Close
About
FAQ
Home
Collections
Login
USC Login
Register
0
Selected
Invert selection
Deselect all
Deselect all
Click here to refresh results
Click here to refresh results
USC
/
Digital Library
/
University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses
/
Pay to play: a qualitative study on how the perception of the continued rise in college tuition impacts first-generation, loan-borrowing graduates and their financial well-being
(USC Thesis Other)
Pay to play: a qualitative study on how the perception of the continued rise in college tuition impacts first-generation, loan-borrowing graduates and their financial well-being
PDF
Download
Share
Open document
Flip pages
Contact Us
Contact Us
Copy asset link
Request this asset
Transcript (if available)
Content
Pay to Play: A Qualitative Study on How the Perception of the Continued Rise in College
Tuition Impacts First-Generation, Loan-Borrowing Graduates and Their Financial Well-
Being
Bobby P. Patsios
Rossier School of Education
University of Southern California
A dissertation submitted to the faculty
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Education
May 2023
© Copyright by Bobby P. Patsios 2023
All Rights Reserved
The Committee for Bobby P. Patsios certifies the approval of this Dissertation
Zoë Corwin
Paul Dieken
Sheila Bañuelos, Committee Chair
Rossier School of Education
University of Southern California
2023
iv
Abstract
This study investigated how first-generation, loan-borrowing college graduates from a California
public college or university viewed the continued increase in college tuition and its impact on
their financial well-being. College tuition has continued to increase and outpace the United
States rate of inflation, and the mindfulness of student loans to pay for college has led to debt
issues for individuals, resulting in an awareness of the return on investment associated with a
college education. This study interviewed eight first-generation, loan-borrowing college
graduates to determine how their financial well-being was affected by the sustained increase in
college tuition prior to, during, and after graduation. This study utilized the student financial
well-being model developed by Shim et al.’s (2009). The collected data indicates that
participants questioned the value of attending a traditional 4-year institution and their return on
investment. However, the participants acknowledged the significance of attending college to
advance one's professional career as a critical factor for upward mobility as well as a need for
continued education. The findings provided insight into the determination and sacrifices each
participant's upbringing had on them by being the first in their families to graduate from a United
States institution, as well as how the education affected their perspective on the educational
system.
Keywords: financial well-being, financial literacy, first-generation, student loan debt
v
Dedication
To my parents, this accomplishment is a representation of all the sacrifices you made years ago
when each of you immigrated to the United States for a better life and to live out that American
Dream since you did not have the opportunity to pursue an education. I hope that I made you
both proud in that this triumph is also your achievement.
vi
Acknowledgments
I would first like to express gratitude to my dissertation chair, Dr. Sheila Bañuelos for
being the rock that pushed me through this amazing academic journey and the genuine
admiration you had to see me succeed. We laughed, we cried, and we shared countless stories
through our virtual meetings and each one of those events was a building block towards the
ultimate goal. Through luck and timing, I am privileged to have been the first student you
successfully passed for this EDL program given your role as a chair. In addition, I would also
like to show appreciation for my dissertation committee members, Dr. Zoë Corwin and Dr. Paul
Dieken as you each provided perspectives and industry insights that I had not explored and in
doing so, challenged me to think deeper in this dissertation and for that, I say, thank you.
This study would not have been possible had it not been for the wonderful participants
who shared their personal, emotional, and heart-breaking stories to assist me in this journey. I
hope that I made each of you proud and shined a light to a sensitive topic by humanizing your
story for future researchers. To my fellow classmates, we did this program at a time of
uncertainty and a lot of firsts, but we did so by sticking together as a group whether it was
starting our first year of the doctoral program virtually on Zoom, to walking on campus for the
first time and having class in-person amid the pandemic, to shopping for commencement attire,
this cohort program is what made coming to USC memorable.
Finally, I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge Dr. Nicole Bournias and Dr. Demos
Vardiabasis who have each mentored me academically, personally, and professionally for many
years. I look at where I have been, where I am, and where I plan to be in the future and with each
step, you have each played a vital role in some way and for that, I say ώ and I am now
a part of the club.
vii
Table of Contents
Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... iv
Dedication ....................................................................................................................................... v
Acknowledgments.......................................................................................................................... vi
List of Tables .................................................................................................................................. x
List of Figures ................................................................................................................................ xi
Chapter One: Overview of the Study .............................................................................................. 1
Statement of the Problem .................................................................................................... 3
Purpose and Significance of the Study ............................................................................... 4
Brief Description of the Framework ................................................................................... 5
Brief Description of the Methodology ................................................................................ 6
Key Definitions ................................................................................................................... 7
Federal Student Aid ............................................................................................................ 9
Private Student Loans ....................................................................................................... 10
Federal Grants ................................................................................................................... 10
State Grants ....................................................................................................................... 11
Organization of the Study ................................................................................................. 11
Chapter Two: Review of the Literature ........................................................................................ 13
Background on Financing Education ................................................................................ 13
The Cost of College Tuition in Relation to the Rate of Inflation ..................................... 15
First-Generation Students and the Challenges of College ................................................ 20
The Unsuspected Consequences of Student Debt ............................................................. 28
Generational Shift ............................................................................................................. 34
Framework Models ........................................................................................................... 35
Summary ........................................................................................................................... 37
viii
Chapter Three: Methodology ........................................................................................................ 39
Research Design ................................................................................................................ 39
Site and Participation Selection ........................................................................................ 40
Sampling and Recruiting ................................................................................................... 41
Data Collection ................................................................................................................. 42
Qualitative Design ............................................................................................................ 45
Data Analysis .................................................................................................................... 46
Researcher’s Background and Biases ............................................................................... 47
Credibility and Trustworthiness ........................................................................................ 48
Conclusion ........................................................................................................................ 49
Chapter Four: Findings ................................................................................................................. 50
Description of the Participants .......................................................................................... 50
Qualitative Findings .......................................................................................................... 56
Other Findings .................................................................................................................. 69
Summary ........................................................................................................................... 72
Chapter Five: Final Discussion and Recommendations ............................................................... 73
Discussion ......................................................................................................................... 74
Limitations ........................................................................................................................ 78
Recommendations ............................................................................................................. 79
Conclusion ........................................................................................................................ 84
Chapter Six: Epilogue ................................................................................................................... 85
References ..................................................................................................................................... 86
List of Figures ............................................................................................................................. 102
Appendix A: Screening Questionnaire ....................................................................................... 105
Appendix B: Recruitment E-mail to Participants ....................................................................... 110
ix
Appendix C: Recruitment Flyer .................................................................................................. 111
Appendix D: Information Sheet .................................................................................................. 112
Appendix E: Interview Protocol ................................................................................................. 114
Questions......................................................................................................................... 114
Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 114
College Experience ......................................................................................................... 115
Closing ............................................................................................................................ 116
Appendix F: Screening Questionnaire Results ........................................................................... 117
x
List of Tables
Table 1: Demographic Background on Each Participant .............................................................. 51
Table 2: Age Range of Each Participant ....................................................................................... 68
Table F1: How Did You Primarily Finance Your Education?.....................................................117
Table F2: The Amount of Student Loan Debt…………………………………………………...118
Table F3: Ethnicity of Each Participant…………………………………………………………119
Table F4: Highest Level of Education That Was Completed………………………………...….119
Table F5: The Year Each Participant Graduated from Their Most Recent Institution……….…120
Table F6: Public California Institutions the Participant Recently Completed……….…………120
Table F7: Qualify for the Student Loan Relief……………………………………………….…121
Table F8: Currently Employed……………………………………………………………….…121
Table F9: Current Employment Structure………………………………………………………122
xi
List of Figures
Figure 1: Student Financial Well-Being Model ............................................................................ 36
Figure 2: Average Annual Tuition, Fees, Housing Costs .......................................................... 102
Figure 3: Consumer Price Index: 12-Month Percentage Change ............................................... 103
Figure 4: College Tuition Versus Inflation ................................................................................. 104
1
Chapter One: Overview of the Study
In California, higher education is a crucial driver of economic growth and individual
opportunity. Recent investments and initiatives have helped increase postsecondary enrollment,
graduation rates, and the number of degrees awarded (Johnson et al., 2014). From 2008 to 2018,
California spending per student increased by 2.8% amid the recession, yet during that same
period of time, tuition at public 4-year colleges in California has increased by 68.5% (Mitchell et
al., 2019). Parents feel obligated to send their children to college, yet the only way to give them
that opportunity is to pay for it; the demand for higher education propels one to navigate the
bewildering maze of financial policies and programs run by the government, financial firms, and
universities (Zaloom, 2019). With tuition prices increasing in the United States and students
taking on increased debt, there is a concern that one’s socioeconomic status is in jeopardy.
Currently, a third of college enrollees in the United States are first-generation college
students; students whose parents do not have a bachelor’s degree or higher and who tend to be
from lower-income families and are often non-traditional students (Gonzalez-Lavery, 2022).
First-generation college graduates are not on equal footing with their peers who have college-
educated parents (Fry, 2021) since first-generation students often work during their college years
yet tend to graduate with more student debt. With cultural barriers and a heavy burden of
responsibilities, first-generation college students are often limited in the classes they can take
because of work and family responsibilities (Gonzalez-Lavery, 2022). Moreover, after college,
first-generation students may lack professional networks and expertise and often end up with a
heavy debt burden without the corresponding benefit of the higher wage potential afforded by a
college degree (Gonzalez-Lavery, 2022). Given these factors, Fry (2021) highlights that first-
2
generation college graduates are more likely to incur education debt than those with college-
educated parents given the continued rise in college tuition.
After World War II, the American Dream of upward social mobility through arduous
work and education was very much feasible through sacrifice, risk-taking, and hard work
(Barone, 2022). As Maldonado (2018) explains, the baby boomers and Generation X groups
were able to work their way through college and graduate with little to no debt, but nowadays,
there is a tremendous disconnect between the rising costs of education and the flattening of
wages, which is only making it harder for graduates to make ends meet while paying back
staggering amounts of college student loans. Higher education has long been viewed as the key
to higher earnings and financial security. As such, Preston (2019) highlights those wages
climbed for college graduates in the 1970s and 80s, yet within the last four decades, real wages
have hardly shifted and most of the wage growth that has occurred has gone to the highest
earners, accentuating America’s economic polarization.
While tuition prices have exponentially increased for a public 4-year university, the
median household income has not. Thus, there is a tremendous disconnect between the rising
costs of education and the flattening of wages, making it harder for graduates to make ends meet
while paying back staggering amounts of student loans (Maldonado, 2018). To afford a
university's tuition, a student typically applies for financial aid support, scholarships in the form
of needs and merit-based incentives, and Pell Grants. However, according to the National
Association of Colleges and University Business Officers (NACUBO), Pell Grant recipients
graduate with higher median debt than their higher-income peers (NACUBO, 2021). As Wong
(2021) shares, most students who graduate with debt are from low-income backgrounds where
73% of graduates with any federal loans have also received a Pell Grant; low-income graduates
3
who used Pell graduates have about $4,500 more in debt than other graduates. Moreover, the
value of Pell Grants has declined relative to college costs (NACUBO, 2021), so even with the
United States Federal Government subsidizing aid to low-income individuals, the hopes of
earning a college degree and transitioning into the middle-income are still a challenge.
Furthermore, at its peak, the maximum Pell Grant covered 75% of the cost of tuition, room, and
board for students attending public 4-year colleges, a share that has fallen to just 28% today
(Wong 2021).
Statement of the Problem
This study addressed the problem of students are graduating college with an excessive
amount of student loan debt that takes years and even decades to repay, thereby creating a
downward trajectory of upward mobility. Deep cuts in state funding for higher education paved
the way for significant tuition increases and pushed more of the costs of college onto students
(Dickler & Nova, 2022). Furthermore, tuition accounts for about half of public college revenue;
as of a few decades ago, that was not the case. Previously, tuition made up only a quarter of
revenue for public colleges while the state and local governments picked up the rest. Adjusting
for inflation, Dickler and Nova (2022) state that in the 30 years between 1991–1992 and 2021–
2022, average tuition prices more than doubled, increasing to $10,740 from $4,160 at public 4-
year colleges. This research was not limited to only those who graduated college but also those
individuals who attended but did not complete their undergraduate studies because those
individuals who also took out student loans are classified as having to pay back loans. As the
average Californian owes approximately $37,084 in student loan debt (Galloway, 2022), these
figures are likely to continue to trend upward with the continuously rising tuition.
4
Purpose and Significance of the Study
This qualitative research study attempted to understand how much academic financial
literacy knowledge first-generation college graduates have after attending a higher educational
institution, given the continued rise in college tuition over the rate of inflation. This study
evaluated the subjective tipping point to where a diminished aspirational status in California has
become an unattainable reality after having earned academic degrees. A goal of this study was to
determine how to raise awareness of the student loan repayment process and how defaulting on a
loan could potentially cause significant long-term challenges to a person’s identity. This research
study was guided by the research question, how do first-generation college graduates, with
student loans from a public college or university in California, perceive the continued rise of
college tuition and its impact on their financial well-being?
This study sought to shed more light on a student’s decision to attend college from a
financial well-being perspective. In the United States, legislation such as the GI Bill, the
National Defense Education Act, and the Higher Education Act of 1965, paved the way for
greater college access while enrollment increased while the costs of attending remained low
(Dickler & Nova, 2022). However, deep cuts in state funding for higher education paved the way
for significant tuition increases, which resulted in the costs to be pushed down onto the college
students; for those first-generation students, whose economic background is already challenged
financially, these decisions magnified greater access and affordability issues when pursuing a
college education. Furthermore, Dickler and Nova (2022) highlight that earned wages have not
kept up with the rate of inflation as household incomes have remained stagnant. Once families
hit their federal student loan limits, they often tend to turn to private financing to be able to send
their children off to college.
5
Brief Description of the Framework
Education has played a vital role in the history, politics, and economics of American
society. Over time, the college degree has developed into a type of currency and has become a
key to individual economic prosperity (Pitre, 2004). The framework that shaped this research is
Shim et al.’s (2009) student financial well-being model.
Recent studies have found that a growing number of college students are finding
themselves financially at risk because they misuse and mismanage their credit card debt to pay
for college. These actions have become alarming because college students’ financial well-being
is known to be negatively correlated with academic progress and health (Shim et al., 2009). Shim
et al.’s (2009) student financial well-being model will serve as the framework for this research
study. The results of this conceptual model’s examination of financial well-being consider three
domains that support this model:
1. Socialization agents and personal values.
2. Financial knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, and well-being.
3. Overall life success.
The center of the framework examines young people's financial well-being which includes debt,
its relation to financial satisfaction, financial worries, and coping (Shim et al., 2009). The
primary focus of the research stemmed from the financial domain surrounding the knowledge,
attitudes, behaviors, and well-being within the model. According to Garcia-Mata and Zeron-
Felix (2022) financial well-being is
A state of being wherein a person can fully meet current and ongoing financial
obligations, can feel secure in their financial future, and is able to make choices that
6
allow them to enjoy life” such as those decisions surrounding one’s decision to attend
college. (p. 148)
Understanding financial well-being with the goal of improving one’s economic status is an
important endeavor for individuals and their families (Fan & Henager, 2022), yet some measures
can be used to predict an individual’s judgment about their financial condition (Prawitz et al.,
2006) when debt challenges arise. Iramani and Lutfi (2021) state that financial well-being
provides a framework that is influenced by financial knowledge, financial status, financial
experience, demographic factors, locus of control, and financial behaviors in understanding
financial well-being. With the continued increase in college tuition for first-generation students,
financial literacy enables one to evaluate the investment made for the future, as opposed to
becoming trapped in excessive dept that causes financial difficulties (Iramani & Lutfi, 2021) as
higher education has historically been framed as a vehicle for upward mobility.
Brief Description of the Methodology
To understand how the financial well-being of first-generation college graduates perceive
the continued rise in college tuition, a qualitative research approach was implemented. As
Lochmiller and Lester (2017) describe, qualitative research encompasses multiple methods that
typically seek to understand social life. The ultimate purpose of qualitative research is to gain an
understanding of the process and meaning surrounding the human experience and to
communicate the findings to others who are interested in that setting (Patton, 2002). In this
study, I interviewed eight graduates from a public college or university in California who fit the
criteria of being first-generation and student loan borrowers.
7
Key Definitions
The following section will reflect key terms that are referenced in the study as well as a
historical timeline about financial aid.
Financial well-being is a state of being wherein a person can fully meet current and
ongoing financial obligations, can feel secure in their financial future, and is able to make
choices that allow them to enjoy life (United Healthcare Services, 2022).
First-generation students are categorized simply as those who are the first in their family
to attend college where students come from families where their biological parents did not
complete a 4-year college degree. This leaves room for parents who may have attended some
college but did not complete it (National Association of Student Personnel Administrators
[NASPA], 2022).
The following terms provide a historical context as to the evolution of the student loan
process in the United States and are organized in chronological order:
The Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 provided World War II veterans with funds
for college education, unemployment insurance, and housing. This put higher education within
the reach of millions of veterans of World War II and later military conflicts (National Archives,
2022). Currently, the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944 has commonly been known as the
G.I. Bill.
National Defense Education Act of 1958 became one of the most successful legislative
initiatives in higher education, which established the legitimacy of federal funding for higher
education and made substantial funds available for low-cost student loans, boosting public and
private colleges and universities (United States Senate, 2022). Furthermore, although aimed
primarily at education in science, mathematics, and foreign languages, the act also helped expand
8
college libraries and other services for all students. The funding began in 1958 and was increased
over the next several years. The results were notable given that in 1960, there were 3.6 million
students in college, and by 1970 there were 7.5 million; many of them got their college education
only because of the availability of National Defense Education Act loans (United States Senate,
2022).
Higher Education Act of 1965 addressed the need for additional higher education
opportunities for lower and middle-income families, program assistance for small and less
developed colleges, additional and improved library resources at higher education institutions,
and utilization of college and university resources to help deal with national problems, such as
poverty and community development (Pell, 2022). In addition, this provided the strengthening
and educational resources of institutions to provide financial assistance for students in
postsecondary and higher education.
Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is a form completed by current and
prospective college students in the United States to determine their eligibility for student
financial aid. Currently, there are more than 17.6 million FAFSA forms processed each year
resulting in approximately $112 billion worth of funding (Financial Student Aid, 2022a) for
United States citizens and eligible noncitizens including those who are refugees, asylum granted,
parolees, or victims of human trafficking with T-visa (Financial Student Aid, 2022b).
Higher Education Reauthorization Act of 1972 is best known for its Title IX attributes,
which prohibited discrimination based on sex in educational institutions receiving federal aid
(Department of Justice, 2022).
9
Federal Student Aid
The United States Department of Education has two federal loan programs: the William
D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program and the Federal Perkins Loan Program (Federal Student
Aid, 2022). Under these programs, the United States Department of Education is the lender and
there are a few types of loans available.
Direct Subsidized Loans
Loans are made to eligible undergraduate students who demonstrate financial need to
help cover the cost of higher education at a college or career school.
Direct Unsubsidized Loans
Loans are made to eligible undergraduate, graduate, and professional students; the
student does not have to demonstrate financial need to be eligible for the loan.
Direct PLUS Loans
These are loans made to graduate professionals’ students and parents of dependent
undergraduate students to help pay for education expenses not covered by other financial aid.
Direct Consolidation Loans
These allow students to combine all eligible federal student loans into a single loan with a
single loan servicer and will have a fixed interest rate. The fixed interest rate is determined by
the weighted average of the interest rates on the loans being consolidated; the average is rounded
up to the nearest one-eighth of 1% and there is no cap on the interest rate (Financial Student Aid,
2022c).
