Student debt is a trillion-dollar question

The future of higher education in the US

In this episode of Wired’s Have a Nice Future podcast, education journalist Paul Tough joins hosts Gideon Lichfield and Lauren Goode to tackle a big question: Is attending college in the United States still worth it? As tuition climbs and the payoff feels murkier, they dig into what’s broken in higher education, and whether it can be fixed.

College sticker prices are often misleading

1440's editor-in-chief chatted with an economist in this podcast episode to unravel how college tuition really works, who carries the biggest debt, and why the system feels expensive.

College budgets, explained

In this episode of the FutureU podcast, higher education experts Jeff Selingo and Michael Horn explore why so many colleges seem to be struggling financially. Hear how college budgets actually work, and why so many are unsustainable. It’s a crash course in revenue, expenses, and the big shifts schools need to make to survive.

John Oliver explains the student debt problem

From serious policy approaches to novelty giveaways from fast food chains, paying down student loans has become a central issue in public consciousness. John Oliver takes an entertaining look at the problem, how it became a political hot potato, why it’s difficult to solve, and more (warning—strong language).

Roughly 43 million US borrowers owe roughly $1.7T in student debt, the second-largest source of consumer debt behind mortgages.

Total student debt has ballooned to $1.7T, up almost 150% since the Great Recession

While the burden falls across roughly 43 million Americans, the debt load itself is not uniform—millennials and those pursuing graduate or professional degrees represent an outsized portion of loans.

Student debt has a widespread economic impact

Student debt is no different than the big rent or car payment that comes out of someone’s paycheck every month: Its presence affects that household’s purchasing power. Multiply that household by the 43 million Americans who had outstanding federal loan debt in September 2023, and student debt’s impact becomes considerable.

The US national debt has become more important in recent months

In a moment of deep economic uncertainty, the national debt now matters more than ever. Listen to this podcast to find out why and also explore answers to questions like, "Who does the US owe money to and why?"

How universities manage their endowments

The CNBC video report explores how elite universities like Harvard handle their massive endowments, the ethical debates around their investments, and the tension between growing wealth and rising college costs. If you’re curious about where billions of dollars in higher education go, why tuition remains high despite huge endowments, or how student activism is pushing for ethical investing, this video offers a revealing, accessible look at the financial engines behind America’s top colleges.

America’s looming debt spiral

The United States has a debt problem. In 1989, the national debt was almost $3T. As of 2023, that number had ballooned to more than $30T. This video explains why the national debt grew so quickly, and what America's options are going forward. It also explores why the problem is trapped in political gridlock. Watch it to find out more.

US consumers collectively owe more than $1T to credit card companies—almost as much as they owe in auto loans.

Play the role of a student as you try to navigate college and remain debt-free

Play the role of a student in a game where you try to navigate college and remain debt-free, selecting different income levels, high school experience, race, ethnicity, and more.

Tax policy can have a direct impact on the national debt

Past presidents' changes to tax codes have inflated the deficit. An expert on the topic explains the interplay between policy and the national budget while debunking 10 tax-related myths in this podcast.

Minting a coin that can pay off the federal debt has been proposed as a quick fix to rampant borrowing

It’s uncertain how financial markets would react to such a large cash injection. Some economists warn it could trigger massive inflation. Others say the nation needs a clean slate.

Modern monetary theory argues that governments can spend more without worrying about debt

In this discussion, economists Stephanie Kelton and Rohan Grey join Jon Stewart to explain modern monetary theory and debate whether expansive government spending can address inequality and economic crises without traditional debt constraints.

A venture capitalist argues that baby boomers raised the national debt

In his book "A Generation of Sociopaths," venture capitalist Bruce Cannon Gibney places blame for the nation’s rising debt squarely in the hands of baby boomers—those born between 1946 and 1964. They’ve failed to address long-term issues, focusing only on present consumption to the detriment of future generations, he says.

Explore the "winners and losers" of the Trump administration's H-1B visa fee

In this episode, experts discuss the rationale behind the new $100K fee, citing concerns about abuse of the H-1B program. Some economists warn that it could spur offshoring, reduce innovation, and create ripple effects on wages and talent supply.

'Planet Money' debates the financial indicators that defined 2025

In this end-of-year episode, "Planet Money" stages a playful debate over which economic indicators best captured the chaos of 2025—from tariffs to AI bubbles—and which signals may matter most as the US economy heads into 2026.

The first federal student loan program began in 1958

As the Cold War heated up, federal officials recognized the need to provide financial aid to students pursuing degrees in areas critical to national security, like science, math, and engineering. These programs evolved to broadly support the general population, both increasing access to college while acting as a driver of increased costs. This six-part series takes a deep dive into the history of federal student aid.

