At the beginning of the recent annual meeting of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators the main topic for discussion was the student loan “credit crunch” that has been the subject of much discussion and congressional action in recent months. As Inside Higher Ed points out, despite repeated claims that the program is “all about the students”, every the member of the panel represented the loan industry save one Department of Education Representative; no financial aid officials nor student advocates were represented at the panel.  Not surprisingly, the panel continued to paint a picture that blamed the passage of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act for the current situation and predicted that many students would not be able to get the loans they need to attend school this fall.  Conversely The Ticker, the student newspaper for CUNY Baruch investigated the implications of the “credit crunch” on their school and found that it would have none, as all schools participate in the federal Direct Loan program.

More from CUNY Baruch
More from Inside Higher Ed