Federal Work-Study Program
An employment program that encourages students with low expected family
contributions to find part-time work while pursuing their studies. The program allows the federal
10
government to subsidize a student's employer by paying around half of the student's wages up to
a certain amount. Students do not need to have Federal Work-Study to work but some university
or non-profit positions may require a student to have Federal Work-Study to be employed within
their department (Financial Student Aid, 2022a). Programs such as this allow an undergraduate
student to be paid at least the current federal minimum hourly wage to offset other academic-
related educational expenses.
Private Student Loans
In addition to federal student loans where there is a fixed interest rate, private loans are
also available from private companies but have flexible interest rates that are often higher than
those of federal loans (National Center for Education Statistics [NCES], 2022). According to the
NCES (2022a), the largest group of private loan borrowers are those students who have already
borrowed the maximum amount of federal loans for a given period and are still in need of
educational finance, because they may have already borrowed the maximum amount from the
federal government via FAFSA or they are not a United States citizen.
Federal Grants
This program provides need-based grants to low-income undergraduate and certain post-
baccalaureate students to promote access to postsecondary education. A Federal Pell Grant,
unlike a loan, does not have to be repaid. The amount awarded depends on one's financial needs,
cost to attend school, status as a full-time or part-time student, and plans to attend school for a
full academic year or less (Financial Student Aid, 2022a).
Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant (FSEOG)
This type of federal grant is awarded to college undergraduate program students and does
not have to be repaid. A student awarded with the FSEOG is given an award between $100 and
11
$4,000 per year depending on the gravity of the person's financial aid needs (Financial Student
Aid, 2022a).
Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH)
This is different from other federal student grants because it requires you to agree to
complete a teaching service obligation as a condition for receiving the grant, and if you do not
complete the service obligation, the TEACH Grant will be converted to a loan that you must
repay, with interest. The qualifications for this grant are for a full-time highly qualified teacher
for four elementary or secondary school years at a school or educational service agency that
serves low-income students who may also be teaching in a high-need field (Financial Student
Aid, 2022a).
State Grants
In addition to federal grants, the California Student Aid Commission [CSAC] (2022),
administers three kinds of California (Cal) Grants, A, B, and C. All undergraduate aid applicants
who are residents of California are required to apply. Cal Grant A provides funds for partial
tuition and fees. Cal Grant B recipients receive a subsistence award the first year and receive a
subsistence award and tuition award in subsequent years. Cal Grant C assists with the costs of a
technical or career education limited for up to 2 years (CSAC, 2022).
Organization of the Study
This research study consists of six chapters. In Chapter One, the topic is introduced and
the main research questions, statement of the problem, the purpose and significance of the study,
a brief description of the theoretical framework and methodology, as well as key definitions are
given. In Chapter Two, the relevant literature surrounding the connection between the study and
the framework is reviewed. In Chapter Three, the methodology of the qualitative study is
12
described, and the research methods are provided including the population, instruments, data
collection, and limitations of the study. In Chapter Four, the findings are presented by the
research questions that guided the research. Chapter Five discusses the findings, implications,
future research, and recommendations while Chapter Six highlights my perspective as an
epilogue.
13
Chapter Two: Review of the Literature
The literature review for this study examines the continued rise in college tuition and how
this may factor into the lack of financial literacy for a first-generation students’ future in
California. The first chapter surrounds the background and historical perspective of how students
have been able to finance their education through available resources provided. The review
explores the cost of college tuition in relation to the rate of inflation within the last generation
and the importance of attending a higher education institution, along with the overall return on
investment. Then, the review transitions to the unseen dimensions and hurdles first-generation
students may encounter during their academic and professional journeys. Also, the review
examines the unsuspected consequences of student debt, the repayment of student loans and its
impact on college graduates. The review closes by exploring the student financial well-being
model framework (Shim et al., 2009) where concepts of financial knowledge, attitudes, norms,
behaviors, and debt, are applied to the study.
The purpose of this chapter is to provide a comprehensive overview of the literature
while contextualizing the background for answering the primary research question, how do first-
generation college graduates, with student loans from a public college or university in California,
perceive the continued rise of college tuition and its impact on their financial well-being?
This study sought to shed more light on a student’s decision to attend college from a financial
well-being perspective, post-graduate perspective, given that student loan debt is a key concern
for many and can create a barrier in the process.
Background on Financing Education
This section will focus on the financing of student education in the United States.
According to Wadia (2019), when referring to college tuition, there is an upward trend of college
14
tuition which is ultimately impacting the rise in student loans and debt. To get a better
understanding of why this is happening, I reviewed the first federal student loan and grant
programs that were established and how it has fueled the current rising tuition costs. There is no
doubt that higher education leads to a higher level of income earned over a lifetime, but
consistently rising tuition increases and what some call predatory lending, are making it
impossible for students to see positive long-term impacts by their choice to pursue a college
education. According to Wadia (2019), approximately 60% of students attending college must
take out loans to pay for their college education. Despite recent federal efforts to keep interest
rates low for student loans, these efforts do not address the basic challenges of growing
educational costs and long-term debt.
Given the soaring costs in higher education, reductions in the availability of grants that
cover college expenses, and the increasing number of students attending colleges, Americans are
carrying historically high student loan debt burdens. Student loan debts have grown over the past
decade in the United States, whereas university tuition and fees have also increased, but at a
disproportionately higher rate when compared to inflation, while federal grants have not kept
pace with increasing costs (Sherman, 2020). Unfortunately, students from low-to-moderate-
income households or first-generation students need more information and financial literacy to
make informed decisions about college and student loans than other groups. A recent survey
from PricewaterhouseCoopers indicated that 45% of millennials and 42% of Gen X respondents
felt that their student loan debt was negatively affecting their ability to achieve their post college
financial goals (Kim & Chatterjee, 2019). These numbers indicate these college graduates may
have a larger than expected student loan debt, which could be impacting their ability to reach
their financial goals.
15
According to the United States Federal Reserve (2021), borrowers who were first-
generation college students were more likely to be behind on their payments than those with a
parent who completed college. Among borrowers under age 40, first-generation college students
were about three times as likely to be behind on their payments as those with a parent who
completed a bachelor’s degree. Financial anxiety among first-generation students has received
limited attention from scholars, but important insights have been drawn from previous work that
has been conducted. Research has shown that first-generation students receive less monetary
support from parents, and instead tend to receive higher funding from scholarships, grants, loans,
and other external sources of funding (Potter et al., 2020). Furthermore, this research by Potter et
al. (2020) suggests that first-generation students, on average, rely more heavily on loans than
other sources of financing, and they believe that college is affordable using debt. According to
Festa et al. (2019), financial-aid forms were formatted in a way that makes interest rates more
accessible and salient as students tended to accept fewer high-cost private loans and work more
during their college years. Results indicate that minor revisions in financial-aid documentation
can have a significant impact on students' financial-aid choices in how financial information is
disclosed at the outset to reduce the impact and magnitude of loans students take out. In addition,
the study by Festa et al. (2019) describes those working in the fields of higher education and
financial counseling and planning can use this information to further educate borrowers before
the encumbrance of student loan debt through financial literacy programs and the disclosure of
pertinent information earlier on during a college student experience.
The Cost of College Tuition in Relation to the Rate of Inflation
This section will focus on the correlation between the rising costs of college tuition at a
4-year public institution relative to the rate of inflation related to the cost of living in the United
16
States within the last generation. In addition, I will explore the value of higher education and the
payoffs of attending.
The Importance of Attending Higher Education
The ability of an individual to earn a college degree is such an essential step in life that it
has become a central part of the American Dream. Loveless (2021) describes achieving the
American Dream as an individual who goes to college, gets a job, buys a house, and raises a
family. However, the process of raising a family, purchasing a home, and having a job, may not
always be that simple, but it all starts with a college education. College prepares you both
intellectually and socially for your career and adult life, but one of the fundamental questions is,
at what cost? Nietzel (2020) of Forbes, suggests that by age 33, the typical 4-year college
graduate who enrolls at age 18 and graduates in 4 years can expect to earn enough compared to a
high school graduate to make up for being out of the labor force for 4 years and for borrowing
the costs of full tuition, fees, books, and supplies without any grant aid. The benefits of a college
degree can increase one’s access to job opportunities, earning potential, provide economic
stability, and an improved self-esteem (Joubert, 2020).
Tuition Prices
According to the NCES, the average cost of attending a 4-year college or university in the
United States rose by 497% between the 1985–1986 and 2017–2018 academic years, more than
twice the rate of inflation (Sherman, 2020). Within the last 20 years, the cost has tripled with an
annual growth rate of 6.8% (Hanson, 2022). Paying for college is expensive, and families have
felt the pinch of rising tuition costs over time (Powell et al., 2020). According to the National
Information Center for Higher Education Policymaking and Analysis (2018), families in
California spend 17.8% of their annual income to pay for a public, 4-year higher institution.
17
Today’s college students face significantly higher costs than past generations at California’s
public universities, with not only an increase in tuition but also food and housing that typically
accompanies a student’s educational journey (Rose, 2019). Beginning with the academic school
year 1979–1980, the price of tuition and fees at California State University (CSU) was $500; in
the academic school year 2018–2019, tuition and fees rose more than 1,360% to $7,300. During
the same timeframe, the University of California (UC) system saw an increase of 554% from
$2,200 in 1979–1980 to $14,400 in 2018–2019. Some have argued that the increase in college
tuition is attributed to the loss of state funding (Campos, 2015) while others, such as California
Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO, 2020) on education suggest salaries, pensions, and campus
facilities upgrades, contribute to the rise in college tuition and higher prices. Additionally,
Stebbins (2022) states the cost of living in California is 42.2% higher on average nationwide
where consumer factors included: housing, healthcare, utilities, and transportation.
Value of Tuition via Services
In being able to justify the higher costs of tuition, Scott (2019) shares that one way to
appreciate the cost structure of American higher education is to compare it to universities in
other countries. United States institutions spend more on student housing, student clubs,
organizations, and student wellness services than elsewhere. Student services in United States
colleges and universities tend to be comprised of out-of-class experiences that make up the
holistic college experience, such as residential living, student activities, career services, and
student athletics. However, in many other countries, there is a public commitment to support
higher education tuition through taxation. Currently, in Europe, the European University College
Association (Euca), comprising of 14 countries, has instituted a core business aspect of student
affairs to create an experience that enhances the growth of students and engages in active
18
learning (Euca, 2022). This process of student affairs grew in the United States from the campus
experience where the focus is on the control of the student as opposed to modern philosophy
which focuses on the development of the student but has always connected those interested in the
welfare of students. Furthermore, resources such as these are tailored for specific populations,
such as commuter students or first year students, and go in the perspectives of social inclusion,
and cross-cultural communication to involve the students in their communities and to give them
all the tools to develop their talents and discover their passions.
Return on Investment
Throughout one’s lifetime, the median return on investment (ROI) for earning a
bachelor’s degree is more than 287%, but within the first 10 years, as Hanson (2021) describes,
the ROI is -41.1%. Hanson (2021) continues to discuss that bachelor’s degree holders do not
begin to see returns until they have worked full-time for upwards of 15 years. However, most
students attend college to get a better job with a higher salary; but the financial returns to college
vary widely depending on the institution a student attends and the field of study. While
undergraduate prospective students often ask themselves whether college is worth it, the more
important question is how they can make college worth it (Cooper, 2021).
Inflationary Pricing
Inflation is the decline of purchasing power of a given currency over time; an increase in
the supply of money is the root of inflation (Fernando, 2022) and the most used method in
tracking inflation is the consumer price index (CPI). The CPI measures the average change over
time in the prices paid by urban consumers for a market basket of consumer goods and services
such as utility, automotive fuel, and food items (United States Bureau of Labor Statistics
[USBLS], 2021). With tuition prices increasing exponentially as fast as the cost of living, since
19
1980, college tuition inflation has increased by 1,184% while during that same timeframe, the
United States inflation rose 228%; the disparity between these statistics yields less education for
your buck (USBLS, 2021) resulting in an unbalanced equilibrium that cannot provide a
supporting outlook for young individuals. Sackstein (2019) suggests that the single biggest driver
of rising college tuition for public colleges by far has been declining state funding. States must
find cuts somewhere to balance their budgets. State budget builders know that colleges can get
away with steep increases, so college support has been reduced. As the price of college tuition
has become inflated, a good rule of thumb is that tuition rates will increase at about twice the
general inflation rate. On average, tuition tends to increase about 8% per year; thereby, the cost
of college doubles every 9 years (FinAid, 2021).
In 2019, according to the California Budget & Policy Center, students in prior
generations were able to work moderate hours and attend school full-time, graduating on time
and with little to no student debt. Today, students face a much different scenario, with
significantly higher total costs of attendance, primarily due to rising housing costs (Rose, 2019).
Since 2021, home values in Los Angeles County have gone up more than 17% and are expected
to rise into the next year (Santarelli, 2023) while the median home price in Southern California
has risen by double digits for the 18 months in a row.
Attempts to restrict costs are not likely to succeed overall without better data and a
deeper understanding of cost drivers (Johnson et al., 2014), mainly because the restriction on
increasing tuition is not accompanied by enrollment expectations; the state’s public universities
have a fiscal incentive to restrict enrollment or increase out-of-state enrollment. As United States
colleges and universities had been experiencing an increase of one million international students
studying in the United States, a 40% increase from a decade prior, Loudenback (2016)
20
highlighted that international students had been subsidizing public American universities to
approximately $9 billion annually which was about 28% of annual tuition revenue coming from
foreign students, who had been an average of just 12% of the student population in the United
States. However, with the COVID-19 global pandemic, United States higher education
institutions had seen an immediate drop off in the early months of the pandemic, but Knox
(2022) saw a 46% drop in new international students in the 2020-2021 academic year.
Nevertheless, Hew (2023) highlights that international students are returning to the United
States, in enrollment numbers that gradually reflect what it was prior to the pandemic.
First-Generation Students and the Challenges of College
This area will explore the unseen dimensions and hurdles first-generation students may
encounter during their academic journey. Being upwardly mobile can come at a cost, resulting in
complicated relationships with their family, friends, and community in exploring the
consequential blind spots that affect students.
Preparation
In preparing for college, first-generation college students and their families remain
unaware of the full cost of attending college. Additional expenses beyond the cost of tuition may
include the cost of textbooks, school supplies, housing, food and a meal plan, transportation,
basic living supplies, and social activities to name a few (Financial Student Aid, 2022d). Wood
(2019) believes that as a country, academic institutions have not done enough to prepare students
and their families for making that illustrious decision to attend college and what factors students
should consider in the decision-making process. Furthermore, these decisions may lead to
emotional decisions for students (Wood, 2019). Not only do individuals struggle with student
loans, but students also face problems with paying off their credit card bills. According to a
21
survey (Wood, 2019), 36% of students already have more than $1,000 in credit card debt and do
not have enough money to pay off their debts or are not fully aware of the consequences of
leaving bills unpaid. The study found that students’ low financial literacy levels result from little
to no fiscal education within the K–12 school system.
According to a survey of college students conducted by Burkhard and Madden (2019) of
the American International Group (AIG) managing money remains the most daunting challenge
for college students and their behavior can be explained by a lack of financial literacy or
knowledge. The survey results by Burkhard and Madden (2019) also revealed that students are
feeling unprepared to oversee their financial matters and this burden heavily weighs on their
minds. Furthermore, in this same study, college students cited several significant financial
concerns including whether they would have enough money to last the semester, fear of tuition
rising, and most prevalent, being able to land a job after graduation. In addition, the survey
discovered that the financial stress of not being prepared for college can be reduced if a student
had a plan in place to pay off their educational loans, develop a better understanding of their loan
repayment options, or by having a clearer picture of their total amount owed across loan
borrowers.
First-generation college students in the United States may not realize what goes into
attending college as students are overly concerned with the cost of college and the fiscal impact
on their families (Keon, 2019). Students work part-time jobs to help support their educational
expenses, such as purchasing textbooks for class. However, as Keon (2019) further describes,
beyond one’s academic aspirations, life must be taken into consideration, such as the need for
one to purchase a car; the expense of a car loan and maintenance can begin taking precedence
over a student’s budget in the goal of earning a college degree. With college expenses and the
22
Consumer Price Index of food and housing increasing, moving from a part-time job to full-time
employment leads to work becoming more important than college, and in doing so, academic
course grades and enrollment in college can become less of a priority (Keon, 2019). Standlee
(2019) suggests providing appropriate support to first-generation students with resources such as
providing access to basic health care and self-care is important; offering campus work
opportunities, food pantries and free toiletries can also be essential to success. In addition,
encouraging the use of used, renting, or low-cost textbooks and providing a credit account at the
bookstore can help. Finally, Standlee (2019) describes establishing a career clothing bank for
interviews and training students on what to expect at a job interview can help them move from
college to work after graduation.
Research shows college students are less likely to make responsible decisions when it
comes to managing their educational loans. According to a report by Bidwell (2015), students
surveyed were less likely to say that they had plans to pay off their loans, make on-time
payments, consolidate their loans, or be able to understand the benefits of the federal loan
forgiveness program. In today’s environment, Hair (2015) describes students in college are far
less likely to pay their credit card bills, create, and stick to a budget, put money into savings, or
even track their credit score. The lack of financial literacy can lead to several pitfalls, such as
accumulating unsustainable debt burdens, either through poor spending decisions or a lack of
long-term preparation (Fernando, 2023) which can then lead to poor credit, bankruptcy, housing
foreclosure, or other negative consequences. According to Fernando (2023), low financial
literacy has left millennials, the largest share of the American workforce, unprepared for a severe
financial crisis; more than half lack an emergency fund to cover 3 months’ expenses. In addition,
23
millennials also carry substantial amounts of student loan and mortgage debt, in fact, 44% state
that they have too much debt (Bolognesi et al., 2020).
A student’s background can also play a vital role in how they approach money (Hair,
2015), and for first-generation students even more implications for their long-term financial
stability. Phil Schuman, an administrator at Indiana University’s financial literacy program
describes that the sheer magnitude of student loans can have a Monopoly money effect on
students, where the loan amount is too high to register as being real as most students who are
coming to school have never dealt with thousands of dollars in their life; the new student signs
on the dotted line to receive money for their education, but do not really understand what paying
that back will mean (Hair, 2015). Furthermore, Schuman continues to describe that students
coming to school these days have never dealt with thousands of dollars in their lives to help fund
their education, but do not fully grasp what paying that back will mean (Hair, 2015).
Dropping Out
When students head off to college, few think about the possibility of dropping out. This
phenomenon of college dropout, as Aina et al. (2021) describe, is composed of students who did
not complete a bachelor’s program within the theoretical duration of the institution’s policy.
According to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center (Moody, 2019), 58% of
students graduate within 6 years. However, about 42% of college dropouts cite financial reasons
for leaving school, outweighing the percentage of students who left for family commitments
(32%) and health reasons (15%; Giovanetti, 2022). Additionally, Stephens and Townsend (2019)
of Politico state in a recent survey that 9% of college students in the United States do not have
reliable housing. Remarkably half of this population report experiencing anxiety around food
insecurity, yet even when universities work to address these challenges, social class achievement
24
gaps persist. Compared with peers from middle- and upper-class families, students from
working-class families, those who are low-income or the first in their families to attend college,
struggle while in college. Stephens and Townsend (2019) continue to highlight that even the
most highly qualified working-class students drop out more often than their middle and upper-
class peers. In addition, Baum and O’Malley (2003) describe that 40% of students with student
loan debt end up dropping out or transferring to a lower-cost institution given the loan debt.
Furthermore, since education is a powerful engine of social mobility, this persistent achievement
gap means that the American Dream remains out of reach for far too many individuals. To
alleviate this dropout rate, early detection and corrective action are critical to keeping students in
college who are teetering on the edge of dropping out.
