Research Proposal

By: Ashna Deshpande

The topic of interest is the impending crisis of the increase in

student debt in recent years. Student debt is increasing, and

this will affect future generations for years to come. Student

debt has adverse consequences on the quality of life students

face once they have completed school. Most students after school

have to work tirelessly to pay off their student loan debt.

This research intends to learn about the effects of student

loan debt. The effects would include short term as well as

long term effects of increasing student loan debt. I am also

informing others the consequences of taking out so much

student loans will have in the future.

There has been a lot of research done on student loan debt that
points to the problem of America’s Education system. My research
will go into depth with the economic and social ramifications
student loan debt has on people’s decisions. It will also go
into depth with a feasible solution that would help decrease
student loan debt. This research is relevant because student
loan debt is increasing and will have a greater impact on
generations to come. Since a lot of jobs require post-college
education, it is clear that student loan debt will only
increase and control people’s lives that is why it is important
to solve the problem.
IV. Statement of Qualification
I have a strong connection to this topic because I will soon
be going to College, and I will be having to make these
economic decisions that could affect different aspects of my
life. I think it is important to view all aspects of
pursuing higher education that could lead to debt. I can
bring a different perspective to this topic, since the cost
of tuition is higher than in previous years.
V. Annotated Bibliography
College Debt is Impeding Baby Boomers and Millennials' Ability to Reach Financial Goals

"College Debt is Impeding Baby Boomers and Millennials' Ability to Reach Financial Goals: Guardian's Research Explores College

Debt's Impact on Workforce Well-being and the Rising Interest in College Education Benefits." PR Newswire, Feb 04, 2019.

ProQuest, https://search.proquest.com/docview/2175284385?accountid=3785.

This article highlights the 1.5 trillion dollars in student loan debt in America and portrays the financial problem this could cause. This article

also states the disparity between baby boomer student loan debt and millennial student loan debt. Among baby boomers, the student loan debt was

only $213.6 billion compared to the $1.5 trillion for millennials It also describes how 92% of Americans with student loan debt would prefer some

sort of program that would help them cancel the debt.

This article will be very helpful in giving the contextualization required to show how big of a problem student loan debt is. This also

supports my thesis statement by giving some type of solution to the impending crisis of student loan debt. This will help support my argument that

student loan debt has impacted people financially, it will also bring up a comparison of student loan debt with boomers and Millennials.
V. Annotated Bibliography
Loans, college debs impact student credit

Vasquez, Graciela. "Loans, College Debt Impacts Student Credit." University Wire, Nov 06, 2019. ProQuest,

https://search.proquest.com/docview/2312492125?accountid=3785.

This article provides helpful insight into actual students who have student loan debt and how that impacts their lives. One person

recalled the stress of student loan debt and how it increases the overall debt accumulated negatively. The person also recalls how not

paying student loan payments on time negatively affected their overall credit score. It also caused future problems for them because they

couldn’t get a mortgage for 15 years because of the negative impact the debt had on their credit score.

This will help support my argument because it provides actual testimony of people facing the brunt of student loan debt. It also

talks about the financial problems that student loan debt causes on finances years later.
V. Annotated Bibliography
Impact of college debt may extend beyond students

Erdley, Debra. "Impact of College Debt may Extend Beyond Students." McClatchy - Tribune Business News, Feb 04, 2013. ProQuest,

https://search.proquest.com/docview/1283609567?accountid=3785.

This article examines all aspects of student loan debt, including finances, marriage, and kids This article provides actual testimonies of

people who have waited to get married or have kids because of the amount of debt they have. Others talked about how getting a house has been

difficult because very little money gets put in their savings account. As one quote as saying, “Too many times they are altering plans, dreams, hopes,

and expectations because of this burden.” The burden of student loan debt affects more aspects of peoples’ lives than is realized. The article also

mentions how a couple was so thrilled when they found an apartment that was less than $2,000 because of the monthly payments of student loans

they have to pay. This goes to show how people have to alter their lives to survive the payments of student loans.

This article helps support my essay because it includes actual testimony of people who have a lot of student loan debt to pay off. The article

also includes the personal decisions that are dependent on student loan debt, such as marriage. This will make my argument stronger, and help

provide actual evidence to support my claim.

Thomas, Cal. "A Solution to College Debt." TCA Opinion, May 08, 2019. ProQuest, https://search.proquest.com/docview/2221288325?accountid=3785.

This article talks about the solutions to student debt in our country. In the next couple of years, 65 percent of jobs will require post-secondary

education. This means that student loan debt will only increase. This article also states a student loan program that was implemented in 2007, which

forgave student loans for people entering the medical field. This program failed because many students did not receive loan forgiveness. This article

proposes the solution to student loan debt by division to avoid taking out student loans. As older people continue to retire, new jobs are available for

younger generations that don’t require post-secondary education. This article also states that now the most critical skills for a job is to have

leadership skills, which don’t always require higher education.

This article helps support my thesis because it provides data that supports my point of the problem of student loan debt. It describes future

problems and how jobs in this country are soon going to depend on postsecondary education. However, a lot of jobs will be available in the industry

section, and in this industry, a lot of jobs are based on critical thinking and leadership skills. This does provide some sort of solution to the student

debt crisis by encouraging more people to go into the industry section.

The research will be conducted in an interview format, and it will be conducted with a person who has experienced the ramifications of

the increasing student loan debt. The interview will also contain questions that would help to see what solutions could help with the debt

crisis, and it will contain questions to see what type of ramifications the person faced. I will also include a survey on Instagram which

will ask, which will be representative of the people who will face this problem. This poll will help support my argument that many

young people will face the brunt of college debt. I will include questions where people can strongly agree, agree, disagree, or strongly

disagree about student loan debt.

October 19- proposal with Annotated Bibliography

October 22- collect Primary research

October 23- work on rough draft

October 29- peer edit

November 4- research proposal due

No money will be required for this project

The importance of this research will be important to combat the

increasing student loan debt in America. By learning the effects of student

loan debt, government legislatures can take the appropriate actions to

decrease the amount of student loan debt. This will help bring awareness to

the problem, and it will pressure legislatures to create policies that will

help solve student loan debt.