For-profit colleges leave many students in debt
When Sarah E. Gagliano enrolled in 2006 at the Art Institute of Philadelphia - a for-profit college - she dreamed of a career in fashion design.
Instead, she is nearly $100,000 in debt with no degree. A poor academic student, she quit about halfway to a bachelor's degree.
Gagliano has since defaulted on her private loans, which the school helped her get, and could be forever haunted by the debt, which even bankruptcy generally can't erase.
"I don't even know what to do. . . . It's very depressing," said Gagliano, 21, who earns $8 an hour at Insomnia Cookies, a delivery service to college students.
With enrollment soaring at for-profit colleges, more students are taking on crushing debt, but students at these colleges default at higher rates and graduate at lower rates than their peers at nonprofit and public schools.
Advocates say the schools help low-income, less-prepared students fulfill their dreams. Critics contend they prey on low-performing students and load them with untenable debt.
Education Management Corp., the Art Institute's parent company, which enrolls nearly 140,000 students at 97 campuses, says it encourages cautious borrowing. "We take seriously our responsibility of ensuring that families and students . . . are provided as much support and
Instead, she is nearly $100,000 in debt with no degree. A poor academic student, she quit about halfway to a bachelor's degree.
Gagliano has since defaulted on her private loans, which the school helped her get, and could be forever haunted by the debt, which even bankruptcy generally can't erase.
"I don't even know what to do. . . . It's very depressing," said Gagliano, 21, who earns $8 an hour at Insomnia Cookies, a delivery service to college students.
With enrollment soaring at for-profit colleges, more students are taking on crushing debt, but students at these colleges default at higher rates and graduate at lower rates than their peers at nonprofit and public schools.
Advocates say the schools help low-income, less-prepared students fulfill their dreams. Critics contend they prey on low-performing students and load them with untenable debt.
Education Management Corp., the Art Institute's parent company, which enrolls nearly 140,000 students at 97 campuses, says it encourages cautious borrowing. "We take seriously our responsibility of ensuring that families and students . . . are provided as much support and