However, arguments against this notion suggest that the rise in tuition is not the main
cause of a student dropping out of college. Gold (2019) of the Chicago Booth Review states that
there is a difference in the retention rate in comparing nonprofit and for-profit colleges. For
example, there is evidence that some for-profit colleges aggressively market themselves to
nontraditional students; in these cases, some campuses may experience disproportionately
enrolling higher-risk borrowers and as such, disproportionately enrolling higher-risk borrowers
thereby burdening students with more debt (Gold, 2019). High-risk borrowers are those who
need quick cash typically used in emergency circumstances to pay off student loans (Pew
Charitable Trusts, 2020) where the interest and penalty for nonpayment can be excessive. In this
instance, a payday loan is a type of short-term borrowing where a lender will extend high interest
credit based on the student’s income (Webber, 2022). Gold (2019) describes nontraditional
students as being older than 25 who are often the first in their families to attend college who tend
25
to have lower family incomes than typical college students and are disproportionately women,
single parents, and likely to be Hispanic or African American.
Students who are evaluating which college or university to attend are counting on the
institution to be truthful in the services that they promote to prospective candidates. However,
according to the United States Secretary of Education, Dr. Miguel Cardona, that is not always the
case as students have been misled into student loans at institutions that could not deliver what
they promised; students at for-profit institutions were misled into loans for services, and thus
claiming graduates who actively seek employment obtained a job within 6 months of graduation,
but in reality, that was not the case (Nova, 2022). The job placement was not that of what
institutions were claiming. According to Hall (2021), students who enroll in for-profit colleges
may be less concerned with building close relationships with faculty or having library access
than they are with making a rational choice to increase their marketability. A primary driver of
students to the for-profit college industry is credentialism in the way a college degree signals to
employers that a candidate is worthy, as opposed to signaling that the candidate is trained in a
particular skill. However, in instances where a student enrolled in a credentialed institution (e.g.,
nursing) is unable to finish their degree and drops out because the institution is unable to secure a
clinical placement, the student loan repayment phase begins (Hall, 2021). These factors have
contributed to the academic challenges that students face while in college.
COVID-19
In addition to the enrollment, dropout, and post-graduation barriers and challenges
students experience, the coronavirus pandemic has placed an unexpected financial burden on
college students in their outlook given their remote learning college experiences. According to
Dickler and Nova (2022), 13.3 million undergraduate students said the coronavirus has changed
26
how they feel about their financial future; students are not getting the same value for the amount
they are paying for and believe that the pandemic will make it difficult for one to get a job. In
addition, in 1980, about a third of young adults were financially independent by age 22 or even
younger; by 2018, that number dropped to just a quarter. The difference can be attributed, in part,
to overwhelming student debt, which has become one of the major obstacles to financial
independence for this generation (Dickler & Nova, 2022).
First-generation and low-income college students have become burdened with the
struggle to pay expensive college fees for a virtual education while being separated from on-
campus resources and in-person support from students and faculty (Ed, 2021). Although these
services have remained to continue to be available online, college students may not have the
same access to these services in an online environment as they would if they were in person. As
Fanzeres (2020) of Bloomberg states, thousands of undergraduate students in the United States
who postponed their education due to the COVID-19 pandemic made clear that the college
experience would not be the same and now wonder when they will return or whether they will go
back at all. Students have chosen to take time off instead of remote learning during the pandemic
and chose to take time off, whether that be a gap year or even a gap semester and for some,
becoming burned out from the stress of the pandemic factored into the decision (Rodriguez,
2021). While not in school, some will look to gain work experience and enter a professional
opportunity that may be more valuable than a degree such as fulfilling an immediate need to help
support their family. However, according to Long and Douglas-Gabriel (2020), for low-income,
first-generation students, the concerning trend is that most will drop out, raising fears that they
might never get a college degree, or worse, return to school at all.
27
The economic devastation unleashed by the pandemic crisis has weighed more heavily on
lower-income Americans and underrepresented student groups. One of the ultimate fears is that
this could be a lost generation of low-income students (Long & Douglas-Gabriel, 2020). The
concern with a potential lost generation is even if college students opt not to go back to their
studies right away, the repayment of student loans will come into effect quickly. The United
States Department of Education has in place a federal program intended to help low-income
student loan borrowers through income-driven repayment (IDR) plans (Financial Student Aid,
2022g). According to the report, more than nine million borrowers are currently enrolled in the
IDR plan, which is designed to help people who cannot afford to make large monthly payments.
The plans promise loan cancellation after 20 – 25 years. In this instance, some servicers were not
properly tracking IDR payments and the federal program did not know when borrowers qualified
for cancellation (Financial Student Aid, 2022e).
Given that federal student loan payments have been paused since the March 2020 passage
of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, legislation has also frozen
interest from being accrued on government-held federal student loans and suspended the
collection against borrowers in default (Minsky, 2022). The pause in repayment will assist
Americans with student loans as the pandemic is ongoing. In the long-term, for an individual
who ends up repaying their federal student loan, the timeline for repayment will remain and be
unchanged. With the rapid spread of the Omicron COVID-19 variant and rising inflation, a
possible additional extension to the CARES Act is possible (Minsky, 2022), and should that
occur, individuals ought to prepare for an additional delay in any student loan forgiveness.
28
The Unsuspected Consequences of Student Debt
This section will focus on the effects of long-term student debt, as well as attempt to
understand why the debt-to-income ratio matters to college students by educating students to
understand how financing their education may pose challenges for first-generation, especially in
California. For students, rising tuition costs lead to an increased amount of student loans;
repaying student loans will take a longer time to save to make the monthly payments. According
to data from the Federal Reserve, monthly student loan payments had increased from $227 in
2005 to $393 in 2016, and graduates owe $20,000 more than they did just 13 years prior
(Girouard, 2018). Student loans affect your credit in much the same way other loans do, pay as
agreed, and it is good for your credit; paying late, and it could hurt your credit (Nykiel &
O’Shea, 2021). For college graduates looking to settle down and rekindle what once was the
American Dream, this process is becoming much more challenging to achieve.
However, an unfortunate but common experience of student loan borrowers is being in
default status. According to Portis et al. (2020), approximately 22% of borrowers default on their
student loans; it is reported that 40% of student loan borrowers may default on their student loans
by 2023. One is in default if one does not make a scheduled loan payment for at least 270 days
(Financial Student Aid, 2022), and your file is typically sent to a collection agency as a direct
result of this status. A way to get out of default is to repay the defaulted loan in full but that is
not a practical option; therefore, loan rehabilitation and loan consultation may be options
depending on one’s specific situation.
Lifetime Loans
With a few rare exceptions, one can never get rid of their student loans because they
cannot be discharged in bankruptcy court. According to Levin (2013), it does not matter if one is
29
laid off from their work or becomes financially devastated by a family member's illness or death;
student lenders will follow you until your last breath or the loan is repaid, whichever comes first.
However, under specific situations, one’s federal student loans will be discharged provided that
the loan servicer receives acceptable documentation (Financial Student Aid, 2022f). With student
loans at a premium, there may be an increase in individuals who are unable to pay their monthly
student loan payments. For those unable to pay their loans, there is more of a likelihood to opt
for a deferment or forbearance on the loan. The concern with these two options is that the loan
borrower may avoid defaulting on their student loan temporarily, but the loan itself is still
accruing interest on the unpaid loan, thereby increasing the overall cost of the loan. Jiménez and
Glater (2020) state that the consequences of defaulting on federal student loans are even more
severe; after defaulting, private loan services tack on collection fees that can add many years to
the loan repayment while at the same time, the federal government has the power to garnish
wages or seize Social Security payments and tax refunds. The main difference is if you are in
deferment, no interest will accrue on the loan; if you are in forbearance, interest will accrue on
the loan balance (Financial Student Aid, 2022g). This chain of events can challenge a first-
generation student who lacks financial literacy in understanding the loan repayment process and
why forbearance for financial reasons does not make sense to the individual, yet loan companies
should instead guide the individual into a repayment plan based on their income.
It has been reported that millennials are notoriously the most in debt college students in
history (Chen, 2022), and by not having financial stability due to being brought down by student
debt, there are aspirational goals that may limit one’s choice in the future for decades to come
(Williams, 2021). Student loan debt significantly impacts one’s ability to purchase a home. As
such, the number of outstanding loans can negatively impact purchasing a new home (Kritt,
30
2017). More than 55% of millennial renters were asked in a survey why they have not purchased
a home and the main reason was due to not having enough money saved due to their college
student loan debt (Williams, 2022). In addition, even if one can afford the monthly payments
toward their college loans, saving money toward paying off their student loans may prevent one
from saving enough money for the minimum down payment many lenders require. Noguchi
(2019) argues that people who have earned degrees tend to net higher incomes, therefore
offsetting the debt burden. However, it is also true that people are taking a long time during their
degree if they finish at all surrounding graduation rates (NCES, 2022). The NCES (2022), states
that the 6-year graduation rate was 62% at public institutions, 68% at private nonprofit
institutions, and 26% at private for-profit institutions.
The optimistic approach one takes to combat their student loans is to get a job with a
competitive salary to offset the debt, only to realize that to be competitive, they may end up
needing to go to graduate school to earn another degree to stay ahead of the talent applicants who
are also looking for a job. Assuming college degree earners can obtain a job, employers may be
legally empowered to deny employment based on the results of a credit check depending on
where one lives, or from whom one is hoping to work with (Kuehl, 2020). Employees across
most of the United States still sort out job applications using credit checks. A study found that
about 25% of unemployed respondents were subject to some sort of credit review as part of a job
application, and about 10% were not chosen for a position because of credit issues (Morris,
2020). With this being an option, even more, debt is amassed. Students who leave their
undergraduate programs with significant amounts of debt often cannot afford to take out another
massive loan (Williams, 2021) which may mean having to put off, or even worse, completely
putting off the option to pursue a graduate school education altogether.
31
Furthermore, the NCES (2022) reports that the graduation rates for students obtaining a
bachelor’s degree are 62% at public institutions, 68% at private nonprofit institutions, and only
26% at private for-profit institutions. These graduation rates paid with the notion that
approximately 40% of those who start college do not finish within 6 years (Noguchi, 2019), are
factors that uncover how difficult of a toll it may take on one to take the next step and own a
home, considering how student loan debt remains a critical factor in the process. The fact that
households in the upper half of the income distribution and those with graduate degrees hold a
disproportionate share of that debt seldom makes it into the narrative (Baum & Looney, 2020).
One can determine who struggles because of their student loans and who is succeeding in the job
market because of the education that loans helped them achieve.
Debt-to-Income Ratio
Student loan debt is not a new trend, but it is an alarming one. First-generation college
graduates are more likely to have incurred debt for their education than second-generation
college graduates; where two-thirds of first-generation college graduates incurred debt for their
education (Fry, 2021). Furthermore, Fry (2021) discusses that among college graduates with any
outstanding debt for their education, first-generation college graduates tend to owe more than
any other group.
From 2009 to 2019, total student loan debt in the United States increased 113% from
$658 billion to $1.4 trillion (Caldwell, 2021), a rate that continues to grow. A recent study finds
that the odds of a student taking out an educational loan have converged over time across family
income groups and parental education levels, even after controlling for the institutional sector
and student demographic characteristics; low-to-moderate-income students are just as likely to
borrow as are low-income students. In addition, continuing-generation college students, who
32
have at least one parent who had some postsecondary education experience, are just as likely to
borrow as are first-generation college students (Chan et al., 2020).
While borrowing money is continuing to increase, it is essential to recognize an aspect of
debt that is often overlooked. A debt-to-income (DTI) ratio measures the financial health of one
borrowing money, such as a student loan, auto, and mortgage loans, but most importantly, if
approved, the interest rate that the lender will apply to the loan. As Kantrowitz (2021) highlights,
a low debt-to-income ratio is better when seeking a new loan because it means you can afford to
repay more debt than someone with a high debt-to-income ratio. Furthermore, it is best to have a
student loan DTI under 10%, and ideally, one’s total student loan debt is less than their annual
income. If your DTI is too high, you may not be able to qualify for a loan, but if you do qualify,
you may be at a much higher interest rate, which would further increase your monthly debt
obligation (Caldwell, 2021). For lenders, a DTI ratio of 35% or lower is viewed as favorable
(Wells Fargo, 2022). Like mortgage loans, one can also refinance their student loans; most
lenders will not approve a private student loan if your DTI ratio for all debt payments is more
than 50% of your total income (Kantrowitz, 2021). According to research from the Brookings
Institute, the student loan default rate has doubled from 2003 to 2011, and 40% of borrowers are
expected to fall behind by 2023 (Girouard, 2018). Education debt is concentrated in households
with high levels of educational attainment. In 2019, the new Federal Reserve’s data shows that
households with a graduate degree owed 56% of the outstanding education debt, an increase
from 49% in 2016 (Baum & Looney, 2020).
A critical factor in the loan process that helps determine the interest rate is the credit
score one possesses. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (2021) describes that having a
student loan will indeed affect your credit score. One’s student loan amount and payment history
33
will go on their credit report and the ability to make payments on time can assist in maintaining a
positive credit score. Defaulting on any financial product can impact a borrower’s credit score
and in turn increase the price of credit and insurance, making it more difficult for one to rent an
apartment, and make it more difficult to get or hold a job (Jiménez & Glater, 2020).
It is also important for a student to recognize that being able to refinance their loan is also
contingent upon their DTI score. Generally, one will need a DTI ratio below 50% to be able to
refinance student loans; the lower one’s DTI score will provide a better opportunity to qualify
and receive a low-interest rate your chances of qualifying and getting a low-interest rate (Lane,
2022). Refinancing student loans can decrease one’s debt-to-income ratio by lowering their
monthly student loan payment which may be helpful for those exploring purchasing a home
(Lane, 2022). However, there are alternative options other than refinancing student loans, but the
stipulations may be cumbersome. A public service loan forgiveness is available if you are
employed by a government or not-for-profit organization where you may be able to receive loan
forgiveness provided the remaining balance on one’s Direct Loans after 120 qualifying monthly
payments have been processed (Financial Student Aid, 2022h). In addition, Federal Student Aid
(2022g) is an income-driven repayment plan that sets one’s monthly student loan payment at an
amount that is intended to be affordable based on one’s income and family size and they include
the following:
• Revised pay as you earn repayment plan (REPAYE plan): This plan is generally 10%
of your discretionary income.
• Pay as you earn repayment plan (PAYE plan): This plan is generally 10% of your
discretionary income, but never more than the 10-year standard repayment plan
amount.
34
• Income-based repayment plan (IBR plan): This plan is generally 15% of your
discretionary income if you are a new borrower, but never more than the 10-year
standard repayment plan amount.
• Income-contingent repayment plan (ICR plan): This plan is generally 20% of your
discretionary income or what you would pay on a repayment plan with a fixed
payment over the course of 12 years, adjusted according to your income.
Americans have a trillion in student loan debt and yet, students in this country are still
confused about their loans, in the dark when it comes to knowing what they have borrowed,
uncertain about how to pay them back, and have a constant level of stress trying to understand
the process (Squires, 2016).
Generational Shift
Since student loan debt in the United States has grown enormously in recent years, it is
now one of the largest forms of consumer borrowing in the country. The result has been a
startling divergence in the credit scores of young people with and without student loans which
has caused a growing suspicion of borrowers' student debt levels (Landy, 2013). However,
though the benefits of a college education outweigh the costs in most cases, there are graduates
concerned about entering a weak job market and worry that lingering debt could hinder their
financial futures (Siripuarpu & Speier, 2021). Experts have noted that millennials have simply
delayed life milestones rather than forgoing them as it has become much more expensive to raise
children, and own a home, all the while wages have stagnated (Leonhardt, 2021). Delays in
societal progression may create a shift in an upcoming generation.
As student loans continue to be at the core of one’s future, there has been a generational
shift in how groups of individuals look at their future. Homeownership for millennials stands at
35
37%, compared to 45% of boomers and Gen-Xers when they were the same age. The fact is, that
53% of millennials have not bought a home because they do not have the money for a down
payment (Girouard, 2018). The literature also adds that with every 1% increase in student loan
debt, the likelihood of owning a house decreases by 15% (Girouard, 2018). The increase in
federal student lending is making college less affordable for students by allowing institutions to
artificially inflate tuition (Siripuarpu & Speier, 2021).
Additionally, the increase in borrowing is also decreasing the likelihood of an individual
fulfilling their future aspirations. Siripuarpu and Speier (2021) discuss that half of the
outstanding student debt is owed by borrowers who attended two or 4-year institutions while the
rest is from graduate school borrowers. In addition, one-third of the outstanding debt is held by
the 6% of borrowers who owe more than $100,000. However, borrowers with smaller amounts
of debt often have a more challenging time repaying their loans, as higher debt from graduate or
professional degrees can pay off with much higher incomes (Siripuarpu & Speier, 2021).
Ultimately, students who do not complete their degrees often struggle the most and their default
rate is three times higher than those who graduate (Nadworny, 2019).
Framework Models
Shim et al.’s (2009) student financial well-being model, as shown in Figure 1, will serve
as the framework for this research study. The results of this conceptual model’s examination of
financial well-being consider three domains that support this model:
1. Socialization agents and personal values.
2. Financial knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, and well-being.
3. Overall life success.
36
The center of the study examines young people's financial well-being which includes debt, its
relation to financial satisfaction, financial worries, and coping (Shim et al., 2009). The primary
focus of the research will stem from the financial domain surrounding the knowledge, attitude,
behavior, and well-being within the model.
Figure 1
Student Financial Well-Being Model
Note. Adapted from “Pathways to life success: A conceptual model of financial well-being for
young adults” by Shim, S., Xiao, J.J., Barber, B.L & Lyons, A.C., 2009. Journal of Applied
Developmental Psychology. 30(6), 708-723. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2009.02.003
37
Since college students are still largely influenced by their parents when it comes to
financial matters, this model by Shim et al. (2009), focuses on parents as a major source of social
norms associated with personal financial matters. Given that young adults are characterized by
the need to make countless choices without parental influence or assistance, the model examines
the extent to which young adults may be influenced by their perceptions of behavioral control
when it comes to personal finances. By focusing on first-generation college graduates, the
indicators of financial well-being used in this model include both an objective measure of the
amount of debt one has and the subjective measure of financial satisfaction and coping with the
financial strain (Shim et al., 2009). However, for example, two individuals with the same income
are likely to have different perceptions about their financial condition, in part because their
consumption values and spending habits may differ (Prawitz et al., 2009). Shim et al. (2009),
describe that if the financial hardships imposed by the economic demands of attending college do
reduce a young adult's sense of financial well-being there should also be a wide range of
differences in the ways that each experience such a reduction in part because of a family’s
financial circumstances and levels of existence.
Finally, economic hardship in the form of low income, unstable employment, or an
unfavorable debt-to-asset ratio, can lead to distress and poor interpersonal relationships (Shim et
al., 2009) where evidence demonstrates a connection between financial well-being and life
success, factors that stem from the financial literacy of attending college and the financial cost
associated with making such a choice.
Summary
The purpose of this research study was to evaluate the implications of the rise in college
tuition for first-generation individuals. This chapter highlighted the inflationary prices of
38
attending college, the consequences of having an excessive amount of financial debt where the
DTI ratio can measure the financial health of one being able to borrow money, and which
interest rate. This chapter concluded by highlighting how the generational delay in societal
progressions may create a shift in an upcoming generation and the outlook one has on their own
future endeavors. Chapter Three will discuss the research study’s methodology.
