount of money I needed to pay to earn a college degree. In addition, I was also awarded financial aid in law school which discounted the amount of money I needed to borrow in order to fund my law degree.
However, middle-class students fall through the cracks because they often look richer on paper than they are in real life. Even though their parents may make relatively decent money, their family may not have sufficient resources to assist their children much in paying for college and graduate school. This is especially true if families live in parts of the country where the cost of living is higher and there is not much money to spare for educational expenses.
Moreover, middle-class students fall through the cracks sometimes because even if their parents save for college and graduate school, this can actually hurt their children. When completing the FAFSA, applicants often need to list all of the assets that a student and their family have to pay for college. This naturally includes any savings that a family has set aside to pay for educational costs. As a result, such savings can minimize a person’s perceived financial need and this can impact the amount of financial aid someone is awarded.
For instance, my parents did not put any money aside to pay for my educational expenses. I listed this fact and my family’s general financial need on the FAFSA. This was likely one of the reasons why I was provided so much financial aid throughout my educational career. Somewhat ironically, if families do the right thing and save for college and graduate school, they can actually harm their children’s chances of receiving need-based financial aid. Of course, families should not try to game the system to make students more eligible for financial aid (since admission to a school with generous need-based financial aid is not guaranteed) but it is worth pointing this out.
Another way middle-class students fall through the cracks sometimes is with work-study opportunities. Work-study jobs are ways that students can earn money by completing jobs on campus. I was a work-study employee in law school, and the experience was very enriching. My law school paid me good money to work in the package room and front desk of the residence hall and I had fun doing the job as well. The money I made helped me lower my educational expenses as a law student.
However, work-study opportunities are sometimes exclusively for students with financial aid. Some colleges believe that financial aid students need extra money the most and either reserve spots for such students or give preference to financial aid recipients. Since middle-class students are less likely to be financial aid recipients they are less likely to have this opportunity to minimize their educational expenses.
Middle-class students fall through the cracks in graduate school as well. As mentioned in a few prior articles, some graduate school programs offer financial aid to students who demonstrate financial need. Indeed, I personally received about a forty-percent discount on the cost of attending graduate school because I was able to demonstrate financial need, and this helped me dramatically lower my student debt burden.
Even if you attend a graduate school that does not offer financial aid, middle class students fall through the cracks because they are at a disadvantage financially when entering graduate school. If students do not receive financial aid for college, they will likely have a larger debt burden when they apply to graduate school. All of this debt will accrue interest while the student is in school and the student may need to borrow even more debt for graduate school. Although I graduated law school with tons of student debt, I shudder to think how much debt I would have amassed if I had to borrow substantial sums to attend college as well.
All told, many people may think lower-income students have it worst when it comes to student debt, but middle-class students fall through the cracks and have challenges with student loans. Because they may be less eligible for financial aid, middle-class students may face more student debt burdens than others.