Student Loan Debt Policy
I think this needs to interact more consistently with its sources so that it’s clear where the info is coming from. There were long stretches where it was unclear. Also, I think this essay needs an introduction where the audience’s attention is captured better, rather than launching into an immediate discussion of the topic. Please see the attached resource on writing introductions.
Composition1011 Introductions
Their purpose in essays:
1. capture attention
2. reveal subject of essay
3. show writer’s point of view or general direction of essay (thesis)
4. state importance of essay’s topic (why should we care?)
5. give readers a preview of essay’s structure
when to write them
(When do you usually write them? When should you?)
— before writing essay or doing research – something sparked your interest?
— after doing your reading and research – you know what’s more relevant
Doesn’t really matter – be open to writing a new one that fits essay better as you learn more about topic
Also, you might want to write several different types so that you might decide which one fits essay best.
types of them, in general
1. a relevant quotation from a credible person (+ connection to topic)
2. a surprising or startling statistic
3. a series of questions
4. an anecdote relevant to the topic (first part?)
5. a specific example to the topic (first part?)
6. general to specific
The examples that follow are written for a hypothetical student essay – “The Costs of College” – that is about why college has gotten so expensive.
1. a relevant quotation from a credible person (+ connection to topic)
— Who’s a credible person? Someone familiar with costs of college
— What might quote be? That person saying how expensive it’s gotten, how they can’t afford it.
Ex. When Eric Lindholm, a Bayfield, Wisconsin mental health counselor, was helping his daughter start the college selection process he was consistently shocked at how expensive everything has become. “It’s unbelievable, definitely. It’s twenty- or thirty thousand a year, easy. And those aren’t even the really expensive schools. When I was in college I held a part-time job and was able to pay for a bit of it, most of it, but now . . . You have to work full-time just to pay to be a full-time student. People don’t understand. It’s gotten out of control.” His sentiment is shared by many. Though the return on investment in a college education is quite high, the costs of college have gotten out of control primarily because of the significant decreases in state and federal funding of public universities and because of the easy availability of student loans.
2. a surprising or startling statistic
The average cost of a year of college – tuition, books, fees, room and board – in 1980, but in 2018 dollars, was $4377. The actual average cost this year? Just over twenty-two thousand dollars, and that number is still climbing. The costs of college have rapidly outpaced inflation and there’s no end in sight. Though the return on investment in a college education is quite high, the costs of college have gotten out of control primarily because of the significant decreases in state and federal funding of public universities and because of the easy availability of student loans.
3. a series of questions
What does it mean if many employers see a college education as the most basic requirement for any job, no matter how little it pays? What should students think about the rapid, precipitous rise in tuition rates in the last few decades? If college becomes unaffordable but is necessary to achieve the American Dream, then who is that dream really for? Though the return on investment in a college education is quite high, the costs of college have gotten out of control primarily because of the significant decreases in state and federal funding of public universities and because of the easy availability of student loans.
4. an anecdote relevant to the topic (first part?)
My wife and I started our son’s college fund the same year he was born and even with our consistent contributions and the performance of his fund, we’re not sure we’ll be able to afford paying for his school. In fact, our early projections show that we will need to save well over a hundred thousand dollars if college keeps getting more and more expensive. Though his college years a long way in the future, my wife and I don’t know if we’ll be able to save enough for our son to help him get the same education that our parents helped us get. Though the return on investment in a college education is quite high, the costs of college have gotten out of control primarily because of the significant decreases in state and federal funding of public universities and because of the easy availability of student loans.
[In conclusion: There is hope, however, for our family. When projecting the performance of his college fund for his date of graduation, if we don’t change our contribution and if the market still does reasonably well, we should have enough to send him to an in-state public university. But just barely. We know we’re fortunate because we’re planning now.]
5. a specific example to the topic (first part?)
[Same as above, but it’s a specific example that is not about you, the writer.]
6. general to specific
For many American households, the specter of debt is something that is inescapable. For many, it’s their credit card debt. Indeed, our collective credit card is over a trillion dollars. For other families and individuals, it is runaway medical bills that have put them into financial ruin. However, for countless Americans, especially young ones, the most significant source of debt is from student loans taken to afford the all-time high cost of college. Though the return on investment in a college education is quite high, the costs of college have gotten out of control primarily because of the significant decreases in state and federal funding of public universities and because of the easy availability of student loans.
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Note that each of these introductions is written for the same essay. The introduction used is purely up to the writer’s preference.