39
Chapter Three: Methodology
As noted in previous chapters, with the continued increase in college tuition over the rate
of inflation, a reduction in the availability of grants that can cover college expenses, and the
increasing number of students attending college, Americans are carrying historically high student
loan debt burdens. The purpose of this chapter is to understand the methodology that was used
for this qualitative research study while being guided by the research question. The research
question served to reflect my thinking on important and significant factors of the study (Merriam
& Tisdell, 2016). The research question for this study was, how do first-generation college
graduates, with student loans from a public college or university in California, perceive the
continued rise of college tuition and its impact on their financial well-being? In addition, the
model that has shaped this research is Shim et al.’s (2009) student financial well-being model;
this chapter includes information about the research design, site, and participant selection,
recruitment, data collection, data analysis, and my background that guided this study.
Research Design
With a qualitative approach, Merriam and Tisdell (2016) describe researchers as
interested in understanding how people interpret their experiences, how they construct their
worlds, and what meaning they attribute to their experiences. Furthermore, a phenomenological
analysis was used to describe the participants deep understanding (Lochmiller & Lester, 2017) as
it related to their college experiences to examine how the continued rise in college tuition
uncovered how they perceived their financial well-being by having taken out student loans to pay
for college. Within a phenomenological analysis, this study emphasized on Heidegger’s
hermeneutic approach where interpretation was required prior to understanding why the opinions
were significant as I sought to interpret the descriptions and meanings of the lived experiences
40
and construct meaning from the date being collected in this study (Creswell, 2006; McConnell-
Henry et al., 2009).
The aspiration for this study was to understand the meaning, context, and process of how
higher education is being perceived by first-generation, loan borrowing college graduates who
have loan debt inductively; this inductive process allowed me to gather data, build concepts,
hypotheses, and build theory (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). According to Creswell (2006), being
able to describe my experiences with the phenomenon before proceeding with the experiences of
others in this research, yielded a thoughtful data collection process. Conducting interviews was
the most effective method for this qualitative research as the interviews helped explain,
understand, and uncovered a collection of sources from groups of individuals about their
attitudes, behaviors, feelings, opinions, and knowledge (Patton, 2002).
Site and Participation Selection
There was flexibility with both the site selection and those participating in the qualitative
research study. The study drew from recent first-generation, loan borrowing college graduates
from a public college or university in California who took out student loans to pay for their
college education. It was also important to select participants who are not only first-generation,
but who also have different ethnic, cultural, and social backgrounds to represent diversity in the
study. A tool that was used to collect viable participants included an online screening
questionnaire. The screening questionnaire was created using Qualtrics and consisted of 14
questions in assessing the qualifications and validity of the participant by asking questions
whether or not they are first-generation; did they attend a public college or university in
California; was their education financed with loans; what was their highest degree earned; when
did they graduate. The screening questionnaire in Appendix A also provided the participant the
41
opportunity to choose whether they would have liked to further assist in the research study by
participating in an interview. Only those participants who filled out the questionnaire and met the
criteria for the study were contacted to schedule an interview with me. The initial goal for this
study was to include eight to 10 interview participants.
Sampling and Recruiting
The sampling technique for this study was purposive, a form of nonprobability sampling.
Nonprobability sampling in this study selected participants on the basis of non-random
characteristics (Lockmiller & Lester, 2017). With the framework and research question guiding
this study, based on loan borrowers who also identify as first-generation college graduates
perceived higher education and their financial well-being, it seemed fitting that a non-probability
technique would suffice. As Lochmiller and Lester (2017) suggest, this sample, by which I
selected individuals for this study, best fits the criteria for the problem identified.
Furthermore, the primary tactic used to recruit participants for this research study was a
purposeful sampling approach. With this approach, I selected individuals who fit these specific
criteria for the study (Lochmiller & Lester, 2017). The primary reason in identifying a recent
college graduate for this study was to take into consideration those individuals who graduated
prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and those who graduated during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Also, it was important for the participants in this study to have their academic degree conferred,
thereby eliminating a participant who is in-progress or perhaps is on a leave of absence. In
addition to my immediate network of recent graduates whom I had complete the screening
questionnaire, I also casually utilized the snowball approach as well in order to capture the
necessary individuals I was targeting for this study. This snowball approach referred to
identifying one or more participants and then allowing recommendations from those participants
42
to guide the further development of the sample (Lochmiller & Lester, 2017) of individuals who
met the selection criteria of this research study. Once identified, I provided the prospective
participants information to access the screening questionnaire that was created to assess who
would have met the criteria. After reviewing the results from the screening questionnaire and a
participant was identified as meeting the research study criteria, I then asked for their availability
to participate in the interview process; once confirmed, I then sent the information study sheet to
the participant to review prior to the interview.
Additionally, as a contingency, supplemental approaches were created to assist in
promoting an approved recruitment flyer on my social media outlets such as LinkedIn to yield
participants for this study and allowing colleagues and connections to reshare the flyer in order
to get the word out on the study. A copy of the recruitment e-mail communication can be viewed
in Appendix B. As part of the recruitment and participation process, an electronic Amazon gift
card was sent to participants as a token of appreciation for their participation in this research
study, where the monetary value would not exceed $25.00 per participant. At the conclusion of
the research study, I e-mailed the participant their $25.00 electronic Amazon gift card for their
participation. A copy of the flyer can be viewed in Appendix C.
Data Collection
Prior to any data being collected, I completed the Social-Behavioral Human Subjects
certification within the CITI Program, as required by the University of Southern California
(USC). In addition, I completed the institutional review board (IRB) application in the iStar
portal and obtained approval from IRB on October 13, 2022, at USC prior to being able to
collect data for this research study. Since ethics plays a vital role when collecting data, there
were ethical considerations with this proposed study such as voluntary participation with the
43
ability for the individual to opt-in or out of the study at any point. The participant’s right to
anonymity and confidentiality was upheld, and their personally identifiable information was
neither collected nor saved in a manner that can be connected to any other person. For example,
within Qualtrics, the Anonymize Responses feature was enabled so as not to record the
respondents’ IP address, nor location data, and contact information. The only time personal
information was collected was during the screening questionnaire, in which participants were
required to indicate if they met the study’s eligibility criteria. If the participant met the criteria,
they had an opportunity to continue with the study by submitting their personal e-mail address
into the Qualtrics form to then be contacted for an interview. During this process, I saved the
obtained e-mail address with a first name pseudonym chosen by the participant, thereby
enhancing the level of safety measures for this study. These ethical considerations listed can be
applied to either an online screening questionnaire or interview. However, for the interviews,
they all took place virtually on Zoom and in doing so, the same ethical protocols remained. In
these instances, an added layer of confidentiality and protocol was used in that any digital files
surrounding this data collection would be safely guarded in a password protected storage for 3
years, per the USC IRB policy; the same applied to any physical document and the safeguard
destruction of the collected data would adhere to the IRB policies where a locked file cabinet
will serve as the depository for the study.
Preceding each interview, during the screening stage, an Information Sheet was provided
to each participant giving them more information about the confidentiality and protection in
compliance with IRB protocols. Additionally, details surrounding this research study were
provided to the participant to read and review such as ensuring the participants were aware that
their participation was voluntary; one can withdraw at any point without penalty (Glesne, 2011).
44
A copy of the Information Sheet can be viewed in Appendix D. Providing the information before
the interview saved time so the participant did not have to spend time reading the information
during the scheduled interview; there was an opportunity for the participant to acknowledge
verbally that they have read and understood the confidentiality and protection guidelines for the
study and should they have had any questions, comments, or concerns, that information was
addressed.
The method of conducting interviews with the eligible participants was done exclusively
via Zoom. Within Zoom, the ability to enable the live transcript feature provided a full
transcription of the interview and allowed for accuracy of the transcript. The decision to keep the
web camera off during the interview was mutually agreed upon by each participant; by having
the webcam off, this resulted in a calmer and less tense interview experience. The goal was to
keep the environment as casual so as to solicit honest responses by the participants. The
interview with each participant was scheduled to last approximately 45 – 60 minutes. The
approach for the interviews were semi-structured in order to explore the participant’s thinking
and experiences (Lochmiller & Lester, 2017) pertaining to their academic experiences, but also
to provide me the opportunity for follow-up using probing questions and to have the opportunity
to clarify a response from the participant. As a contingency, should Zoom have not been an
option for the participant, then utilizing a mobile telephone device to conduct the interview
would have taken place. With a telephone call, the tactic used to obtain a transcript of the
interview would have been setting the phone on speakerphone while being next to a computer.
Through these efforts, I would have the opportunity to record the conversation and thereby
having a Zoom meeting space for himself enabled as the method to have the computer dictate
into a document the audio conversation into a written format.
45
An additional area that I was mindful of during the interview process was having to share
very briefly my own personal experience from time to time. As Seidman (1991) highlights, an
interviewer’s experience may provide the participant the shared understanding in having them
reconstruct their own interpreted responses by hearing an example that may assist in
understanding the question being asked.
Qualitative Design
The interview protocol was conducted in a semi-structured approach that was categorized
into two themes of questioning, the introduction line of questioning, followed by the experiences
the participant had while in college leading to a total of 11 questions. The intent of these themes
and questions was meant to solicit viewpoints that the participant had on their higher education
experiences, all the while being guided by the research question as well as the framework that
shaped this research study. Each of the 11 questions was also designed to capture an array of
answers that surrounded the participant’s opinion, college awareness, background information,
financial literacy, devils-advocate scenarios, and their first-generation perspective towards their
experiences. The questions sought to understand the college experience of the participant,
ranging from prior to attending school, while in school, and after graduation. In doing so, the
research question guiding this study complemented the interview protocol line of questions;
probing questions were also implemented through the interview questions on a case-by-case
basis to help the participant think more deeply about the given question. See Appendix E for the
complete interview protocol. At the conclusion of each interview, I provided each participant
with a transcript of the interview that had taken place for any edits, revisions, or comments, as
part of the members check process that had been outlined in the initial interview protocol at the
outset of this process.
46
Data Analysis
In this qualitative research study, the data analysis process of making sense of the data is
a critical step in the process involved consolidating, reducing, and interpreting what the
participants said (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016) during the interview process. The process used to
make sense of the data was being able to answer the research questions for this study.
Furthermore, the data analysis process took place concurrently with both the data collection and
interview process. It was important to analyze soon after the interviews were conducted with the
participants (Creswell & Creswell, 2018; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016) to verify the data collected
did not have any technical issues with any of the technology resources that were used.
Furthermore, this approach was helpful in being able to recall aspects of the interview that may
have been important in the event the audio transcription of the interview became compromised.
To ensure I gained clarity and understanding during the qualitative segment, a five-step data
analysis process suggested by Creswell and Creswell (2018) was provided and used during the
research with guidance on the data analysis process.
1. Organized and prepared the data for analysis by transcribing the interviews after the
session by hand while listening to the audio recording. This same process was done
with each interview.
2. Read all the data as this provided a general sense of the information and an
opportunity to reflect on its overall meaning. During this step, I was able to analyze
emerging themes for data grouping that was going to occur.
3. Began coding by categorizing a strategy in qualitative research (Maxwell, 2013) by
using software such as ATLAS.ti since this would allow me to select and directly
code textual, audio, video, and visual data (Lochmiller & Lester, 2017) where the
47
codes can be merged into categories within the system. Although ATLAS.ti was used
briefly, the primary source of the coding was done manually by reviewing each
transcript one by one. The complexities of using the ATLAS.ti software and
functionality was challenging to navigate. However, identifying the most often used
word of short phrases that symbolically assigned a salient data point (Saldana, 2016)
was referenced as a guiding principle; this approach then allowed the manual coding
to become much more efficient.
4. Developed a description and themes for the analysis by designing project-specific
details. During this step, themes may have emerged regarding the participant’s
anxiety or recollection during their college experiences and the financial constraints
associated with student loans.
5. Represented the description and themes in a narrative manner in what Creswell and
Creswell (2018) suggested for this analysis.
While winnowing the data (Creswell & Creswell, 2018) during the study, identifying themes
with the ATLAS.ti software became a difficult process and presented a challenge in being able to
fully utilize the software; additional software such as NVivo was also considered as an
alternative.
Researcher’s Background and Biases
I see myself as an able-bodied, bilingual, White male, and son of immigrant Greek
parents. I acknowledge that my class, language, race, gender, and ethnicity, have shaped my
positionality up to this point regarding higher education and my financial well-being. Having
been a first-generation college student in California, the mantra in the household growing up was
to go to school, graduate college, get a job, start a family, and own a home. In having observed
48
family members without any formal education come to this country with a dream of working,
raising a family, and owning a home, for them, that became a reality. However, as society has
evolved, my positionality in how I was raised remains deeply rooted as I am progressing through
each academic stage of life.
Having the ability to choose which college to attend after high school was not the choice
presented to me. Essentially, I would attend the college that my older sibling attended; this
aspect contributed to me choosing this research topic for the dissertation. Growing up, the
narrative to attend college was supplemented by applying for scholarships and grants given the
tuition prices of public institutions in California. However, being denied and not qualifying for
many scholarships and grants affected how I viewed higher education at the time. I felt as if I
was being punished or missing out on getting free money, a phrase that I vividly recall my
classmates and teachers talking about regarding applying for scholarships to pay for college. At
the time, the word grants were simply a buzzword used for academic research scholars, not
knowing that the associated Pell Grants were used to help out students pay for college. All I
knew was, I did not qualify, and so my parents supported paying out of pocket for my college
tuition. Now, having to secure federal loans for the first time ever to pay for my doctorate
education, this process has shined a light into the overall process of attending a higher education
institution, all the while combating the continued rise of college tuition and financial well-being.
Credibility and Trustworthiness
Maxwell (2013) describes credibility and trustworthiness by identifying and minimizing
researcher bias and reactivity. Reactivity is defined as the researcher’s influence or effect on the
research setting (Maxwell, 2013). Researcher bias is a common concern in qualitative research
and often shapes our research goals. Being a researcher and having familiarity with the
49
population sample that was used as participants for this study, Maxwell (2013) suggested that I
ought to be cognizant of the goals, experiences, assumptions, feelings, and values associated
with the research.
The use of member checks was partially used at the end of the study when I shared the
transcriptions with the participants. As Merriam and Tisdell (2016) describe, an important aspect
was ruling out the possibility of misinterpreting the meaning of what the participant said and the
perspective from what they may have intended to describe during the interview process. After
the interview process and after I transcribed the full transcript, the transcript was e-mailed back
to the participant to review, make comments, revise, and omit anything that they deemed
necessary. The participants had seven calendar days from when the e-mail was sent to them to
respond with any comments. If there was no response after the seventh day, then the transcript
would be used in its entirety as part of the data analysis. Given the research question that was
identified, this study closely reflects my positionality of being a first-generation, loan borrowing
college student. Since trustworthiness in this qualitative study was important to me by having a
non-biased approach within the interview process, I collected information from a diverse range
of individuals and settings (Maxwell, 2013) for this study. By interviewing individuals from
backgrounds that were not reflective of my own, I was able to obtain a more robust sample of
experiences relevant to this study.
Conclusion
This chapter presented the methodology process, describing the research design, data
collection, analysis, and my positionality and bias for this qualitative study. In Chapter Four, the
results of the data collected, and the findings of this study will be discussed.
50
Chapter Four: Findings
This qualitative research study has attempted to understand how much academic financial
literacy knowledge first-generation college graduates have after attending a higher education
institution, given the continued rise in college tuition over the rate of inflation. The goal of this
study has been to understand the impact of their decision for loan borrowing to further their
education. This research study was guided by the research question, how do first-generation
college graduates, with student loans from a public college or university in California, perceive
the continued rise of college tuition and its impact on their financial well-being? This chapter
summarizes the findings that emerged by first highlighting each of the eight participants who
were interviewed for this study by providing a brief background profile on each person to
humanize the story they shared. The model that guided this qualitative research was Shim et al.’s
(2009) student financial well-being model. This model examined the financial well-being of the
college graduate while considering the three domains that supported this model:
1. Socialization agents and personal values.
2. Financial knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, and well-being.
3. Overall life success.
The thematic structure of each of the domains was accompanied with sub themes that emerged as
findings for this study as supported by the quantitative interviews that took place.
Description of the Participants
Regarding the virtual interviewers that took place, the eight participants each selected
their own pseudonym names, which are listed in alphabetical order as shown in Table 1. In
addition, Table 1 also indicates their age range, gender the participant self-identified as,
51
ethnicity, the amount of student debt they currently have, and the highest academic degree
earned:
Table 1
Demographic Background on Each Participant
Name Age Gender Ethnicity Student debt Highest degree
Aaron 32–37 Male White/Caucasian $25,000–$49,999 Master
Alex 32–37 Female Hispanic/Latino/a/x $0–$24,999 Master
Blake 38–43 Male Asian/Pacific Islander > $100,000 Master
Frank 38–43 Male White/Caucasian $75,000–$99,999 Master
Jimmy 26–31 Male White/Caucasian $0–$24,999 Bachelor
Kelly 32–37 Female Hispanic/Latino/a/x $0–$24,999 Master
Ryann 38–43 Female Asian/Pacific Islander $0–$24,999 Master
Sam 38–43 Female Black/African
American
$75,000–$99,999 Master
52
For additional context, Appendix F highlights the complete results from the screening
questionnaire of the eight participants for this study. In an effort to humanize each of the
participants for this research study, a brief background summary on each individual is provided
below:
Aaron
Aaron identifies himself as a White/Caucasian male, aged 32–37, who earned his
bachelor’s degree from a private university in California, but then in 2020, earned a master's
degree in business administration from the University of California. For Aaron, college was not
necessarily talked about much in the home but was simply assumed would be the natural
progression after high school. Aaron indicated he had supportive parents and they wanted him to
go to college, but he was aware that his parents wanted to make a good financial decision in
deciding which college to attend. In my dialogue with Aaron, because his federal student loans
are in deferment due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as outlined by the United States Government,
the value of his college education has yet to be determined. Until he is able to begin paying back
his federal loans, the return on investment (ROI) of the degree earned has yet to be determined.
Alex
Alex identifies as being a Hispanic/Latino/a/x female, aged 32–37, who earned her
bachelor’s degree from a private university in California, but then also earned a master’s degree
in 2013 from the California State University system. Alex’s career path has guided her into the
healthcare field, but getting there took some realignments along the way. Growing up, college
discussed in the home was viewed as an expectation that Alex would be attending after high
school; yet there was no discussion of an alternative option for not attending college. With the
rise in college tuition, paying for college made Alex change her living situation. For example,
53
moving from on-campus housing back home with her parents was necessary to save money on
rent. Upon reflection on the value of her college degree, there was little value that transpired
other than being a steppingstone for a need to go further and continue her education based on the
professional career that she was aspiring to achieve. Alex acknowledged and shared that for
some professional industries, certain majors and advanced degrees are required in order for one
to become a medical doctor or a lawyer; with these advanced degrees, student debt is inevitable.
As a result, the initial master’s degree that Alex earned has led her to pivot away from that of a
general field in healthcare to a more specialized area and in doing so, additional education is
needed, which will lead to additional student loan debt.
Blake
Blake identifies as an Asian/Pacific Islander male, aged 38–43, who has earned multiple
academic degrees beginning with a bachelor's and master’s degree from California State
University institutions while majoring both times in history. Then, Blake earned an additional
master’s degree in business administration from a private university in California. At one point,
Blake shared that he was also in a PhD program paving the way for a career in becoming a
college instructor. His parents, coming to the United States from a third-world country and
having experienced war and genocide, had sacrificed a lot for Blake and his siblings so that he
could experience success in life with higher education being the vehicle to get there. For Blake,
education was discussed almost every day in the house by his parents because these
opportunities, such as an education, were ripped away from them in their homeland.
