student loans

News

Dr. Stange Goes to Washington

Sep 13, 2023

The Ford School is proud of its record of welcoming policymakers-in-residence. This past year, Ford School professor Kevin Stange played a different role – academic-in-residence. He had a one-year assignment working in the U.S. Department of...

Publication

Jacob explores barriers to Teacher Loan Forgiveness program

Jul 10, 2023

The Biden Administration is preparing a new set of student loan debt-relief measures in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s rejection of its previous, ambitious plan, which would have eliminated between $10,000 and $20,000 per student. A number of...

Photo of Brian Jacob standing at the Annenberg Auditorium podium, delivering remarks at a public event

In the Media

Reducing student loan debt is a significant step - Michelmore

Sep 12, 2022 Oakland Press

Over 1.3 million Michiganders hold around $50 billion in student loan debt, according to the latest data from the U.S. Department of Education. The Biden administration's plan to forgive $10,000 of loan debt, and up to $20,000 for those students who...

News

Wolfers provides expertise on current state of economy

Sep 9, 2022

Justin Wolfers, professor of public policy and economics, has made numerous appearances in the media recently, providing his expertise on the current state of our economy. Here is a compilation of his recent contributions: 'Both a warning and a...

In the Media

Stange: Taking a COVID gap year? Have a plan to re-enroll in school

Nov 7, 2020 Bloomberg Wealth

Kevin Stange said students who have decided to take time off should create a “plan” to re-enroll in school, as a way to hold themselves accountable. “Most people are not the next Bill Gates and will be much better off having gone to college,” he...

News

Borrowing student loans leads to higher academic performance, Dynarski explains

Sep 10, 2019

The threat of crippling debt creates hesitancy when students decide whether to borrow student loans. But recent research reveals that students who took out more student loans were less likely to default, had higher academic performance, and more...

Seefeldt offers insight on student debt trends on Michigan Radio

Jul 19, 2019

A new report shows Michigan college graduates borrow on average 42 percent more today than 10 years ago. Michigan Radio’s Kate Well and Caroline Llanes interviewed Kristin Seefeldt, professor of public policy and social work, to help interpret the...

On “Here and Now,” Dynarski talks student loan debt and solutions

Mar 1, 2018

Susan Dynarski was interviewed by Jeremy Hobson of NPR’s Here and Now for the February 27 segment: “Has student loan debt reached a crisis point?”For a “substantial minority” of student loan borrowers, Dynarksi tells Hobson, “there is a crisis.” She...

Susan Dynarski testifies on student loans before U.S. Senate HELP committee

Jan 18, 2018

Susan Dynarski will testify in front of the United States Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee (HELP) hearing “Reauthorizing the Higher Education Act: Financial Aid Simplification and Transparency.” The hearing will be livestreamed...

In The New York Times, Susan Dynarski describes “The wrong way to fix student debt”

May 8, 2017

In a May 6 “Economic View” column for The New York Times, "The wrong way to fix student debt," Susan Dynarski describes three recent regulatory changes that are “making student loans riskier, more expensive and more burdensome for borrowers.”The...

Dynarski’s research on income-contingent loans cited in Times Higher Education

Mar 16, 2017

A team of four researchers, including Susan Dynarski, published a working paper on income-contingent loan (ICL) systems this month for the Centre for Global Higher Education: “Getting student financing right in the US: Lessons from Australia and...

RNC’s new call for a return to a “competitive” student loan market won’t work, says Dynarski

Jul 21, 2016

In “The RNC wants to make student loans competitive again. They never were,” Susan Dynarski provides detailed context on one plank of the newly released Republican platform, which pushes to get the federal government out of the student loan...

EPI’s DC conference, “Restructuring student loans: Lessons from abroad"

Jun 14, 2016

Roughly 100 guests—including policymakers, practitioners, and members of the press—attended “Restructuring student loans: Lessons from abroad,” a conference organized by Susan Dynarski, co-founder and co-director of the Ford School’s Education...

Susan Dynarski pens Milken Institute piece, “How to—and how not to—manage student debt”

Jun 10, 2016

For the Milken Institute Review, Susan Dynarski explains, “How to—and how not to—manage student debt.”“If you even casually follow the news, you’ve probably heard that Americans owe a record $1.3 trillion in student loans,” writes Dynarski. Seven...

In Brookings, Dynarski investigates effects of slashing student loan interest rates

Apr 14, 2016

Susan Dynarski considers the effects of student loan interest rates in “What does cutting rates on student loans do?” The piece appears in Evidence Speaks, a weekly publication of the Brookings Institution's Center on Children and Families. Dynarski...

