National study debt counter launched
America has a national debt clock, and the Netherlands has a national student loan counter. The initiative was taken by the student organization ISO, together with TU Delft and federation MHP. The counter currently stands at 5.8 billion.
On the website wiebetaaltderekening.nl you can see the counter ticking. In addition, the counter was placed in the auditorium of TU Delft by activist students. The 5.8 million is the current Dutch study debt. On average, this means fifteen thousand euros per student. Every second, the debt increased by seventeen euros.
It is an initiative of the Intercity Student Talk (ISO), to ensure the visibility of the national student loan. In this way they hope to send a clear message to the government. The site can be signed a petition “Studying is Investing” stating that students need more financial help to their studies. It is a form of a protest against the bill issued by the Minister of Education Zijlstra.
ISO chairman Sebastian Hameleers expects the debt will increasing because of the budget cuts in higher education. Students are increasingly forced to borrow money, which can later cause them trouble. It is already known that students with high student loan have difficulty obtaining a mortgage.