Furthermore, the 2008 Global Financial Crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic had an impact on
Blake's initial goal and path, thereby forcing him to pivot into a new career and industry. Overall,
from a cultural standpoint, Blake believes that immigrant parents see their own successes
54
through the eyes of their children and what they do in their future, with education being a vehicle
to get them there.
Frank
Frank identifies himself as a White/Caucasian male, aged 38–43, who earned his
bachelor’s and master’s degrees from California State University while majoring in the STEM
(science, technology, engineering, mathematics) field. During the interview process, Frank
reiterated on numerous occasions how fortunate he is for his personal journey in academia and
continuing his education. The role of higher education was vital for Frank given his career
objective of working in the STEM field; choosing a college major that aligned with that
objective was critical for him. Growing up, his family encouraged and wanted him to go to
college, but Frank found that after graduating from high school, he was not academically
prepared for college. The perseverance that Frank had was to be commended since he had to
drop out of college only to then later on, return back to school which led him to become much
more focused the second time around. When the time came for Frank to go back to school, he
became extremely cognizant of earning a STEM degree given how highly employable and
respected that field is in society. Having that insight and the successes that come from the
academic degrees he earned, yielded a successful educational experience for him.
Jimmy
Jimmy identifies as being a White/Caucasian male, aged 26–31, who graduated with his
bachelor's degree in 2018 from the University of California and is currently employed in a for-
profit organization. Attending college had always been a self-goal for him, as well as by his first-
generation family, who supported Jimmy along the way to accomplish this feat. Jimmy’s degree
was in the field of accounting, and this was critical and necessary for him to earn in order to
55
pursue becoming a certified professional accountant; the career decision was strategically done
so that Jimmy could position himself in becoming financially secure in the future so as to not be
living paycheck to paycheck had he not had a decisive goal and objective in mind with his
education.
Kelly
Kelly identifies herself as being a Hispanic/Latino/a/x female, aged 32–37, who
graduated with her bachelor’s degree in 2009 from within the California State University system.
In addition, a few years later, Kelly also earned her master’s degree from a private university in
California. Having an education and foundation to construct her future lives put a lot of pressure
on her to secure a successful career and to make her mother proud as she is currently employed
at a non-profit organization. Understanding the importance of college also led to the
understanding the need to pay for school, which led to an awareness of making sacrifices in life.
Kelly hated the idea of being financially weakened, so being able to live at home with her
parents was a strategic tactic used so as to not have the burden of loans looming over them.
Ryann
Ryann identifies as being an Asian/Pacific Islander female, aged 38–43, who earned her
bachelor’s degree from the University of California in 2005, but then also earned a master’s
degree in 2012 from a private university in California. Ryann’s parents came to America to give
their children a better future and education, so going to college was important not only for her,
but also for the entire family. In addition, having attended a high-achieving high school also
influenced her decision to attend college as a natural next step.
56
Sam
Sam identifies herself as a Black/African American female, aged 38–43, who earned her
bachelor’s degree from California State University and then a master’s degree from California
State University in 2017. During the interview process, Sam was able to share some insightful
perspective and personal experiences that I found to be valuable to this research study. Through
the dialogue, Sam was able to ascertain the value and role higher education has on society as a
whole, but more importantly, in her own personal and professional careers. Going to college was
part of the expectation that Sam naturally pursued after high school, if not, then it would have
been to get a job. Sam believes that success is directly tied to a college education. With that said,
attending college comes at a financial cost and with rising tuition increasing, that accumulation
of loans continues to loom and appears to never go away. Nonetheless, Sam provided an
interesting rationale of whether a college education is needed in the workplace by an employer.
Sam believes a bachelor’s degree is essential in this environment, with a master’s degree favored
by employers. But there is a caveat in that with some positions, one’s level of work experience
may make up for a lack of a college degree. Sam is also a mother of a young adult who will share
her perspective and advice on the value of higher education later on during this study.
Qualitative Findings
The interview questions for this study were organized in a manner that not only would
address the research question, but also aligned with the three domains of Shim et al.’s (2009)
framework model that guided this study:
● Domain 1: Antecedents: socialization agents and personal values
● Domain 2: Financial domain: financial knowledge, attitude, behaviors and well-being
● Domain 3: life success
57
Within each of the domains identified in Shim et al.’s (2009) framework, correlating themes
emerged in support of the domain, based on the eight qualitative interviews that were conducted.
The framework’s central component investigates the financial well-being of individuals, in this
case, college graduates and their student loan debt, its relationship to financial satisfaction,
financial anxieties, and coping mechanisms (Shim et al., 2009). The financial domain around the
knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, and well-being within the model was a primary focus of this
study.
In Domain 1, I examined how each person and their families saw the importance of a
college education as well as what it meant for them personally, being students who were the first
in their families to attend college. Next, Domain 2 was geared towards the financial aspect of the
participant, now that they decided to go to college. Whether this was understanding the financial
implications and what it meant to take on student loan debt to the effect of how the continued
rise in college tuition affected their well-being. Domain 3 explores the overall satisfaction of
what transpired after the participant graduated from college whether it was the ROI or the overall
value and worth of their academic degree. Finally, the interview process generated additional
findings that will be presented in relation to the three domains, including the impact of a
student’s chosen academic major, attending a traditional 4-year institution, and the next
generation of traditional college students.
Domain 1: Socialization Agents and Personal Values
Parental Sacrifices and Expectations
Given that college students are still largely influenced by their parents when it comes to
financial matters (Shim et al., 2009), there are indicators of the financial well-being as being both
an objective measure such as amount of debt, as well as being subjective with the financial
58
satisfaction and coping with having a financial strain. All eight of the participants shared that
their parents played a vital role in how they approached attending college. In addition, six out of
eight participants acknowledged that their parents immigrated to the United States, so that
parental sacrifice was an important factor.
For example, Blake shared the following statement when asked about the personal and
emotional sacrifices that his parents made by coming to this country:
My parents came from a war genocide third world country to the United States and really
pushed their children for success through higher education, really meant a lot not just for
them but for myself. They didn't come from a lot of money and just having the
accomplishment of getting a degree, brought a lot of joy in their lives because they went
through a lot of challenges to get to the United States.
Blake’s parents made certain sacrifices such as leaving their home country and uprooting their
family to move to the United States, where they hoped this would bring more opportunities for
their children.
Through the interview process with the participants, a common thread emerged with all
eight participants in that going to college was a natural progression after high school as
highlighted by their parents. Although the parents of all eight supported this notion, only Frank
shared that he was not ready by saying, “My mom obviously wanted me to go to college, but
academically, I was underprepared. So, when I attempted college directly out of high school, I
wasn’t successful.” However, the family support that Jimmy had was noted by saying,
“Attending college has always been the goal both the self-goal and as put forth from my first-
generation family so it was always the goal in mind growing up.”
In addition, Alex depicted the process for going back to school in the following way:
59
College discussed in the home was something that we always were told we had to do;
there was really no scripted option for not attending college. My parents said that was just
the natural progression after high school, and it was just something that we needed to do.
However, what came up that resonated and surprised me was how, even amid the financial debt
that these individuals and families have gone through, Ryann portrayed debt in the following
way:
Higher education is a very important aspect of my life, especially being first generation.
That’s one of the reasons why my parents came to America was to give their children a
better future, a better education and so pursuing education was very important to me, and
not only to me, but also to my family … what’s interesting to me is when you say debt,
the way I defined it is not necessarily the debt from the loans that I took out but also the
sacrifices that my parents made for me to pay for me to go to school.
This interesting take on how Ryann defines debt depicts the value of education that is
traditionally factored into one's debt-to-income (DTI) ratio or their ROI.
Perceptions of Higher Education
Although the share of Americans who believe colleges and universities have a positive
impact on the country has dropped by 14 percentage points since 2020 (Salhotra, 2022), there
still remains a strong population who view this differently. Despite the overall agreement on the
value of higher education for many individuals, for Aaron, the decision about going to college
was a natural progression as he shared, “by being first-generation, college was kind of not talked
about a lot, but it was kind of something that was just assumed.” Similarly, for Sam, the outlook
that her parents had on higher education demonstrated the options and alternatives one would do
after high school:
60
My decision to go to college actually stemmed from how college was discussed in the
home, and … I think that with my parents, the expectation was that you go to college, and
you know, you don't have to figure things out right away, but … the expectation is that
you go to college preferably, if not college, then you get a job.
Sam was the only one out of the eight participants who shared an alternative to going to college,
such as getting a job.
Reasons Why College Is Important
All eight participants expressed that going to college was not only the natural progression
as outlined by their parents, but also noting that a college degree is a vehicle that can be used to
obtain future success, a success that is unique to each person. As for Kelly, her family
upbringing provided her with the natural progression of the importance of continuing her
education by saying:
Coming from parents who didn't have a degree, especially a mother who really
appreciated the home life and the family life … always emphasized the need to have an
education and have a foundation to build … and then lining our lives up to have a good
job.
The outlook and guidance that Kelly’s family conveyed to her early on established a long-term
relationship in her personal life. For Alex, her journey to attend college was inevitable based on
how it was discussed in the home:
College discussed in the home was something that we always were told we had to do;
there was really no scripted option for not attending college. My parents said that was just
the natural progression after high school, and it was just something that we needed to do.
61
Collectively, the families of both Kelly and Alex shared a vision for their children in that
continuing their education after high school is a path that should be taken.
Domain 2: Financial Domain: Financial Knowledge, Attitude, Behaviors and Well-Being
With Domain 2 being focused on the financial awareness of the participant, now that they
have decided to go to college, two sub themes emerged in the process: the effects of rising tuition
costs, as well as financial literacy will be discussed as part of this domain.
The Effects of Rising Tuition Costs
With the continued rise in college tuition over the rate of inflation, as depicted in Figure
4, for the participants, the cost was always at the forefront of their minds. According to Sam, the
effect of the outstanding loan amount became unsurmountable for her by stating:
Yeah, I think there was an impact to me, off course, when it came time for me to have to
try and figure out how to pay from my own college tuition … you are accumulating all of
these student loans, but you're still doing it and so it ends up being kind of this like
looming thing that like never goes away. And I think at some point for me anyway,
tuition has gone up every year … and your out-of-pocket costs go up, and the loans that
you are accumulating go up. But it is one of those things where at some point, it gets so
big that rising tuition for a couple of years is just … a drop in the bucket, a small drop in
the bucket.
As colleges and universities continue to increase tuition prices each year, the small increments of
percentage increase become unnoticeable to a person who already has a large outstanding student
loan, so as Sam alluded to, the increases are a small drop in the bucket.
Furthermore, the mental aspect in acknowledging the financial tuition obligations of
having to pay back loans looms in one’s mind each day can become a burden on someone.
62
Whether that means, for example, having to assess living accommodations due to costs, that is a
factor that two out of the eight participants interviewed noted about how their living status was
influenced by this. According to Alex, “It made me change my living situation. I had to save
money on rent, and so I had to move from on campus housing to back home with my parents
while in college, in order to save money.” Being able to look ahead and evaluate a manner where
being able to minimize expenses to offset the continued rise in tuition is a tactic that was used.
For Kelly, looking ahead at the long-term effects of the rise in tuition made her change
her living situation and overall outlook as well:
Well, I hate the idea of being financially weakened and so well, my friends were, you
know, getting apartments and moving out, I felt it was very important for me to live with
my family. You are seeing all these students come out after graduating with debt and the
ROI is not there. They cannot get jobs to sustain the compounding interests of their debt.
You do not have a leg to stand on in the first place, and then you are taking on these loans
and trying to get through the requirement to graduate. But then you cannot get a job that
keeps up with you know, you are basically taking on a mortgage these days, and it is
pretty sad.
Having the opportunity to go to college can ultimately be an overwhelming process where
needing to gauge contingencies is necessary, as was the case for Kelly.
Financial Literacy
When it came to the participant’s financial literacy knowledge about how to pay for
college and the services that were available to each of them, there was a mixture of awareness.
Five out of the eight individuals interviewed acknowledged that their family members had some
63
general understanding about how to pay for college and what the resources were. For example,
Ryann stated:
I did have to take some loans out, and so I understood through the application process
that I would have to fill out the FAFSA form to apply for financial aid. In addition, while
in school, I never reached out to or used the financial aid office as a resource.
Alex shared that for her:
The understanding that I had when applying to college was that there was FAFSA and I
needed to apply for it in order to get some sort of government relief or government
subsidized loans, and that was the only thing I knew about paying for college, and I
submitted my FAFSA.
The financial literacy of the participants appears to be solely connected to FAFSA as the lone
vehicle to pay for college as was the case for both Ryann and Alex. However, Jimmy’s
understanding of paying for college was that “There was a general understanding that there were
grants and student loans and scholarships, and paying for college could involve any variety in
any mix of those three.” In evaluating Jimmy’s financial literacy awareness with the others who
were interviewed, besides being the lone participant with only their bachelor’s degree, they are
also the youngest participant, as referenced in Table 1.
In addition, three out of the eight interviewed had very little to no support with respect to
financial literacy at the outset of their academic journey. When Aaron was asked about what he
and his family knew about how to pay for college, he stated:
Very little, ha ha, if I am being honest, we did not really know much, and you know they
[Aaron’s parents] were kind of asking around, but not very many people in our so-called
64
group knew what was going on, but you know they entrusted us to give them the best
information.
Then, for Blake and his family, the resources were limited in nature surrounding financial
literacy by stating:
Yeah, you know not much. I will tell you that I know initially the goal was to get a
scholarship. So initially, we all knew that financing education was not going to come
from my parents. I believe at the time, the government did provide some help, because I
think Pell Grants were provided to pay for courses, books, et cetera. … I definitely went
through Financial Aid as that was one of the main sources for education at the time, but I
don't recall any other programs besides FAFSA, that helped out financing my education
besides.
An understanding that participants of this study alluded to is that FAFSA is a program that helps
them pay for college, but rather it is an application that determines their expected family
contribution (EFC) as a tool to assess the funding source and eligibility. However, the unique
approach that Aaron shared after completing his academic degrees was that when it came for him
to pay back the student loans, he shared:
So I have been fortunate and I am sure you will hear this answer a lot is, my loans have
been in deferment, and they continue to be in deferment until June 2023, so I'll be honest,
I think if they had kicked in for those 2 years [regarding the pause in student loan
repayments due the COVID pandemic], I probably would have had to cut back on a few
things in my life to make those payments. No doubt, I do not think that is anything that is
a secret, but I am fortunate enough to have chosen the income driven repayment plan
65
which takes a percentage of what I make and I just kind of make payments like that, and I
think that has been beneficial in how I can make the payments.
Aaron’s familiarity with financial aid and the loan repayment options demonstrated the
awareness of additional avenues available to him as having taken out student loans and the
repayment process.
Domain 3: Life Success
With Domain 3 exploring the overall satisfaction of what transpired after one graduated
from college in the form of life success, the sub themes that emerged was the overall value and
worth of their education as well as the ROI.
The Value and Worth of Higher Education
According to Ward (2022), about half of Americans believe the economic benefits of a
college degree outweigh tuition costs. Looking at the value and worth of education from a
myopic lens solely on the correlation that the degrees earned would yield life success was met
with a variety of interpretations through the interview process. Although all eight participants
acknowledged the importance of earning a college degree, six out of the eight questioned the
price tag associated with a degree and whether alternative options could be explored.
For Jimmy, he shared that going to college and earning a degree provided him with life
success as he said, “I do believe that a college degree was worth the investment. Just based on
the opportunities available to me that the degree offered as well as the people that I met during
my college experience.” However, Ryann’s stance on education, from a first-generation
perspective, highlighted what it meant for her and the sacrifices that she endured to assess the
worth of higher education was captured by saying:
66
Was it worth my parents working two jobs or my mom missing out on me doing
extracurriculars? And then the actual financial debt that I took on, I am leaning towards
probably no because, as I get older, I value experiences more and so I see now how hard
it is to make a living and so, could those funds be placed in different streams that my
family needed, probably. It was really important for them and for me to be able to live up
to their expectations and to be able to give them that. By being first-generation, for your
parents, it is their dream because they did not have it; they want what is best for their
children, and they want more for their children, and they want their children to be better
than what they were or what they have accomplished, and so, mostly for me, I did it for
them because it was a part of their dream, and they made all these sacrifices for me, and
they made all these sacrifices to come here.
From a career standpoint, Aaron believed that he found value in his education based on where he
was at in life as he shared:
I think the place I was in my life at the time to get to the next step and really jump-start
my career again, my MBA degree was very important to me as it got me out of a certain
place, and it threw me back into an environment of learning again where I was able to
restart and rejuvenate my career again.
Having the opportunity to pivot and recalibrate one’s personal and professional trajectory
provides a value that someone like Aaron found in his graduate studies by going back to school.
The Return on Investment
The ROI and overall worth of attending college were received with mixed results from
the eight participants. Three out of the eight believed that going to college was worth the
investment. For example, Kelly expressed that the ROI was worth going to college because she
67
stated, “I think tuition was substantially lower than it is now, so for me, it was worth it.”
However, three out of the eight also believed that paying for a 4-year college degree was not
necessarily worth it. For example, Alex, who attended a private institution for her undergraduate
studies, reflected by stating that her experience was not worth the investment. “I think I could
have received the same education somewhere else for much cheaper and that’s my perception of
my college degree.” Although Alex continued her education for her master’s degree at a public
university, due to her professional career trajectory, the ROI from an undergraduate perspective
was not worth the investment.
In addition, two of the eight are still evaluating whether or not the investment has paid
off. For example, Sam explored this from her work career perspective by stating:
No, I think at this point it is safe to say no. I think it is too early to determine whether
there has been a payoff. So, for those purposes, as well as thinking back to my master's
degree, no, I do not think that it has paid off yet.
Also, for Ryann, the evaluation is mixed in terms of the ROI because she explored education
from both a personal and professional lens by stating:
I think at the end of the day, was it worth it for me to build my profession, and you know,
in my professional journey, yes. Was it worth it in terms of personally, I don’t feel like it
added too much value you know to who I am and my education.
The internal struggle that Ryann has with the way she values her education is significant enough
to impact how one feels about making an investment like this.
See Table 2 for age ranges.
68
Table 2
Age Range of Each Participant
Age range % Count
Under 19 0.00% 0
20–25 0.00% 0
26–31 12.50% 1
32–37 37.50% 3
38–43 50.00% 4
44–49 0.00% 0
Over 50 0.00% 0
Prefer not to say 0.00% 0
Total 100% 8
For the participants interviewed, how they view their ROI may be attributed to their age
and what experiences they have endured during their educational experiences. According to
Table 2, four out of the eight participants are currently between the ages of 38–43. The
significance is that approximately 15 years prior, these participants were at the age where they
were emerging into their professional careers after having earned their initial degree.
However, during this research study, I assessed that although each of the eight people
interviewed shared common upbringing family attributes that shaped who they are today, only
one of the eight participants expressed instances where external social events led them into a
different path by having to pivot both their personal and professional careers. For example,
69
Blake, who is between the ages of 38–43, had his academic and professional career take a turn
by needing to pivot due to the 2008 Global Financial Crisis as well as the COVID-19 pandemic.
In doing so, Blake opted to invest in himself by continuing his education, yet the investment is
still being evaluated as he shared:
2008 came along and with the market crash, I lost my job at that time, and I felt that, is
this the right path for me for the long run to pursue this career in higher education and to
educate those in university and so forth. So, long story short, you know, I value my
degrees a lot because it took a lot of hard work to get them. The investment is to be
determined because, I still have a huge amount of debt because my career path shifted a
little bit around that 2008–2010 timeframe, where I thought that for me to pay back
school loans, I need to take another investment to see if I could possibly do a little more
than you know than just history, and so forth. So as much as I am really proud of the
path, you know, where I am at right now in my career, I feel that the investment that I
have so far is still just to be determined; I feel that there should be more, and also the
amount of school debt that I am in right now is pretty high up there.
