"Maybe the problem was that I had reached beyond my lower-middle-class origins and taken out loans to attend a small private college to begin"
I had to borrow almost all the money to go to college a couple decades ago. I went to an "affordable" state school. I screwed up my student loans by not following up while in grad school and ended up defaulting too. However, once I got a job, I paid hundreds of dollars extra every month and paid off my loans in under 4 years. I missed out on a few vacations, bought a $1000 vehicle then drove it until it started falling apart.
Anyway, once a generation decides not to pay off their loans, the following generation won't get a way out of lower income. Don't go to that expensive small private college, if you can't afford it.
I had to borrow almost all the money to go to college a couple decades ago. I went to an "affordable" state school. I screwed up my student loans by not following up while in grad school and ended up defaulting too. However, once I got a job, I paid hundreds of dollars extra every month and paid off my loans in under 4 years. I missed out on a few vacations, bought a $1000 vehicle then drove it until it started falling apart.
Anyway, once a generation decides not to pay off their loans, the following generation won't get a way out of lower income. Don't go to that expensive small private college, if you can't afford it.