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Smith is hardly the only recent graduate unable to secure a decent  paying job while also struggling with piles of debt.

Last week, Carl Van  Horn, a professor of public policy at Rutgers University, released a study called "Unfulfilled Expectations: Recent  College Graduates Struggle in a Troubled Economy." Van Horn and his colleagues  polled young people who graduated from college between 2006 and 2010.

Debt is a pervasive worry. Of the 571 graduates included in the study, nearly  60 percent had borrowed money to finance their education. Research also found  that half of 2009 graduates are either unemployed or working in jobs that don't  require a college degree.

“By checking the homeschool option we are basically admitting that our  diploma is not as valid as a traditional diploma and making it easier for the  federal government to single out those who choose to homeschool. This is all to  build infrastructure for a national diploma to go with the common core state  standards. This may also impact transcripts and application for scholarships.  Many schools use FAFSA as the first point of entry for consideration even if the  funding does not come from the federal government. Checking the homeschool box  places the student in the “non-traditional” or not easily validated stack  because they “self-certify” which could possibly mean a different standard for  consideration than those that come from a traditional school setting and that is  on the Department of Ed approved list.”

• Have other loans Students already in hock through student loans or other borrowing are more likely to engage in the risky behaviors shown above.
• Work Students who have wage income have better access to credit, and they use it - but not well. They are more likely to engage in the risky behaviors shown above.
• Live off campus Students who live off campus tend to be more independent and engage in the risky behaviors shown above.
• Are first-generation collegians Being the first in your family to attend a university is closely associated with having credit card debts, being late in payments, not paying balances in full, and maxing out the limit.
• Pay their own way Students who are financially independent are more likely to have three or more credit cards, have credit card debts, make late payments, and not pay the balance in full.
• Are credit-card newbies The earlier a student gets their first credit card, the less frequently they will use it but the more likely they are to have credit card debts. Students who get their first credit cards in their first year in college are more likely to be late payers and carry a balance.

  As millions of Americans wake up  and start realizing that the tens of thousands of dollars that they have poured  into their college educations was mostly a waste, will the great college  education scam finally be exposed?

For now, the system continues to push the  notion that a college education is the key to a good future and that there is  plenty of "financial aid" out there for everyone that wants to go to  college.

What young high school students are never  told is that not even bankruptcy can get you out of student loan debt.  It  will stay with you forever until you finally pay it off.

 
 
1.  

   Your child is beginning one of the most significant and challenging stages of  his or her life. Perhaps for the first time, that child is on his or her own and  it is a proverbial make-or-break situation. (Hopefully, you have spent the  previous 18 years preparing them for this day - emotionally, psychologically,  intellectually, and spiritually.) They need to know that you will continue to be  there as a parent to provide support and/or guidance as they request  it.

2.  

   Over the four years of college or university life, students will make many of  the most important decisions of their lives. Wise parents will anticipate the  challenges and temptations and prepare their children with the character and  arguments that they need to avoid risky and destructive behavior; loving  communication and wise counsel can help your child resist temptation and make  good decisions.

3.  

   Over the next four years, your child will sit under the influence of a few  professors who enjoy tearing down the moral and religious views of their  students. For such profs, teaching is a game, and the intellectual seduction of  their students is the conquest that makes their teaching challenging. Their  agenda is to separate students from their parents, thereby, they hope, removing  the influence of traditional, Judeo-Christian values. Wise parents will listen  carefully and be ready to help counter such pernicious nonsense.

The hefty price tag of a college degree has some experts worried that its  benefits are fading.

"I think it makes less sense for more families than it did five years ago,"  says Richard Vedder, an economics professor at Ohio University who has been  studying education issues. "It's become more and more problematic about whether  people should be going to college."

"I think there's a problem in thinking that college has to be the best four  years of your life," Bissonnette said. "Well, if the best four years of your  life puts you in so much debt that you can't pursue the career that you want,  you can't have a family, you can't buy a house, then that's the worst four years  of your life."

While you definitely won't be able to follow every single piece of advice and  save the more than $100,000 the back cover touts, the numerous take-aways make  this book a worthwhile read. Whether you're a B-average junior in high school  trying to figure out where to apply or a junior in college with nothing in  savings, wondering how to finance the second half of your undergrad degree, it'd  sure be nice if you sent Bissonnette a muffin basket with all that extra money  you'll have.