What I found to be fascinating during this study were the additional findings that came to be that
were outside of Shim et al.’s (2019) model, a model that guided this study.
Other Findings
Upon reflecting and analyzing the eight interviews that were conducted, three additional
themes emerged that were unique in that they provided an additional lens and depth to this study.
The three themes that will be discussed in this section are: selecting one’s academic major,
attending a traditional 4-year university, and the next generation of college students.
Selecting an Academic Major
70
Attending college tends to be a place and opportunity for one to self-discover themselves
by exploring and enrolling in courses that pique their interest with the hopes of finding a field
and career they are excited about. During the interview process, four out of the eight expressed
how their academic major affected how they viewed the value of their education. For example,
Frank shared:
I choose a STEM major where the degree is highly employable and highly respected. So,
for me, earning a [STEM] degree was very much worth the investment of time; the time
and value of thousands of hours of studying is an investment that was absolutely 100%
high-valued and worth all the time that I put into that.
Blake’s story of selecting a major pivoted him across different professional industries
later on in life; however, he believes that through networking, the major ultimately paved the
way for his employment:
I can honestly say my shift and career was because the hiring manager at this one
company had the same degrees that I had; we both had history and business degrees from
the same schools. So that is what we had in common, and I would say, it benefited me a
lot as it helped with my path, and I just grew from there and I moved on. I am in tech
now, away from history, and I am doing a lot of things that nowadays, with the digital
world, technology, and innovation, are really expanding throughout the world and so, I
am in a pretty good field.
Attending a Traditional 4-Year Institution
Three out of eight participants highlighted their concerns by attending a traditional 4-year
institution. In hindsight, they believe that there are other avenues that they could have taken. For
example, Alex shared that for her, as she reflected on her college degree, “I would say it was not
71
worth the investment. I think I could have received the same education somewhere else for much
cheaper and that is my perception of my college degree.”
Ryann was able to describe how the traditional college degree is simply a norm that
everyone must achieve with respect to future employment:
I think it just goes back to the idea that, especially in corporate America, it is standard
that everybody has at a very minimum, a bachelor’s degree and a college education.
Again, there are one-offs, but for the most part, what I have seen and what I feel is that at
very minimum, you have to have a bachelor’s degree and so I think that it has impacted
me professionally in that it gives me that ‘check off the box’ as that is what everybody
[employers] is looking for.
On the other hand, Kelly has a strong feeling about alternative options to attending a traditional
4-year institution to earn a degree by stating:
My personal feeling is that what I recommend to students who ask me what is my
opinion, I actually recommend the community college route because it will save them 2
years of tuition, and then they can transfer and get the same degree that they would have
received if they went 4 years at that institution. I do not think 4 years in one institution is
worth it at this time. I think it is if they started at a community college and they are
paying a tenth of the cost for the first 2 years, and then they transfer and then get the
name on their degree.
The Next Generation of Traditional College Students
This research study not only assisted me in the process of interviewing eight outstanding
individuals, each of whom were given the same set of questions where they were answered with
a great deal of thought and a genuine tone. However, as the interview questions were winding
72
down, I provided each of the eight individuals with an opportunity to share any additional
comments that they would like for me to know that we did not discuss during the interview. The
importance of this question turned out to be an insight as to where the future of traditional
college students may reside. Four out of the eight did not have any additional comments to share;
three out of the eight simply used that time to recap and clarify comments that they had made
prior. However, Sam was the only participant who used that time to provide their insights into
the future of higher education, a topic that they had not necessarily would have thought of prior
to this interview, and she articulated this by saying:
You know as you were asking the questions, one of the things that crossed my mind was,
you know, a good read as to whether or not I think my education has sort of paid off for
someone to ask me is, would I recommend that my son follow that exact same journey.
And the answer is, no. That may give you just a little bit of perspective, because it is just
something I was thinking as you were asking the questions, and yeah interesting to me
too where I thought that.
Summary
In this chapter, the findings were discussed within Shim et al.’s (2009) three domain
frameworks that served as the catalyst for this study. The fascinating part is that each of the eight
participants acknowledged in some form that obtaining an advanced degree was done without
hesitation by themselves or their family. Therefore, when it came to their financial well-being in
having accumulated student loans to support this, the uniformed response was that one would
have to make sacrifices to achieve their journey. With this information, I will present in Chapter
Five the recommendations, implications for practice, and limitations for this study.
73
Chapter Five: Final Discussion and Recommendations
This qualitative research study utilized Shim et al.’s (2009) student financial well-being
model as the framework to examine the financial well-being of first-generation, loan borrowing
college graduates from California. As outlined in Chapter Four, the findings of the study
demonstrated that parental sacrifices and determination for their first-generation children yielded
the academic notoriety of completing and earning a college education; however, the ROI and
aftermath suggests whether the price was worth it, based on internal and external factors. The
three domains that supported this model were:
1. Socialization agents and personal values.
2. Financial knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, and well-being.
3. Overall life success.
The eight participants for this study, as referenced in Table 1 in Chapter Four, provided a great
depth and perspective on this unique research study given their personal backgrounds and
academic journeys they completed. Through this study, emerging themes such as: parental
sacrifices and expectations; the perceptions of higher education; why is college important; the
effects of rising tuition costs; financial literacy; the value and worth of higher education; return
on investment; selecting an academic major; attending a traditional 4-year institution; and
finally, the next generation of college students.
The foundation of this study and the characteristics of Chapter Five were determined by
this study's research question of how do first-generation college graduates, with student loans
from a public college or university in California, perceive the continued rise of college tuition
and its impact on their financial well-being? With this research question in mind, paired with the
data collection and analysis that was conducted, this chapter will highlight the implications from
74
this study, the limitations that emerged, recommendations for practice and policy, along with
opportunities for future research as it relates to the financial well-being of first-generation, loan-
borrowing college graduates.
Discussion
The implications of this qualitative study in conjunction with Shim et al.’s (2009)
framework, specifically the three domains that were previously discussed, are the lens in which
this section is being discussed. The discussions range from the participants’ overall support
system through their academic journey; assessing whether college was worth the investment; the
need for advanced degrees; the American Dream; and finally, the outlook on continued education
as a result of external factors such as the pandemic and the global financial crises that have taken
place.
Participant’s Support System
The support system for each of the first-generation loan-borrowing participants stemmed
from a family that wanted a better opportunity for their child; there were no data that suggested
otherwise. The participants vividly reflected and shared the physical, economical, and emotional
sacrifices their parents made for them through the interviews. It was evident that from the
participant’s perspective, although their parents did not achieve academic success in their own
lives, they were determined to ensure their children naturally made the transition from high
school into college without any concern. The sheer will and determination that parents had with
their children in figuring it out with respect to financing their education is a true testament to the
value that they believe an education will bring for their family’s future. The family influence and
aspirational goals resonated with each of the interviewees in one way or another; the connection
of having a parent see their future ambitions, hopes, and dreams through their children’s eyes
75
when it comes to education speaks volumes that no matter race, gender, or ethnicity one may
have, the similarities to have a better future was evident.
Worth the Investment
In hindsight, when asked the participants if their college degree was worth the
investment, their answers varied from one another. The data suggested that choosing a major in
the field they aspired to may steer them to believe that college is worth the investment. However,
the ROI appeared to be a constant thought for each participant as they compared their
outstanding student loans and where they were professionally at in relation to their careers. As
Kelly eloquently stated, “You’re basically taking on a mortgage these days, and it’s pretty sad”
and so the financial constraint of a student loan affects one’s well-being, on top of being a first-
generation college graduate. According to Chamlou (2022), over the last 20 years, the cost of
college tuition rose more than any other United States consumer good or service where now a
college education is the second largest expense a person will likely ever make, right after buying
a house. Figure 2 illustrates that today’s college students face significantly higher costs than
prior generations at California public universities in relation to tuition costs and the inflationary
prices of housing and food.
In conducting the interviews for this qualitative study, the initial data from the screening
questionnaire supported the notion that college loan borrowers who were first-generation and
under the age of 40, were more than likely to be challenged by the outstanding loans and
repayment process (United States Federal Reserve, 2021) due to the extensive amount of tuition
that was needed to earn their degree(s). Therefore, the idea of higher education leading to a
higher level of income earned over a lifetime, have made it challenging for college graduates to
see positive long-term impacts by their choice to pursue a college education.
76
Advanced Degrees
Earning a master’s degree has become the norm with seven out of the eight participants
interviewed having earned one. The combination of whether they earned at least one of their
degrees from a public or private institution, the student loan process remained the same. In order
to become competitive in the future with one's professional career, accumulating student loan
debt is inevitable, with the exception of those being awarded a grant, scholarship, or perhaps
company reimbursement in an effort to subsidize the outstanding loan amount. Hymowitz (2021)
states that between 1980 and 2017, the share of adults with at least a 4-year college degree
doubled from 17% to 34% and the Great Recession from 2010 to 2019 intensified as well where
the percentage of people 25 and older with a bachelor’s degree or higher has increased as well.
However, interestingly enough, Hymowitz (2021) continues that at the same time, the college
degree is declining in status where a master’s degree is the new bachelor’s; by needing to further
one’s academic credentials, additional education has been needed and with that, an increase in
the amounts of taking out more student loans. This seemed to be evident in my findings as it
related to the participant Frank whose objective was to continue their education within the STEM
field for career advancement. Contrary to that approach was that of Blake who chose a career
change, thereby resulting in additional education for his own career advancement.
American Dream
Although the American Dream was not the primary focus of this study, its crux was
mirrored in the interviews conducted with the participants because the participants indicated that
their parents desired a better life for themselves and their children by advocating for them
obtaining a higher education; this was a common thread among each story. In the case of Blake,
whose parents immigrated to the United States after fleeing a war-zone genocide environment in
77
search of a better life and opportunity, I can surmise that this was their dream; having the grit,
determination, and sacrifices for their children to be able to use their education as a tool for
future success was the desired path, they had for him in the United States. Furthermore,
according to Ryann, the perspective of continuing her education was “part of my parents dreams
is to see me succeed” and that notion was horizontally integrated with a total of six out of the
eight participants who directly expressed their immigrant families.
Continued Education
Although seven out of the eight interviewed began their initial college journey prior to
the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, I can surmise that this crisis was an inflection point in what
would alter the participants future plans in some capacity. As Dickler (2023) mentions, when
there is an economic downturn, enrollment in graduate school picks up as employees take that
time to improve their skills or pivot to another industry. Even though college tuition rates were
increasing during that time prior to the crisis, as reflected in Figure 3, the employment and jobs
market were still competitive. However, after the crisis, which lasted for a few years, in an effort
to stay competitive, the participants needed to continue their education as was the case with
Blake. It is evident through this study’s findings, that a majority of the participants pursued a
master’s degree. In addition to the financial crisis, the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic also altered the
path of the participants in achieving financial success, but also affecting their well-being,
knowing that additional student loan debt was being accumulated. However, in the case with
Aaron, who earned their graduate degree during the beginning of the pandemic led to the pause
in repaying back his student loans. In this instance, the pandemic crisis has temporarily halted
the realization of one's future well-being once the repayment process commences.
78
Limitations
There were a few limitations that arose during this study on the financial well-being of
the college graduates with the first being the overall sample size for this study. Although I
achieved my goal that was initially set forth with the number of participants who were going to
be interviewed for this one-time study, there were voices of participants that were not explored.
For example, this study did not hear from those participants who went to college despite their
family not being supportive. In addition, perhaps exploring a group of students who were raised
in the foster care system, so their voices were not heard in this study. In addition, for this study
that consisted of the eight interviewed participants, a limitation with this group was not being
able to get participants who had only earned a bachelor’s degree for this study. Given today’s
environment, participants have earned advanced degrees, whether they were exclusively from a
public college or university in California, or a combination of participants earning a degree from
a private institution in California. The overall assessment was student loans were used to finance
their education. In addition, the concept of student loan debt is universal regardless of the
institution.
Another limitation of the study was when the initial dialogue began about identifying the
target audience for this study, how a participant interpreted being a first-generation student led to
some initial mixed reactions with colleagues. For example, is being a first-generation college
graduate being interpreted as someone as being the first in their family to go to college in the
United States? What if a parent earned a college degree from a non-United States institution, but
later immigrated to the United States to start a family and so, would that child who was born in
the United States be considered a first-generation college graduate? Finally, if an immigrant
parent comes to the United States, starts a family and also earns a college degree, will that child
79
be classified as being a first-generation student if they go to college? In this study, measures
were developed through the screening questionnaire to simplify in a binary format of whether a
participant considers themselves as being a first-generation college student.
In addition, five out of the seven participants earned at least one of their advanced
degrees at both a public and private institution in California. So, the amount of student loans
each of the participants had from this study was from the lens of their public institution only,
whether it was for their bachelor’s or master’s degrees. However, I was able to ascertain a sense
of emotional connection by each of the first-generation participants in that they evaluated their
overall student loan debt amount in the interview that took place regardless of which institution
they attended.
Finally, what was not as direct to each of the participants was whether they attended any
community college on their way to earning their academic degree(s). During the interview
process, two of the eight shared their community college journeys with me as a way for them and
their families to economically support their college aspirations. Had there been additional
dialogue on all institutions attended, that may have led to a different outlook for this study.
Recommendations
Based on the findings of this study, the following recommendations are made regarding
future research, policy, and practice in this area.
Recommendations for Future Research
It would be worth exploring how the results of this study were looked at from the lens of
a second-generation college student, loan borrowing college graduate in California as well in
additional states. I am interested to learn more about the possible additional knowledge and
financial literacy from their college graduate parents, exploring the resources and exposure the
80
second-generation college student may have in assessing their financial student loans to attend
college. Additional research may also be helpful to focus on undergraduate college loan
borrowers from public 4-year colleges or universities in comparison to undergraduate college
loan borrowers from private 4-year colleges or universities. In addition, exploring the variance in
one’s financial well-being in attending college from the lens of those who identify themselves as
coming from a low-income background versus one from a middle-income background as well.
Given the social climate of the COVID-19 pandemic, understanding the financial well-
being and the impact this may have on someone post-pandemic and how one may view the
desires and outlook on education is an area for future consideration. Lastly, examining the
financial well-being approach on transfer students from a community college to a 4-year
university, and how they perceive their college experience, given that financial constraints would
have been reduced by having attended a community college.
Recommendations for Policy
With college tuition rising, anyone requesting student loans, whether public or private,
must first complete an online course directly from FAFSA or in collaboration from the institution
on what it means to accept loans and, more importantly, the repayment process. This online
module must be completed by not only the individual, but if they are a minor, the individual
parents themselves or anyone who is a co-signer on the loan. The reality is that college students
enroll in college, take out loans, some may drop out for various reasons, and some may choose a
major that may or may not align with their career interests. As a result, college students may
default on their educational loans due to a lack of understanding of how credit-based interest on
the loan is calculated; for these individuals, defaulting on their loans may pose to be a difficult
path to overcome for the individual and their future aspirational goals. If measures are not
81
addressed with how loans work from a financial literacy lens, the concern remains; students may
not be aware that they may be able to take advantage of the various repayments plans available
to them because they do not know about them. Jiménez and Glater (2020) highlight, companies
that service student loans for the Department of Education may not provide the necessary
information needed to its borrowers, thereby creating a gap in information. Developing more
clear mechanisms by both the federal government and service loan providers in the entire loan
process is being recommended as a possible solution to this issue, with the understand that
currently, the loan forgiveness dialogue remains within the United States Supreme Court for
review.
Recommendations for Practice
In this section, I will provide recommendations for practitioners as it relates to advising
students on their academic major and career connection as well as the ability of the financial aid
offices’ utilization of artificial intelligence technology in supporting college students.
Academic Major and Career Connections
As young adults begin their educational and professional careers, having the proper
guidance and understanding of what college majors to choose is critical to the success of the
student. There are institutions where an applicant must choose which school within the
university, they would be applying to in order to gain acceptance; while other institutions have it
where students apply to the university only and have the option to choose their major later. In the
latter part, this provides the student their traditional first 2 years in college, where they are
required to take their general education courses and then choose a college major. For example,
unless an individual knows from the outset that they know which field they want to study,
whether that means taking courses and selecting a major that guides them to becoming an
82
engineer, doctor, lawyer, or an academic professor, these fields tend to require certain credentials
that need to be earned. There are groups of individuals who are undecided and end up choosing a
college major just to graduate with a bachelor's degree who end up in a completely different
professional career. For instance, when it comes to a student picking a degree related to a
particular vocation, I advise practitioners and institutions to put more emphasis on tying
academic and career exploration together. College students can benefit from this inquiry and
career planning by having a clearer understanding and direction for their future steps, including
their college major, internships, and potential job prospects after graduation. Finally, an
additional recommendation for first-generation college students to consider, since tuition costs
might continue to be of concern, is to explore the idea of attending community college as a fiscal
benefit towards saving money on tuition as there are programs students can take advantage of
such as the California College Promise Grant where enrollment fees can be waived and provide
assistance for the purchase of books and supplies as needed (California Community Colleges,
2023), regardless of one’s income status all the while being mindful that first-generation students
have a higher likelihood of graduating if they go straight to a 4-year institution.
Financial Aid Offices and Artificial Intelligence.
There appears to have been a disparity for the participants' experiences regarding the
Financial Aid Office (FAO) at their respective institutions in terms of understanding the student
loan process. Aaron highlighted that during his undergraduate studies, he and his parents went to
FAO during his freshman year where they sat down with a counselor and laid out what the
tuition bill would be and the due dates to pay. Then, with Aaron’s master’s degree, “it was a
worse experience” as this was a public institution, but felt a lot less support, likely due to the
assumption that he was an adult and the information about loans is on the website and to simply
83
apply to FAFSA. Given the organizational structure of an institution’s FAO, whether it is at the
university level or specifically at the school level, personnel staffing may be a challenge in
supporting students. According to the National Association of Student Financial Aid
Administrators (NASFAA) benchmarking report of 2019, the average school has 12 full-time
employees, but only 2.5 to serve every 1,000 aid applicants (2019), and so bridging the gap is an
opportunity by introducing technology.
Adopting instruments such as artificial intelligence (AI) by the institution can assist a
student in not only the ratio of access to information on financial aid, but also being able to
comprehend the complexity of the loan process through the usage of sophisticated chatbots.
College leaders have learned that AI can do many tasks to address ongoing persistent challenges
that schools face, one of which is related to financial aid (Nietzel, 2022) and so, embracing
technology may be a tactic used to enhance a prospective student’s awareness and visibility
surrounding their financial options and obligations while attending college. Therefore, these
chatbots can be tailored to the student's profile and deliver particular findings, such as if the
student is eligible for income-driven loan repayment options depending on the provided
information. Perhaps these advances can help with long-term planning and increase financial
literacy awareness, especially for first-generation loan borrowers.
Given the lack of financial aid awareness, it is even more important that college and
university financial aid offices work to provide better access to resources for first-generation
college students who are potential loan borrowers. This information should be more than the
one-hour requirement for college loan borrowers and exit counseling. FAO should take more of a
proactive approach to providing financial literacy to their college students from the time they
learn they are committed to the college or university. College students should be equipped with
84
the necessary information about scholarships, grants, federal work-study programs and loan
programs that are available to them and the benefits of each, along with the consequences or
long-term impacts of loan borrowing, along with over borrowing.
