Monday, May 14, 2012

Fleeing the country to avoid student loans?

There seem to be a lot of people considering this option. Rest assured, if you leave the country, you will find plenty of companions abroad. In fact, there are many indentured educated Americans who have decided this option was the best for them. I call them student loan debt refugees.

I have lived abroad myself, so if folks are interested, I can share what it was like to save money, have a job abroad, etc. (Just let me know).

There are so many young Americans who are graduating right now, and they are realizing quickly how bad things are when it comes to surviving in this punishing place.

The work on behalf of millions of debtors continues as more join our ranks.

16 comments:

Nando said...

"student loan debt refugees"

How did someone not coin this term earlier? It fits so well. In a just world, university officials and administrators would be exiled to hard labor on the Aleutian Islands.

Anonymous said...

Now if only one could hope to get political asylum...

Anonymous said...

My mom is a curator at a history museum. She said there is a young recent college graduate that they hired as a janitor. Many of the admins at the museum are H.S. graduates making six-figures; my mom said the janitor is very bright and hard-working, but he won't be going anywhere at the museum.

Unsurprisingly, the janitor-indentured educated American is heading to Asia to teach English. I wouldn't be at all surprised if he has many thousands in loans that he could never repay on a janitor's salry nipping at his heels as he runs for his life. Our society can't continue on like this indefinitely.

Anonymous said...

"Refugees" is right. My husband and I have considered leaving as well. We feel that we are being persecuted for being middle-class university graduates. Isn't this a civil rights issue? It's widespread enough. Why hasn't the ACLU or another similar group gotten involved? I've written/called my representatives and educated everyone I know, but I still feel so helpless. It just seems like we're spinning our wheels with some of these reps. Money talks and obviously, we cannot afford to pay them off the way the banks have!

Cryn Johannsen said...

@May 15 - I don't think petitioning our political leaders will make a difference. Even though there are many on the Hill who care about the student lending crisis, they are beholden to lobbyists who are AGAINST us. These groups are powerful and have lots of $$$ (as you know). That is why we need to come up with new alternatives to change this corrupt system.

Anonymous said...

The Banks, Sallie Mae, and the federal government aren't going to waste their time, money looking for you in a foreign country. The worst they can do is garnish your income tax returns--don't leave them anything to garnish!--and garnish your social security, IF there's any left by the time you turn 65.

Better to live poor-but-free in a foreign country than to live poor-and-indentured in your own.

Anonymous said...

Maybe a dumb question but:

How can a person teach English in another country if they don't know the language of the other country?

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Thomas said...

To Anonymous: It's not a dumb question at all. You can teach English without knowing the student's langauge by using lots of visuals, gestures etc. Sometimes teaching abroad means just providing practice in conversational speaking...so being fluent in English is all you need. But teaching academc English is more invloved and would benefit from some knowledge of the student's language or a native assistant who may have a little English already.

Anonymous said...

Quite a good idea! But that's a joke. The more you avoid paying the student loan the more you will be paying a lot of extra charges. It's hard to have a huge debt nowadays as we are currently facing a very hectic economic uncertainties.

Josh Fulkerson said...

Liz, it doesn't matter how much the student loan accrues while living abroad so long as you never return to the USA. They won't waste their time and money trying to collect internationally.

whidbeydc said...

And even if you come back to visit, if you've become an ex pat you just go back after you visit. Canada has many such people who find life better there then here. And you can teach English without speaking another language as many courses do just that. And you will pick up their language if you ive there for any time. And Josh id right, you are leaving since you cannot pay the debt and it is making you homeless, who cares about fees, the banks will just charge the tax payers anyway. They have been doing that ever since they collapesed the economy. They call it a bailout. Banks get them, American citizens do not.

Anonymous said...

What country can you go to that avoids student loans? Is there a process for this?

Anonymous said...

OKay, I've been paying my student loans for 5 years. since the government shutdown I've lost a ton of hours and realized i haven't save a dime event though i have a good salary job. I worked in Vietnam for almost a year and am seriously thinking of just bailing. I need time to get my career focused more so i can afford these student loans. my private loan servicers will not give me any more time. what can i expect if i bail the country when i return? will they come after me?

Anonymous said...

http://suburbdad.blogspot.com/2010/05/dropouts-with-loans.html

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