Student debt

In her new book, "Don't Go Back to School," author Kio Stark discusses why scores of people think traditional higher education is a waste of money.

This year, for the first time, total outstanding student loans will exceed $1 trillion. That's a crisis, right? The Atlantic argues no.

So why can't students cash in on these crazy low interest rates, anyway?

Many colleges now offer student loans and grants on debit cards, without disclosing their agreements with banks. That's caught the federal government's attention.

A report out this morning says college students are leaving school ever deeper in debt. Students graduated last year owing more than $26,000 on average -- up five percent from the year before.

Surprisingly -- or not so surprising -- 40- to 49-year-olds have the most delinquent student loan debt.

A new survey reveals that families are increasingly eliminating certain colleges based on cost, and students are taking on more of the burden themselves as parents' share declines.

The federal government will streamline the process that borrowers use to get their payments capped at just 15 percent of their salaries.