Conclusion
This study confirmed that the financial well-being of first-generation college graduates
was met with challenges and sacrifices that resonated beyond the student, but with their families
as well. While participants indicated that the return on their investment has not fully paid off by
following a traditional academic path by attending a 4-year institution, their outstanding student
loans loom heavily in the minds, whether they choose to accept it or not. However, in this
academic game of life, going to college to get an education, earning those academic credentials
with the aspirations of then obtaining a valuable career is ultimately the goal. However, the
question will remain, how much is someone willing to pay to play the game?
85
Chapter Six: Epilogue
I felt obligated to emphasize and illustrate the highly sensitive and personal stories that
eight remarkable people revealed with me after I had the chance and privilege to interview them
for this dissertation study. Despite being both first-generation and a college graduate from an
institution in California myself, I found that when the interviews were being recorded, I started
to get emotional with a few of the participants because I realized that I had suppressed my
reactions and feelings throughout the interview. I gave myself at least ten minutes to sit in
silence once each interview was finished so that I could think about what they had shared. The
sacrifices the parents made to establish a brighter future for their children struck a chord with
me; their bravery and determination helped me realize that everything is possible if one is
sincerely committed to have a plan and follow it through. As a result of my observations of the
individuals who were interviewed, I feel that many first-generation college students possess traits
such as resourcefulness, hard work, resilience, determination, and a commitment to persevere no
matter the financial cost; they will find a way to get it done knowing that that are potentially
beginning one step behind and needing to catch up with everyone else. Having the ability to earn
an academic degree that ultimately eclipsed the prior generation for various reasons was
something that no matter the participant’s gender or ethnic background they came from, there
came to be many more similarities than differences amongst individuals and for that, I felt
honored to hear those stories from the participants.
86
References
Aina, C., Baici, E., Casalone, G., & Pastore, F. (2021). The determinants of university dropout:
A review of the socio-economic literature. Socio-Economic Planning Sciences.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.seps.2021.101102
Barone, A. (2022). What is the American dream? Investopedia.
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/american-dream.asp
Baum, S., & Looney, A. (2020). Who owes the most in student loans: New data from the fed.
Brookings Institute. https://www.brookings.edu/blog/up-front/2020/10/09/who-owes-the-
most-in-student-loans-new-data-from-the-fed/
Baum, S. & O’Malley, M. (2003). College on credit: How borrowers perceive their education
debt. Journal of Student Financial Aid, 33(3), Article 1.
https://ir.library.louisville.edu/jsfa/vol33/iss3/1
Bidwell, A. (2015). College students becoming less financially responsible. US News
and World Report. https://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/data-mine/2015/04/02/college-
students-becoming-less-financially-responsible-study-says
Bolognesi, A., Hasler, A., & Lusardi, A. (2020). Millennials and money: Financial preparedness
and money management practices before COVID-19. TIAA Institute in Research
Dialogue. Issue no. 167. https://www.tiaa.org/public/institute/publication/2020/
millennials-and-money-0
Burkhard, M., & Madden, J. (2019). Buckling under debt and a lack of financial knowledge,
college students feel toll of financial stress. Business Wire via Bloomberg.
https://www.bloomberg.com/press-releases/2019-05-29/buckling-under-debt-and-a-lack-
of-financial-knowledge-college-students-feel-toll-of-financial-stress
87
Campos, P. F. (2015). The real reason college tuition costs so much. The New York Times.
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/05/opinion/sunday/the-real-reason-college-tuition-
costs-so-much.html
Caldwell, M. (2021). Four ways student loans are bad for you and how to fix them. The Balance.
https://www.thebalance.com/ways-your-student-loans-hurt-you-4026671
California Community Colleges. (2023). California college promise grant. California Community
Colleges. https://www.cccapply.org/en/money/california-college-promise-grant
California Legislative Analyst’s Office. (2020). Higher education analysis. The 2020-2021
budget. Legislative Analyst’s Office – The California Legislature’s Nonpartisan Fiscal
and Policy Advisor. https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4168
California Student Aid Commission. (2022). What is a Cal grant award? California Student Aid
Commission. https://www.csac.ca.gov/post/what-cal-grant-award
Chamlou, N. (2022). Why is college so expensive? Affordable Colleges.
https://www.affordablecollegesonline.org/college-resource-center/news/what-factors-are-
driving-rising-college-costs/
Chan, M., Kwon, J., Nguyen, D. Saunders, K. M., Shah, N., & Smith, K. N. (2020). National
trends in federal student loan borrowing by income group and first-generation status.
Association for Institutional Research. Spring 2020. ERIC.
https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED606752
Chen, J. (2022). Millennials: Finances, investing, and retirement. Investopedia.
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/m/millennial.asp
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. (2021). Do student loans affect my credit score?
https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/do-student-loans-affect-
88
my-credit-score-en-581/
Cooper, P. (2021). Is college worth it? A comprehensive return on investment analysis. The
Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity. https://freopp.org/is-college-worth-it-a-
comprehensive-return-on-investment-analysis-1b2ad17f84c8
Creswell, J. W. (2006). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five
approaches (2nd ed.). Sage.
Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2018). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed
methods approach. (5th ed.). Sage.
Department of Justice. (2022). Title IX of the education amendments of 1972. The United States
Department of Justice. https://www.justice.gov/crt/title-ix-education-amendments-1972
Dickler. J. (2023). With a possible recession looming, here’s how to decide if you should go
back to school. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/25/with-a-recession-looming-
how-to-decide-if-you-should-to-go-back-to-school.html
Dickler, J., & Nova, A. (2022). This is how student loan debt became a $1.7 trillion crisis.
CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2022/05/06/this-is-how-student-loan-debt-became-a-
1point7-trillion-crisis.html
Ed. (2021). Supporting first-generation and low-income students beyond the college acceptance
letter. Ed Home Room – The official blog of the United States Department of Education.
https://blog.ed.gov/2021/04/supporting-first-generation-low-income-students-beyond-
college-acceptance-letter/
European University College Association. (2022). Who we are. European University College
Association. https://www.euca.eu/
Fan, L., & Henager, R. (2022). A structural determinants framework for financial well-being.
89
Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 43, 415–428.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-021-09798-w
Fanzeres, J. (2020). United States college students on covid gap years are taking big financial
risks. Bloomberg Wealth. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-11-07/u-s-
college-students-on-covid-gap-years-are-taking-big-financial-risks
Federal Student Aid (2022). About us. Federal Student Aid: An Office of the United States
Department of Education. https://studentaid.gov/about
Fernando, J. (2022). What is inflation? Investopedia.
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/i/inflation.asp#what-is-inflation
Fernando, J. (2023). Financial literacy: What it is, and why it is so important. Investopedia.
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/financial-literacy.asp
Festa, M. M., Holderness, D., Neidermeyer, A. A., & Neidermeyer, P. E. (2019). The impact of
financial-aid format on students’ collegiate financing decisions. Journal of Financial
Counseling and Planning, 30(1), 27–43. https://doi.org/10.18991/1052-3073.30.1.27
FinAid. (2021). Tuition inflation. FinAid. https://finaid.org/savings/tuition-inflation/
Financial Student Aid. (2022). Student loan delinquency and default. Federal Student Aid, an
Office of the United States Department of Education. https://studentaid.gov/manage-
loans/default
Financial Student Aid. (2022a). About us. Federal Student Aid – An Office of the United States
Department of Education. https://studentaid.gov/about
Financial Student Aid. (2022b). Who gets aid. Federal Student Aid – An Office of the United
States Department of Education. https://studentaid.gov/understand-aid/eligibility
Financial Student Aid. (2022c). Interest rate on direct consolidation loan. Federal Student Aid –
90
An Office of the United States Department of Education.
https://studentaid.gov/helpcenter/answers/article/interest
Financial Student Aid. (2022d). Cost of attendance. Federal Student Aid, an Office of the United
States Department of Education. https://fsapartners.ed.gov/knowledge-center/fsa-
handbook/2020-2021/vol3/ch2-cost-attendance-budget
Financial Student Aid. (2022e). Income-driven repayment plans. Federal Student Aid, an Office
of the United States Department of Education.
https://studentaid.gov/manageloans/repayment/plans/income-driven
Financial Student Aid. (2022f). Discharge due to death. Federal Student Aid, an Office of the
United States Department of Education. https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/forgiveness-
cancellation/death
Financial Student Aid. (2022g). Repaying loans. Federal Student Aid, an Office of the United
States Department of Education. https://studentaid.gov/help-
center/answers/article/difference-between-deferment-and-forbearance
Financial Student Aid. (2022h). Public service loan forgiveness. Federal Student Aid, an Office
of the United States Department of Education. https://studentaid.gov/manage-
loans/forgiveness-cancellation/public-service
Fry, R. (2021). First-generation college graduates lag behind their peers on key economic
outcomes. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2021/05/18/
first-generation-college-graduates-lag-behind-their-peers-on-key-economic-outcomes/
#the-household-incomes-of-first-generation-college-graduates-lag-those-of-other-
graduates
Galloway, K. (2022). Here’s how much student loan debt Californians owe as Biden hints at
91
forgiveness. NBC News Los Angeles. https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/california-
news/student-loan-debt-california-biden/2882343/
Garcia-Mata, O., & Zeron-Felix, M. (2022). A review of the theoretical foundations of financial
well-being. International Review of Economics, 69(2), 145–176.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12232-022-00389-1
Giovanetti, E. (2022). Money is the top reason why students are dropping out of college, study
finds. Fox Business. https://www.foxbusiness.com/personal-finance/students-drop-out-of-
college-financial-reasons
Girouard, J. E. (2018). How student debt is destroying the economy and how we can stop it in its
tracks. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/investor/2018/11/08/how-student-debt-is-
destroying-the-economy-and-how-we-can-stop-it-in-its-tracks/?sh=117bf2656619
Glesne, C. (2011). Becoming qualitative researchers, an introduction (4th ed.). Pearson.
Gold, H. R. (2019). Who’s at fault for student-loan defaults? Chicago Booth Review.
https://www.chicagobooth.edu/review/whos-fault-student-loan-defaults
Gonzalez-Lavery, Y. (2022). Research Wednesday: Finances and the first-generation college
student. Association for Financial Counseling & Planning Education.
https://www.afcpe.org/news-and-publications/blog/finances-first-gen-student/
Hair, C. (2015). Student spending becoming increasingly reckless. USA Today.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/college/2015/04/06/student-spending-becoming-
increasingly-reckless/37401893/
Hall, S. (2021). The students funneled into for-profit colleges. The Century Foundation.
https://tcf.org/content/report/students-funneled-profit-colleges/
Hanson, M. (2021). College degree return on investment. Education Data Initiative.
92
https://educationdata.org/college-degree-roi
Hanson, M. (2022). Average cost of college & tuition. Education Data Initiative.
https://educationdata.org/average-cost-of-college
Hew, N. (2023). International students are slowly returning to the US. Study International.
https://www.studyinternational.com/news/returning-to-the-us/
Hymowitz, K. (2021). More students than ever chase a graduate degree — and society is
suffering. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2021/08/14/more-students-
chasing-graduate-degrees-isnt-good-for-society/
Iramani, R., & Lutfi, L. (2021). An integrated model of well-being: The role of financial
behavior. Accounting Quarterly Publication, 7(3), 691–700.
https://doi.org/10.5267/j.ac.2020.12.007
Jiménez, D., & Glater, J.D. (2020). Student debt is a civil rights issue: The case for debt relief
and higher education reform. Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review, 55(1),
131–198. https://heinonline.org/
Johnson, H., Murphy, P., Weston, M., & Cook, K. (2014). Higher education in California:
Institutional costs. Public Policy Institute of California.
https://www.ppic.org/publication/higher-education-in-california-institutional-costs/
Joubert, S. (2020). 10 benefits of having a college degree. Northeastern University.
https://www.northeastern.edu/bachelors-completion/news/is-a-bachelors-degree-worth-it/
Kantrowitz, M. (2021). Student loan 101: What is a debt-to-income ratio? Saving for College.
https://www.savingforcollege.com/article/student-loan-101-what-is-debt-to-income-ratio
Keon, T. L., (2019). Why do first-generation college students fall behind their peers? Chicago
Tribune. https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/post-tribune/opinion/ct-ptb-keon-
93
guest-column-st-0207-story.html
Kim, J., & Chatterjee, S. (2019). Student loans, health, and life satisfaction of US households:
Evidence from a panel study. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 40(1), 36–50.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-018-9594-3
Knox, L. (2022). Gauging COVID’s impact on internationalization. Inside Higher Ed.
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2022/11/03/report-pandemic-stymied-higher-ed-
internationalization
Kritt, E. (2017). Buying a home? The first step is to check your credit. Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau. https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/buying-home-first-
step-check-your-credit/
Kuehl, K. (2020). Can an employer deny me a job because of my bad credit? Upsolve.
https://upsolve.org/learn/bad-credit-denied-job/
Landy, B. (2013). How rising student debt is preventing millennials from becoming
homeowners. The Century Foundation. https://tcf.org/content/commentary/graph-how-
rising-student-debt-is-preventing-millennials-from-becoming-homeowners/?session=1
Lane, R. (2022). Debt-to-income ratio for student loan refinance. NerdWallet.
https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/loans/student-loans/debt-to-income-ratio-student-
loan-refinance
Leonhardt, M. (2021). For many older millennials, student loan debt delayed buying homes,
starting families and pursuing creative careers. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/
2021/04/06/student-loans-affected-older-millennials-homes-families-careers.html
Levin, A. (2013). 5 ways student loans hurt middle-class kids. Student loans can do more harm
than good. ABC News. https://abcnews.go.com/Business/ways-student-loans-hurt-
94
middle-class-kids/story?id=19249554
Lochmiller, C. R., & Lester, J. N. (2017). An introduction to educational research: Connecting
methods to practice. Sage.
Long, H., & Douglas-Gabriel, D. (2020). The latest crisis: low-income students are dropping out
of college this fall in alarming numbers. The Washington Post.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/09/16/college-enrollment-down/
Loudenback, T. (2016). International students are now ‘subsidizing’ public American
universities to the tune of $9 billion a year. Business Insider.
https://www.businessinsider.com/foreign-students-pay-up-to-three-times-as-much-for-
tuition-at-us-public-colleges-2016-9
Loveless, B. (2021). Benefits of earning a college degree. Education Corner.
https://www.educationcorner.com/benefit-of-earning-a-college-degree.html
Maldonado, C. (2018). Price of college increasing almost 8 times faster than wages. Forbes.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/camilomaldonado/2018/07/24/price-of-college-increasing-
almost-8-times-faster-than-wages/?sh=210b6ca366c1
Maxwell, J. A. (2013). Qualitative research design, an interactive approach. (3rd ed.). Sage.
McConnell-Henry, T., Chapman, Y., & Francis, K. (2009). Husserl and Heidegger: Exploring
the disparity. International Journal of Nursing Practice, 15(1), 7–15.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1440-172X.2008.01724.x
Merriam, S., & Tisdell, E. J. (2016). Qualitative research: A guide to design and
implementation. (4th ed.). Jossey-Bass.
Mitchell, M. Leachman, M., & Saenz, M. (2019). State higher education funding cuts have
95
pushed costs to students, worsened inequality. Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
https://www.cbpp.org/research/state-budget-and-tax/state-higher-education-funding-cuts-
have-pushed-costs-to-students
Minsky, A. S. (2022). Biden may extend loan pause and is considering loan forgiveness, says
white house official. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamminsky/
2022/03/03/biden-may-extend-student-loan-pause-and-is-considering-loan-forgiveness-
says-white-house-official/?sh=235799f51ee0
Moody, J. (2019). How to avoid dropping out of college. US News & World Report.
https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/2019-03-20/dropping-out-
of-college-why-students-do-so-and-how-to-avoid-it
Morris, C. (2020). Can you get a job with bad credit? Experian.
https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/can-you-get-a-job-with-bad-credit/
Nadworny, E. (2019). These are the people struggling the most to pay back student loans.
National Public Radio. https://www.npr.org/2019/07/09/738985632/
these-are-the-people-struggling-the-most-to-pay-back-student-loans
National Archives. (2022). Servicemen’s Readjustment Act (1944). National Archives.
https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/servicemens-readjustment-act
National Association of Colleges and University Business Officers. (2021). Federal aid
programs. National Association of Colleges and University Business Officers.
https://www.nacubo.org/Advocacy/Issues/Ed-Regs/Federal-Aid-Programs
National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. (2019). 2019 NASFAA
benchmarking report. Key factors that impact financial aid office salaries, staff size,
administrative capacity, and campus relations. National Association of Student Financial
96
Aid Administrators. https://www.collegeaidservices.net/wp-
content/uploads/2019/10/2019_Benchmarking_Report.pdf.
National Association of Student Personnel Administrators. (2022). Defining first-generation:
Center for first-generation student success. NASPA: Student Affairs Administrators in
Higher Education. https://firstgen.naspa.org/blog/defining-first-generation
National Center for Education Statistics. (2022). National Center for Education Statistics.
https://nces.ed.gov/
National Center for Education Statistics. (2022a). Fast facts. National Center for Education
Statistics. https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=40
National Information Center for Higher Education Policymaking and Analysis (2018).
http://www.higheredinfo.org/
Nietzel, M. T. (2020). New evidence documents that a college degree pays off – by a lot. Forbes.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaeltnietzel/2020/01/15/new-evidence-documents-that-
a-college-degree-pays-off-by-a-lot/?sh=672cdc223a98
Nietzel, M. T. (2022). How colleges are using artificial intelligence to improve enrollment and
retention. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaeltnietzel/2022/10/01/colleges-are-
turning-to-artificial-intelligence-to-improve-enrollment-and-retention/?sh=4cdec8341285
Noguchi, Y. (2019). Heavy student loan debt forces many millennials to delay buying a home.
NPR. https://www.npr.org/2019/02/01/689660957/heavy-student-loan-debt-forces-many-
millennials-to-delay-buying-homes
Nova, A. (2022). Education department forgives $415 million in student debt for borrowers who
attended for-profit schools. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/17/education-
department-forgives-415-million-in-private-student-debt-.html
97
Nykiel, T., & O’Shea, B. (2021). How do student loans affect your credit score? NerdWallet.
https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/loans/student-loans/do-student-loans-affect-your-
credit.
Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation methods. (3rd ed.). Sage.
Pell. (2022). The early history of the higher education act of 1965. The Pell Institute – for the
Study of Opportunity in Higher Education. http://www.pellinstitute.org/
Pew Charitable Trusts. (2020). Borrowers discuss the challenges of student loan repayment. The
Pew Charitable Trusts. https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-
analysis/reports/2020/05/borrowers-discuss-the-challenges-of-student-loan-repayment
Pitre, P. E. (2004). College choice in context: Toward a K-16 education policy approach to
college for all (EJ848208). Journal of Educational Research & Policy Studies, 4(1), 15–
25. ERIC. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ848208
Portis, T. (2020). The supposed great equalizer: Student loans and their impact on African-
American students. Strategic Enrollment Management Quarterly, 8(1), 51–58.
https://www.proquest.com/
Potter, D., Jayne, D., & Britt, S. (2020). Financial anxiety among college students: The role of
Generational status. Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning, 31 (2).
https://doi.org/10.1891/JFCP-17-00033
Powell, F., Kerr, E., & Woods, S. (2020). What you need to know about college tuition costs.
United States News & World Report. https://www.usnews.com/education/best-
colleges/paying-for-college/articles/what-you-need-to-know-about-college-tuition-costs
Prawitz, A. D., Garman, E. T., Sorhaindo, B., O’Neill, B., Kim, J., & Drentea, P. (2006).
Incharge financial distress/financial well-being scale: Development, administration, and
98
score interpretation. Association for Counseling and Planning Education. 17(1), 34-50.
