The cost of attendance at some elite universities will soon reach $100,000 per year, according to a New York Times analysis.
Let that one sink in for a moment.
Once the sticker shock wears off, consider that few students pay full price, and a college education can still be had for one-fourth to one-half that cost at many schools.
Despite those caveats, the fact remains that the cost of a college education has wildly outpaced inflation for decades now. Some studies estimate a 169% rise over the last 40 years. Those same studies indicate that the increases have slowed since the Covid-19 pandemic, but it’s unclear whether this is a short-term trend or evidence of a tipping point.
For college students and parents alike, this represents an obvious saving and budgeting problem. But its impact is also being seen in some unlikely places, including U.S. government security clearance denial and revocation cases.
A recent review of cases from the Defense Office of Hearings and Appeals (DOHA), the government’s largest adjudicative forum for security clearance appeals, showed dozens, if not hundreds, of cases from recent years in which delinquent student loans were a basis for denying or revoking security clearance from a federal employee or contractor.
- One illustrative example is ISCR Case Number 21-00177, in which a 36-year-old husband and father was denied a security clearance due to $71,000 in delinquent student loans.
- Less common, but still frequent, are cases like ISCR Case Number 19-01573, in which the applicant was denied a security clearance, in part, over providing financial support to his college-aged child while ignoring delinquent debts.
- In a more extreme example, the applicant in ISCR Case Number 17-03025 was denied, in part, after transferring $200,000 into his children’s 529 college savings accounts instead of paying $800,000 in delinquent taxes.
All of this suggests the emergence of a troubling irony in the national security sector. Most well-paying cleared jobs require a college education, but the costs of obtaining one may sink an applicant’s chances of obtaining the equally necessary security clearance.
That is undoubtedly a bitter pill to swallow for some young people and their parents; however, it is also an avoidable issue with an understanding of the government’s security concern and how to mitigate it.
In my experience representing security clearance holders and applicants for a decade, I never saw anyone denied a clearance simply due to student loan debt. Rather, like any debt, it is the delinquency – and the resultant perception of irresponsibility – that generally matters more to security officials. At minimum, a delinquent student loan debt must be brought current and a sufficient track record of repayment established prior to applying for the security clearance.
Additional mitigating factors include evidence of a budget, completion of a financial education course, no evidence of excessive spending (e.g., luxury vehicles, exotic vacations), and proof of a reasonable monthly remainder with a rainy-day savings fund.
So, besides the obvious advice of attending a lesser-cost institution or working and paying as one goes, the alternative is demonstrating personal responsibility by, among other things, foregoing voluntary expenses (including support of an adult child) if those expenses come at the cost of honoring previously-incurred financial commitments.
That may be unpopular advice, but the voluntary expenses are moot without an income to pay for them.
This article is intended as general information only and should not be construed as legal advice. Although the information is believed to be accurate as of the publication date, no guarantee or warranty is offered or implied. Laws and government policies are subject to change, and the information provided herein may not provide a complete or current analysis of the topic or other pertinent considerations. Consult an attorney regarding your specific situation.