How to balance paying down debt vs. investing

When someone has extra money in their pocket, they're quickly faced with a decision: Is it a better idea to use that money to pay down debt, or invest it? While the answer depends on each individual's financial situation, this video explains which solution works best depending on the circumstances. Watch it here.

One reason Americans are bad at math

The president of Barnard College explains why we need to better understand the links between math anxiety, math avoidance, and the US’s dismal test scores.

Hank Green on the problem with being a creator

YouTuber Hank Green takes over The Financial Diet's platform to talk about the creator economy. He walks the audience through the financial decisions involved when making content. He also describes brand deals, and who actually owns the content posted on social media platforms—the creator or the platform itself?

Find out ways to get lower rates on private loans, such as applying with a cosigner

More borrowers are being pushed to opt for private student loans as changes to federal borrowing caps and repayment plans are implemented. Private lenders typically advertise interest rates that fall anywhere between sub-3% and 15% or higher.

Why private credit has faced challenges in recent years

The factors that some experts say are driving what could be private credit's most challenging era since the 2008 financial crisis include global economic uncertainty around trade and tariffs, investor fears about the amount of money being spent on artificial intelligence, and more.

Learn about the US opioid crisis in this free course

Where did the US opioid crisis come from, and how did it spread? Learn this and more in this free, online Harvard University course. Learn about the disease model of addiction treatment and management, and get up-to-date with public health and law enforcement's current harm reduction practices. This free resource gives users a greater understanding of opioid addiction and the epidemic still haunting the US.

Listen to a podcast that answers common questions about alternative investments

This podcast episode starts with an explanation of what alternative investments are, then goes on to explain how people use them to diversify their financial portfolios and answer some common questions about alternative investments. Notably, the host interviews a certified financial planner about the topic.

‘Tulip mania’ may have been the first financial bubble. It still shapes markets today

This podcast revisits tulip mania, the 1630s Dutch craze where rare bulbs were briefly traded like luxury assets. It unpacks the myths surrounding the event and shows how its legend continues to shape modern perceptions of financial bubbles.

Listen to an in-depth conversation on the links between Parkinson's disease and herbicide exposure and the challenging pace of scientific investigation.

Use this tool to calculate the dollar value of your parental mental load, from meal planning to coordinating after-school care, then see resources that help generate solutions.

A Yale student wrote a profound essay about the consulting industry's influence on elite college students that was published in a book of her writing after she died in a post-graduation car accident.

The first steps to rebuilding your credit score include getting to know exactly what's on your credit report and figuring out how far you are from the '700 club,' or 'good score' range.

Despite being favored by 87% of Americans, Congress does not have term limits.

Exploring the Larry Bird punch that almost changed March Madness

Hear about the 250-year history of the United States Postal Service, complete with some of its strangest deliveries, important innovations, and the figures that made it an American institution.

About 2,000 US babies are born annually without some portion of their limbs, potentially leading to a lifetime of pricey prosthetics.

Before the current East Wing ballroom project, only two White House renovations in the past 100 years cost more than $10M.

The American Society of Civil Engineers' infrastructure report card gave the US a C in 2025, its highest grade since the project launched in 1998.

Watch this video that uses Lego bricks to explain how venture capital works.

The rivalry between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson centered on federalism—the question of how much power the federal government should hold relative to the states.

Warren Buffett's former professor Benjamin Graham is known as the 'father of value investing,' a strategy in which investors seek to buy stocks trading below their intrinsic worth.

Some coin denominations have ridges etched on their sides, partly to prevent counterfeiting, in a practice called 'reeding.'

After NASA's Voyager 1 captured Earth as a single pixel as it left the solar system in 1990, astronomer Carl Sagan used the image to reflect on humanity's fragility and the responsibility to protect 'the only world we've ever known.'

How fusion—which releases energy when two lighter atoms combine to form a heavier atom—differs from fission

Massive 3D printers have been used to build homes by stacking layers of 'concrete toothpaste,' a fire-resistant material that effectively insulates against outside noise.

In 2025, four executives from large tech companies were given positions in the US Army Reserves—including Palantir Chief Technology Officer Shyam Sankar, which reinforced Palantir's ties with the US military and its role as a leading defense partner.

Search a massive database of over 4 decades of clues from the TV quiz show 'Jeopardy!'

Watch how deep-sea mining equipment collects and processes polymetallic nodules—metal-rich, potato-shaped rocks—from the ocean floor and creates environmentally damaging plumes of sediments.

Researchers believe the brain consolidates memories, processes emotions, and plans for the future during dream states

Prince's sexually explicit 1984 track 'Darling Nikki' attracted the ire of the Parents Music Resource Center, an advocacy group that inspired the Parental Advisory sticker, even though the song ends with a Christian message.