TSwizzle
Let's Go Brandon!
The WSJ put out an article about the crushing debts incurred by some Fine Arts students at Ivy league schools. Unfortunately the WSJ article is paywalled but the gist of it is covered in the Daily Mail;
DailyMail
WSJ Article paywalled
This system is fucked up.
Interestingly, the WSJ was actually touting FA degrees as being a good thing just a few years ago;
WSJ Article paywalled
Something has to give here. People are being conned out of money and saddled with huge debts.
Students pursuing graduate degrees at some of the nation's most prestigious universities are being slammed with loan debt of up to $200,000, yet most only earn $30,000 two years after graduation. A recent Wall Street journal article detailed the strife students faced in highly competitive programs that leave them financially crippled and wondering if the degree was worth being saddled by six-figure debt. The Wall Street Journal cited Columbia University as one of the main perpetrators of charging inordinate tuition fees and offering little financial help or guidance in return. Recent film graduates had a median debt of $181,000 while making a median income of $30,000 just two years later. 'There's always those 2 a.m. panic attacks where you're thinking, 'How the hell am I ever going to pay this off?' ' said 29-year-old Zack Morrison, of New Jersey, who graduated from Columbia in 2018 with a Master of Fine arts in film. He currently owes about $300,000, including accrued interest, and earns between $30,000 and $50,000 a year as a Hollywood assistant with independent film side gigs. After the Wall Street Journal article was published, Morrison shared it on Facebook and wrote 'I disagree with the notion that masters degrees 'don't pay off' or the idea that the school doesn't provide the necessary training or skills to succeed . . . These loans are the real deal though, but it was a decision I made for myself before starting the program. At the end of the day, I hope this article is read as a criticism of the insane costs of higher education and a gig economy that still pays its workers wages that were set in the 1980's.'
Columbia MFA theater student Brigitte Thieme-Burdette, 31, earned an annual scholarship of $30,000, but still has to borrow $102,000 in federal loans. She is set to graduate in 2022.
Another student, Patrick Clement, 41, was also in the film MFA program and graduated in 2020 with $360,000 in debt. 'As a poor kid and a high-school dropout, there was an attraction to getting an Ivy League master's degree,' he said.
DailyMail
WSJ Article paywalled
This system is fucked up.
Interestingly, the WSJ was actually touting FA degrees as being a good thing just a few years ago;
Think that art school dooms graduates to a life of unemployment? The numbers paint a very different picture.
"Artists can have good careers, earning a middle-class income," says Anthony Carnevale, director of Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce. "And, just as important and maybe more, artists tend to be happy with their choices and lives."
A 2011 report from the center found that the unemployment rate in the first two years for those graduating with bachelor of fine arts degree is 7.8%, dropping to 4.5% for those out of school longer. The median income is $42,000.
WSJ Article paywalled
Something has to give here. People are being conned out of money and saddled with huge debts.