Dynarski named NASPAA "Public Service Matters" Spotlight Award recipient

Oct 21, 2015

Professor Susan Dynarski has been named a recipient of the "Public Service Matters" Spotlight Award by the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA) for her ongoing work on college affordability and student debt....

“We’re frighteningly in the dark about student debt” writes Dynarski for The New York Times

Mar 21, 2015

The United States government has a portfolio of roughly $1 trillion in student loans, many of which appear to be troubled writes Susan Dynarski in the business section of the Sunday New York Times. Dynarski’s column, “We’re frighteningly in the dark...

Dynarski on how to boost graduation rates at community colleges

Mar 12, 2015

In this year’s State of the Union address, President Obama put forth a plan to make a student’s first two years of community college free. But is that plan viable? Susan Dynarski sees problems that must be fixed before it can conceivably work.“How...

Dynarski highlights behavioral ‘nudges’ that can lessen education disparities in NYT Upshot column

Jan 20, 2015

Vast inequalities currently exist in the U.S. education system – there is little debate among experts on this issue. And while it’s the ambitious system-level reform proposals that garner widespread attention, several seemingly simple...

Dynarski speaks with Marketplace about student loan debt increase

Nov 13, 2014

Susan Dynarski spoke with Marketplace Morning Report for a November 13 story discussing new statistics on student loan debt released by The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS). The cost of getting a bachelor’s degree remains on the...

Slow down, get college ratings right, Dynarski tells White House

Sep 22, 2014

“The Obama administration seems intent on putting [college] ratings in place in short order,” writes Dynarski in “Why Federal College Ratings Won’t Rein In Tuition,” published in the Sunday, September 21 edition of The New York Times. “Along with...

Lower interest rates won't stop student loan defaults; Dynarski argues for income-dependent repayment

Sep 1, 2014

Student loan interest rates have risen from 3.86 to 4.66 percent this fall, and critics are arguing that the government should lower rates again or risk lower college attendance and more defaults on student debt. According to Susan Dynarski, though,...

Lower interest rates won't stop student loan defaults; Dynarski argues for income-dependent repayment image

"What's the counterfactual?" asks Sue Dynarski of student loans

May 16, 2014

In a May 15 Chronicle of Higher Education article, Beckie Supiano explores the tricky question of how student loans affect long-term financial well-being. "Paying off student loans is a fact of life for a growing number of American households,"...

Debate over 'Pay It Forward' continues, Dynarski's suggested amendments receive increased attention

Apr 4, 2014

Susan Dynarski is quoted in a number of articles this month discussing 'Pay It Forward' legislation, now under consideration by more than a dozen states, which would tie student loan repayments to a percentage of income for a fixed number of years....

Dynarski comments on proposals to offset the high cost of a college education

Feb 24, 2014

In an NPR article, Susan Dynarski asked to explain the viability of proposals out of Oregon and Tennessee aimed at alleviating the cost of college. Both states are asking legislators to consider very different strategies for increasing college...

Our World Needs Pioneers

Nov 1, 2013

A single gift can make a difference, and gifts to the Ford School yield impressive returns.The Annenberg Professorship, established to honor the life and legacy of President Ford, enabled the Ford School to attract and retain Brian Jacob, a rising...

Dynarski presents policy proposal on making borrowing work for today's students

Oct 22, 2013

On October 21, The Hamilton Project hosted a forum on the evolving role of higher education in American society. At the forum, Susan Dynarski presented a paper titled "Loans for Educational Opportunity: Making Borrowing Work for Today's Students,"...

Get the student loan matter out of the political arena, according to Dynarski

Jul 9, 2013

As of July 1, Federal student loan interest rates doubled to 6.8%—a matter that could be fixed retroactively by Congress. That's little consolation for students whose debt might increase by thousands of dollars over the life of the loan.A bipartisan...

Orszag cites Dynarski in Bloomberg column on college enrollment

Feb 12, 2013

In his regular column for Bloomberg View, former director of the Office of Management and Budget Peter Orszag drew upon the work of Susan Dynarski in suggesting ways to raise college enrollment and graduation rates.Among other factors determining...

Baby boom generation: "the first generation shifting the cost of college to their kids," Dynarski says

Sep 19, 2012

Student Loan Ranger, an Equal Justice Works education blog hosted by U.S. News & World Report, cited Susan M. Dynarski's research in its latest post, "Pervasive Student Loan Debt Penetrates Middle Class."According to the blog:"Susan Dynarski,...

Baby boom generation: "the first generation shifting the cost of college to their kids," Dynarski says image