Among my peers I am fortunate in that I had scholarships and worked through school to graduate with $0 in debt. It wasn't easy, and I was definitely a poor student who had to consider every purchase, but now in my 30s I am so much better off than others I know.
I think the issue I see is so many people of the prior generation were told university is this golden ticket to get to middle class. This created an arms race or bubble where the market was distorted because parents were saving earlier and earlier. I have friends right now that have two years into their kids college fund...and they don't even have a kid yet meaning the fund will start anywhere from 3 to 6 years before the kid is born.
I look at my friends and I see a few cases in regards to viewing education from a purely financial value.
1. Good - Friend is an engineer and very smart. Graduated with 100K in debt, but started work making ~75K and now makes ~130K. The point is his degree and hard work afforded him knowledge and skills that make paying down his debt manageable. He will be debt free by 38 (15 years after graduating).
2. Bad - Friend is in sales and also quite smart. Graduated with 60K in debt, but struggled to find work (it was 2009) and had to have income. Started for ~25K, has worked up to ~40K after seven years. They struggle to pay off student loans and have options limited due to constant financial pressure. They will have their loan paid off at age 43 (20 years after graduating).
One problem I see is many 18-22 year old frankly don't understand money. They don't understand interest rates and the fact a $30K loan could end up costing them $10-20K in interest over 15-30 years. An honest conversation needs to be had about evaluating it from a financial perspective. Going to expand your mind? Great. Going to ensure higher income and great ROI? Maybe debate what your major and career field is. From my experience so many young people are immediately limited due to managing debt. They have to take a job, or pass on a great opportunity or cannot afford to take a step back.
My guess is in next 20 years there will have to be a correction as cost is unsustainable and the bubble will burst.
