The student debt crisis is less about the cost of college and more about the failure to graduate. The vast majority of a degree's economic benefit is realized only upon completion. Attending college without graduating is a poor investment, making completion rates a more critical focus for policy than enrollment.

The US Dept. of Education is proposing an accountability test: if a degree program's graduates don't earn more than comparable workers without that degree, the program could lose access to federal student loans. This directly links federal funding to a graduate's financial ROI.

Contrary to popular advice, academic research suggests it's suboptimal for young people with low incomes to save aggressively. They should instead focus on investing in their 'human capital'—skills and education—to maximize their future earning potential.

For graduates who are not high earners, making early student loan repayments is illogical. Since their debt is likely to be written off after 30 years anyway, any extra payments are essentially wasted money that could have been saved for emergencies. This strategy only benefits top earners.

When prioritizing debt, focus aggressively on any loan with an interest rate above 8%. This specific, actionable threshold helps distinguish between manageable debt and 'financial bleeding' that needs to be stopped immediately, simplifying your repayment strategy.

To fix the student debt crisis, universities should be financially on the hook for the first portion of any loan default (e.g., $20,000). This "first loss" position would compel them to underwrite the economic viability of their own degrees, creating a powerful market check against pushing students into overpriced and low-value programs.

The cultural push for prestigious degrees saddles women with significant debt. By the time they earn enough to service it (around age 30), their priorities often shift to family. However, the financial burden prevents them from leaving the workforce, creating a powerful trap.

The debate over college's worth should be framed as a bargain, not a simple "good vs. bad" decision. The most critical factor is the amount of debt incurred. A full-ride scholarship has minimal downside, whereas a debt-funded degree for a non-essential career can be a significant financial trap.

In an unpredictable, AI-driven job market, the winning strategy for young people is not to find a stable career path but to maximize their ability to pivot. This requires aggressively acquiring new skills (especially using AI) and ruthlessly minimizing personal debt to remain agile and adaptable.