I think if the tone of this was less “I was sold a bill of goods, what do you mean a college degree isn’t a job guarantee?” then people might be able to more rationally see the point about making use of the system that is available for loan forgiveness. It exists for a reason, because sometimes you just can’t afford the payment. Sometimes you get bumped just across a threshold and your income effectively goes DOWN because your raise means you pay so much more on your loan (wanna hear about the single mom who lost all her food stamps, child care assistance, and utility help because she got a promotion from $9 to $10 an hour? Ask me how I know).

Sometimes you don’t want to work like a dog at a job you hate just to pay back money you spent 10 years ago on an education that got you…a job you hate. And maybe it’s the on-the-cusp-of-millenial in me talking when I say: just because you did it, doesn’t mean I have to. We have choices. You chose to follow the rules to the letter. He is choosing to make the rules work for him.

How do we define “gaming the system” or “abuse” or “freeloading?” How is that different from being “savvy” or “smart?”

I am on the public service loan forgiveness program and should have all my $50k-ish debt forgiven in about 6 years. I have made a point of only working at non-profit qualifying employers, toward that end. Am I freeloading by targeting those employers? Or making smart choices? I work at a university with good pay and great benefits. But according to the government I still don’t make enough to have to pay any of my loans back. I didn’t create this system, but I am sure as hell going to understand how to make it work for me.