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  • Higher Education policies after the US elections
  • Posted By:
  • Karen W.
  • Posted On:
  • 10-Jan-2017
  • There is a large speculation what these elections in the US can mean to student loan borrowers.
    President Donald Trump has not mentioned higher education so far and this could imply many things.
    Though it is too early to speak about the changes in the policies of higher education in the United States there are quite a few possibilities.

    His comments on non-Americans in the United States has got many colleges and universities worried. As mentioned earlier, it is too soon to know exactly where Donald Trump being elected will lead to, especially where the higher education policies are concerned.

    * Modifying of the repayment of loans which are based on income:

    Trump, during his campaign, spoke about specific modification on the repayment of loans which are
    income-based. According to his speech he proposed that the borrowers need to pay 12.5% of the
    discretionary income and the remaining of the loan being forgiven after a time span of 15 years. The
    current policy regarding this allows repayment of almost 15% of the discretionary income and the
    balance being forgiven after a time span of almost 25 years. He also mentioned that he wished to remove the role of the government in student lending.

    * Overhauling the system of federal loan:

    It has been mentioned that Trump intends to restore the loan lending system to private lenders without the government playing any role in this. Before this, student loans could be got directly from the government or through private banks which were backed by the federal government. Private loans have a higher rate of interests and rigid forms of repayment which makes it tougher for the students. Though the private loans supporters feel that this will be an ideal way to determine whether the student can repay the loan or no and you will find less students over borrowing.

    * Student Debt and sharing of risks by colleges:

    Colleges will be held responsible and accountable if the students are unable to repay their loans is one common idea shared by the Democrats and the Republicans. There is a doubt whether all the
    institutions will need to follow this or only specific ones. Trump has put across the idea of the removal of the tax-exempt status from colleges. This might lead to colleges restricting lending to students they felt had better chances of the repayment handling.

    Deregulation:

    There is a possibility that the Trump administration has more affinity for the for-profits colleges and
    universities though it has been stated by Trump that he wishes to lower the cost of education.
    It will be a welcome factor if Trump tries to expand vocational education and make college more
    affordable. This can be done by phasing out the different federal loan programs besides the higher
    education subsidies.

    At this time it is too early to predict what Trump will do about the higher education policy as his policies seem very vague but according to his statements he seems to be going in the right direction.





 

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