Student Loan - Loans and Debt Consolidation

INVESTMENT GROUP WANTS STUDENTS TO RETHINK COLLEGE LOANS NPR

Forking out thousands of dollars for a college education has long been viewed as conventional wisdom when it comes to investing in career paths that bring stability and long-term financial security. But what if there were a different logic applied to financing a college education. Host Michel Martin talks to Noga Leviner, who leads the investment group Lumni, about her organization of creative, non-traditional alternatives to paying for college.

MICHEL MARTIN, host:

Ms. NEOGA LEVINER General Manager, Lumni Inc., USA: Hi, Michel. Thanks so much for having us.

MARTIN: Now, let me see if I understand this. Your organization loans students up to $6,000 a year to help finance their educations and then once they graduate they have to do what?

Ms. LEVINER: The students are committing to repaying a fixed percentage of their income, which we agree with them at the time that they sign a contract with us, for a certain period of time. Were typically talking about 120 months. So thats 10 years after they graduate. So that obligation is complete after those 10 years are up, regardless of how much or how little the student has paid up until that point.

MARTIN: And why do people want to do this?

Ms. LEVINER: I think a lot of students, and particularly folks from families where there isnt a lot of experience taking on student debt or maybe there arent a lot of examples of folks that have successfully gone to school, graduated, and gotten high-paying job...[more]