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2239338
Preston, C. (2019). When a college degree is no longer a ticket to the middle class. The
Hechinger Report: Covering Innovation and Inequality in Education.
https://hechingerreport.org/when-a-college-degree-is-no-longer-a-ticket-to-the-middle-
class/
Rodriguez, C. (2021). College interrupted. Many students chose to take time off instead of
remote learning during the coronavirus pandemic. CNBC.
https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/09/many-college-students-chose-time-off-over-remote-
learning-during-covid.html
Rose, A., (2019). The cost of college, then and now. California Budget & Policy Center.
https://calbudgetcenter.org/blog/the-cost-of-college-then-and-now/
Sackstein, S. (2019). Why has the cost of college outpaced inflation? Education Week.
https://www.edweek.org/leadership/opinion-why-has-the-cost-of-college-outpaced-
inflation/2019/04
Saldana, J. (2016). The coding manual for quantitative researchers. (3rd ed). Sage.
Salhotra, P. (2022). A growing number of Americans are questioning the value of going to
college. National Public Radio. https://www.npr.org/2022/07/26/1113816868/
more-americans-are-questioning-whether-college-has-a-positive-impact
Santarelli, M. (2023). California housing market: Prices, trends, forecast 2023. Norada Real
Estate Investments. https://www.noradarealestate.com/blog/california-housing-market/
Scott, R. A. (2019). Why does college costs so much when inflation is so low? HigherEdJobs.
https://www.higheredjobs.com/articles/articledisplay.cfm?ID=1807
99
Seidman, I. E. (1991). Interviewing as qualitative research: A guide for researchers in education
and the social sciences. Teachers College Press.
Sherman, E. (2020). College tuition is rising at twice the inflation rate – while students learn at
home. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/zengernews/2020/08/31/college-tuition-is-
rising-at-twice-the-inflation-rate-while-students-learn-at-home/?sh=23a17fa62f98
Shim, S., Xiao, J.J., Barber, B.L & Lyons, A.C. (2009). Pathways to life success: A conceptual
model of financial well-being for young adults. Journal of Applied Developmental
Psychology, 30(6), 708–723. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2009.02.003
Siripuarpu, A., & Speier, M. (2021). Is rising student debt harming the United States economy?
Council on Foreign Relations. https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/rising-student-debt-
harming-us-economy
Squires, A. (2016). Confused about your student loans? You’re not alone. National Public Radio.
https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2016/02/07/465556666/confused-about-your-student-
loans-youre-not-alone
Standlee, A. (2019). Supporting first-generation students. Inside Higher Ed.
https://www.insidehighered.com/views/2019/04/11/policies-and-practices-help-first-
generation-college-students-succeed-opinion
Stebbins, S. (2022). How the cost of living in California compares in the nation. 24/7 Wall
Street. https://247wallst.com/state/how-the-cost-of-living-in-california-compares-to-the-
nation/
Stephens, N., & Townsend, S., (2019). The unseen reason working-class students drop out.
Politico. https://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2019/01/16/first-generation-low-
income-students-drop-out-000873/
100
United Healthcare Services. (2022). Understanding financial well-being.
https://www.uhc.com/health-and-wellness/health-topics/financial-well-being
United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2021). Consumer price index. United States Bureau of
Labor Statistics. https://www.bls.gov/cpi/
United States Department of Education. (2021). Supporting first-generation and low-income
students beyond the college acceptance letter. The United States Department of
Education. https://blog.ed.gov/2021/04/supporting-first-generation-low-income-students-
beyond-college-acceptance-letter/
United States Federal Reserve. (2021). Report on the economic well-being of United States
households in 2020-May 2021. United States Federal Reserve.
https://www.federalreserve.gov/
publications/2021-economic-well-being-of-us-households-in-2020-student-loans.htm
United States Senate. (2022). Sputnik spurs passage of the national defense education act.
United States Senate. https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/
Sputnik_Spurs_Passage_of_National_Defense_Education_Act.htm
Wadia, J. (2019). Rising tuition costs and the history of student loans. Student Debt Relief.
https://www.studentdebtrelief.us/news/rising-tuition-costs-and-the-history-of-student-
loans/
Ward, M. (2022). Only have of Americans think public higher education is worth the cost of
tuition. University Business. https://universitybusiness.com/survey-reveals-americans-
views-on-the-state-of-public-higher-education/
Webber, M. R. (2022). What is a payday loan? How it works, how to get one, and legality.
Investopedia. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/payday-loans.asp
101
Wells Fargo. (2022). What is a good debt-to-income ratio? Wells Fargo.
https://www.wellsfargo.com/goals-credit/smarter-credit/credit-101/debt-to-income-
ratio/understanding-dti/
Williams, T. (2021). 10 ways student debt can derail your life. Investopedia.
https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/100515/10-ways-student-debt-
can-destroy-your-life.asp
Williams, T. (2022). Six requirements to buy a house. Investopedia.
https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/091415/5-financial-prerequisites-
buying-house.asp
Wong, N. (2021). New data show recent graduates who received Pell Grants left school with $6
billion more in debt than their peers. The Institute for College Access & Success.
https://ticas-org.medium.com/new-data-show-recent-graduates-who-received-pell-grants-
left-school-with-6-billion-more-in-debt-660022973b55
Wood, S. (2019). New survey finds college students lack financial literacy. Diverse: Issues in
Higher Education. https://www.diverseeducation.com/students/article/15105068/new-
survey-finds-college-students-lack-financial-literacy
Zaloom, C. (2019). How the student debt complex is crushing the next generation of Americans.
Time. https://time.com/5712504/student-debt-complex-harms-america/
102
List of Figures
Figure 2
Average Annual Tuition, Fees, Housing Costs
103
Figure 3
Consumer Price Index: 12-Month Percentage Change
104
Figure 4
College Tuition Versus Inflation
105
Appendix A: Screening Questionnaire
This screening questionnaire serves two purposes:
1. With the use of skip logic, filter out individuals who do not meet the qualification for
this survey, beginning with being a first-generation college student.
2. Provide demographic background information on the participants.
Qualtrics Link: https://usc.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_29IGbrljSmiG3oW
(Note: please clear the cache from your internet browser prior to using the link)
106
107
108
109
110
Appendix B: Recruitment E-mail to Participants
Dear [Name],
I hope this e-mail finds you well.
My name is Bobby Patsios, and I am a current doctoral candidate in the Rossier School of
Education at the University of Southern California. As part of my dissertation, I am conducting a
research study, and you have been identified as a potential candidate.
This study aims to analyze how first-generation college graduates with student loans from a
public college or university in California perceive the continued rise of college tuition and its
impact on their financial well-being.
If you are willing to help in this study, below is a link to a Qualtrics survey to fill out; the
information will also include detailed information about the participant's involvement,
confidentiality, as well as compensation:
https://usc.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_29IGbrljSmiG3oW
If you have any questions, please contact me directly at patsios@usc.edu.
Thank you,
Bobby P. Patsios
IRB Approval #UP-22-00759
--
Bobby P. Patsios, MBA
Doctoral Candidate - Educational Leadership (EDL)
USC Rossier School of Education
University of Southern California
111
Appendix C: Recruitment Flyer
112
Appendix D: Information Sheet
INFORMATION SHEET FOR EXEMPT RESEARCH
University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education
Waite Phillips Hall
3470 Trousdale Parkway
Los Angeles, CA 90089
STUDY TITLE: Understanding How the Continued Rise in College Tuition Through a
Qualitative Study May Uncover How First-Generation, Loan-Borrowing Graduates Perceive
College and their Financial Well-Being.
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Bobby P. Patsios, Ed.D. Candidate
FACULTY ADVISOR: Sheila Bañuelos, Ed.D.
You are invited to participate in a research study. Your participation is voluntary. This document
explains information about this study. You should ask questions about anything that is unclear to
you.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this study is to attempt to understand how much academic financial literacy
knowledge first-generation, loan borrowing college graduates have after attending a higher
educational institution, given the continued rise in college tuition over the rate of inflation. We
hope to learn how best to make one who attended college aware of their student loan repayment
process and how defaulting on a loan can cause significant long-term challenges to one’s
identity. You are invited as a possible participant because you are a first-generation, loan
borrowing college graduate from a public institute in California.
PARTICIPANT INVOLVEMENT
The method of conducting interviews with the eligible participants will primarily be done online
using the preferred service, Zoom. With Zoom, the ability to enable the live transcript feature
will provide a full transcription of the interview. The option of interviewing with the webcam on
or off within Zoom will be at the discretion of the participant. The interview with each
participant will be scheduled to last approximately between 45 – 60 minutes. Participants will
have the opportunity to decline the use of an audio/video recording, and which point the
interview participation will continue without it. If you decide to take part, you will be asked to
set aside no more than 60 minutes and be available for an online Zoom interview. Having access
to a stable internet connection is recommended for the duration of the interview.
113
PAYMENT/COMPENSATION FOR PARTICIPATION
At the conclusion of the research study, once the interview has been completed, a digital
Amazon gift card in the amount of $25.00 will be e-mailed to you as compensation for your
participation in this dissertation research study.
CONFIDENTIALITY
The members of the research team and the University of Southern California Institutional
Review Board (IRB) may access the data. The IRB reviews and monitors research studies to
protect the rights and welfare of research subjects.
When the results of the research are published or discussed in conferences, no identifiable
information will be used; should the research study lead to this, pseudonyms will be assigned to
give anonymity to the person, group, or place.
Any identifiable information pertaining to this study (e.g., audio/video recordings, documents, e-
mails) will be reside in a password protected folder in the cloud for safekeeping. The data will be
kept for up to 3 months after the dissertation has been published within ProQuest signaling the
end of the study. After 3 months, the documents from this study will be deleted from the cloud.
At any point during the dissertation process, the participant will have the opportunity to
review/edit the audio/video recordings and transcripts to ensure accurate information was
captured. Besides the researcher, no other person shall have access to the information.
If there is a break of confidentiality, for whatever the reason, the participant will be notified
immediately via e-mail/phone.
INVESTIGATOR CONTACT INFORMATION
If you have any questions about this study, please contact Bobby P. Patsios, Ed.D. candidate at
patsios@usc.edu or Sheila Bañuelos, Ed.D. at smsanche@usc.edu.
IRB CONTACT INFORMATION
If you have any questions about your rights as a research participant, please contact the
University of Southern California Institutional Review Board at (323) 442-0114 or e-mail
irb@usc.edu.
114
Appendix E: Interview Protocol
First and foremost, thank you for taking the time out of your schedule to participate in
this interview today. My role is to serve as the interviewer for this study. I am a current doctoral
student at the University of Southern California conducting research in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the degree of Doctorate in Higher Education Administration. You were
identified for this interview because of the characteristics that you possess that closely relates to
this study.
I would like to reiterate that your participation is voluntary, and you may stop at any time
and do not need to answer all questions if you feel uncomfortable. The information being shared
during this interview will be kept as confidential as possible. I will ask you to review the
information study sheet ahead of time and select a pseudonym that I will use instead of your real
name. To obtain an accurate transcript of this interview, I will enable the transcribe feature
within Zoom to provide a full transcript of your conversation. You may want to turn off your
video if you do not want to be video recorded. Do I have your permission to audio record our
interview?
The purpose of this study is to gain a better understanding of your perceived experiences
while attending college as it relates to the rise of college tuition, your financial well-being as a
first-generation college graduate, and the student loan process.
Questions
The interview questions that I have put together have been grouped into categories that
will focus on the totality of your college experience.
Introduction
Question 1: How do you perceive the role of higher education has played in your life?
115
College Experience
(For these next set of questions, I will be asking you more of your collective college
experiences as a first-generation college graduate).
Question 2: Tell me about your decision to go to college. Growing up, how was attending
college discussed in your home?
o (College awareness)
o (Background question)
Question 3: What factors, either internally or externally, influenced your decision to
pursue a college education? (Awareness)
Question 4: Describe what you and your family understood about how to pay for college?
o (Financial literacy)
o (Descriptive question). Probing question: How did your socio-economic status
influence your decision to attend college?
Question 5: What type of programs or services did you seek when making your initial
tuition payment while in school?
o (Financial Literacy & Paying for college)
o (Background question) Probing question: Can you describe how helpful or not
those services were in supporting you?
Question 6: With the rising tuition at colleges and universities, how did tuition rates
impact you, if at all?
o (Paying for college options)
o (Descriptive question) Probing question: Did your financial status change from
the time you started college to the time you graduated from college?
116
Question 7: Now that you are a college graduate, how would you define the value of your
college degree? (Awareness)
Question 8: What does it mean to you to be financially secure?
o (Opinion questions)
o Probing question: If at all, has your definition of being financially well changed
since graduation?
Question 9: Since graduating, can you describe how paying your educational loans has
impacted you, if at all? (Paying for college)
Question 10: How has your degree helped you in your professional career? (Descriptive
question)
Question 11: Given your student loan debt, was your college degree worth the
investment? Why or why not? (Opinion question)
Closing
I want to be cognizant of the time that you have graciously provided me to conduct this
interview. This covers the things that I wanted to ask. Is there anything you would like for me to
know that we did not discuss?
As a reminder, the information shared will remain confidential per our agreement at the
beginning of this interview. Thank you again for taking the time out of your schedule to meet
with me. I will stop the recording now.
117
Appendix F: Screening Questionnaire Results
Table F1
How Did You Primarily Finance Your Education?
% Count
Federal loans 62.50% 5
Private loans 0.00% 0
Self-financed 75.00% 6
Grants 25.00% 2
Scholarships 25.00% 2
Work-study 0.00% 0
Other 25.00% 2
Total 100% 8
118
Table F2
The Amount of Student Loan Debt From Each Participant Survey
% Count
$0–$24,999 50.00% 4
$25,000–$49,999 12.50% 1
$50,000–$74,999 0.00% 0
$75,000– $99,999 25.00% 2
> $100,000 12.50% 1
Prefer not to say 0.00% 0
Total 100% 8
119
Table F3
Ethnicity of Each Participant Surveyed
% Count
Asian/Pacific Islander 25.00% 2
Black/African American 12.50% 1
Hispanic/Latino/a/x 25.00% 2
Multiracial 0.00% 0
Native American/American Indian 0.00% 0
Other 0.00% 0
Prefer not to say 0.00% 0
White/Caucasian 37.50% 3
Total 100% 8
Table F4
Highest Level of Education That Was Completed by Each Participant in the Survey
% Count
Associate’s degree 0.00% 0
Bachelor’s degree 25.00% 1
Master’s degree 75.00% 7
Doctorate degree 0.00% 0
None, I did not complete a degree 0.00% 0
Total 100% 8
120
Table F5
The Year Each Participant Surveyed Graduated From Their Most Recent Institution
Year
2012
2013
2015
2015
2016
2017
2018
2020
Table F6
The California Public Institutions That the Participant Recently Completed
List of institutions
California State University, Fullerton
California State University, Long Beach
California State University, San Diego
University of California, Irvine
University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Riverside
121
Table F7
Did the Participant Qualify for the Student Loan Relief As Outlined by President Biden on
August 24, 2022?
% Count
Yes 62.50% 5
No 12.50% 1
Not sure 25.00% 2
Prefer not to say 0.00% 0
Total 100% 8
Table F8
Is the Participant Currently Employed?
% Count
Yes 87.50% 7
No 12.50% 1
Prefer not to say 0.00% 0
Total 100% 8
122
Table F9
What Is the current Employment Structure for the Participant Surveyed?
% Count
For-profit 62.50% 5
Non-profit 25.00% 2
Prefer not to say 12.50% 1
Total 100% 8
Abstract (if available)
Abstract
This study investigated how first-generation, loan-borrowing college graduates from a California public college or university viewed the continued increase in college tuition and its impact on their financial well-being. College tuition has continued to increase and outpace the United States rate of inflation, and the mindfulness of student loans to pay for college has led to debt issues for individuals, resulting in an awareness of the return on investment associated with a college education. This study interviewed eight first-generation, loan-borrowing college graduates to determine how their financial well-being was affected by the sustained increase in college tuition prior to, during, and after graduation. This study utilized the student financial well-being model developed by Shim et al.’s (2009). The collected data indicates that participants questioned the value of attending a traditional 4-year institution and their return on investment. However, the participants acknowledged the significance of attending college to advance one's professional career as a critical factor for upward mobility as well as a need for continued education. The findings provided insight into the determination and sacrifices each participant's upbringing had on them by being the first in their families to graduate from a United States institution, as well as how the education affected their perspective on the educational system.
Linked assets
University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses
Conceptually similar
PDF
Examining Financial Well-being and Financial Stress: Experiences of Low-income and First-generation Postsecondary Students
PDF
Student loan debt and the impacts on first-generation student success
PDF
Federal loan borrowing in community colleges: examining the decision making processes of non‐traditional community college students
PDF
Do attitudes matter? attitudes towards debt and graduate student loan debt
PDF
Postsecondary students, well-being, and sources of support
PDF
Increasing financial aid resources available to support low-income first-generation college students: an evaluation study
PDF
A pathway to success: experiences of first-generation minority students in academic jeopardy
PDF
Do attitudes matter? attitudes towards debt and graduate student loan debt
PDF
Échale ganas: the transition experiences of first-generation Latinx students and their parents to college
PDF
Navigating the academy and beyond: an examination of major and career self-efficacy of Latin* first-generation college students
PDF
Well-being and healing as resistance: testimonios of Latina students’ arrebatos in California community colleges
PDF
The impact of campus closures: experiences of first-generation college students at a 4-year private university in southern California
PDF
Teacher well-being matters: an explorative study of early childhood teacher well-being, their experiences, and perspectives
PDF
Student support professionals: drivers of community cultural wealth aligned practices through support programs for first-generation college students of color amidst institutional shortcomings
PDF
First-generation college students and persistence to a degree: an evaluation study
PDF
The impact of college success program on first generation college students in their preparation for college
PDF
Addressing financial barriers to college completion through community cultural wealth
PDF
Persistence of first-generation Latinx engineering students: developing a better understanding of STEM classroom experiences and faculty interactions
PDF
Financial literacy education for African Americans and its effects on financial wellbeing
PDF
Enrollment and financial aid decisions of first-year students at a private institution
Asset Metadata
Creator
Patsios, Bobby P.
(author)
Core Title
Pay to play: a qualitative study on how the perception of the continued rise in college tuition impacts first-generation, loan-borrowing graduates and their financial well-being
School
Rossier School of Education
Degree
Doctor of Education
Degree Program
Educational Leadership
Degree Conferral Date
2023-05
Publication Date
06/01/2023
Defense Date
04/12/2023
Publisher
University of Southern California
(original),
University of Southern California. Libraries
(digital)
Tag
financial literacy,financial well-being,first-generation,OAI-PMH Harvest,student loan debt
Format
theses
(aat)
Language
English
Contributor
Electronically uploaded by the author
(provenance)
Advisor
Bañuelos, Sheila (
committee chair
), Corwin, Zoë (
committee member
), Dieken, Paul (
committee member
)
Creator Email
bpatsios@gmail.com,patsios@usc.edu
Permanent Link (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-oUC113144544
Unique identifier
UC113144544
Identifier
etd-PatsiosBob-11910.pdf (filename)
Legacy Identifier
etd-PatsiosBob-11910
Document Type
Dissertation
Format
theses (aat)
Rights
Patsios, Bobby P.
Internet Media Type
application/pdf
Type
texts
Source
20230602-usctheses-batch-1051
(batch),
University of Southern California
(contributing entity),
University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses
(collection)
Access Conditions
The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the author, as the original true and official version of the work, but does not grant the reader permission to use the work if the desired use is covered by copyright. It is the author, as rights holder, who must provide use permission if such use is covered by copyright.
Repository Name
University of Southern California Digital Library
Repository Location
USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA
Repository Email
cisadmin@lib.usc.edu
Tags
financial literacy
financial well-being
first-generation
student loan debt