LANSING – State Representative Joel Sheltrown (D-West Branch) today threw his support behind a plan to better prepare Michigan students for the good-paying jobs of the future and create the best-educated workforce possible by offering interest-free student loans for those who take their first jobs in Michigan in certain high-tech fields.
"The students of today are our leaders of tomorrow, and we must do everything we can to ensure that both Michigan and our young people have bright futures ahead of them," Sheltrown said. "When it comes time to find a job, far too many of our talented young people are leaving Michigan to find opportunities in other states. We can entice businesses to invest in Michigan by creating the best-educated workforce possible, and the opportunities our kids are looking for will be found right here at home."
Under the Jobs of the Future Education Act, students who take their first jobs in Michigan and who stay for five years will pay no interest on student loans when they earn a degree in fields such as computer and information sciences and support services, engineering, engineering technology, biological or biomedical sciences and science technology. These fields make up nearly 17 percent of the total number of bachelor's degrees earned in Michigan at four-year universities.
The current interest rate for Stafford Loans is 6.8 percent, according to www.finaid.org. The average debt amount for students with student loans ranges between $18,000 and $20,000 and the interest-free student loans program has potential savings of more than $7,600 per student.
In an April 2004 report, The Brookings Institution warned that America will not be able to hold onto the highest paying jobs in the world if the number of college graduates with degrees in physical sciences, math and engineering continue on a downward trend.1
"Offering interest-free college loans to our students will help ensure that they are prepared for the good-paying jobs of the future," Sheltrown said. "This plan also will help ensure that Michigan's economy stays strong well into the 21st century. This is the right kind of change for our students and for our future."
1 Brainard, Lael and Litan, Robert E., "Offshoring Service Jobs: Bane or Boon and What to Do?" The Brookings Institution; April 2004.