Another term that has outgrown its use is debt management. It has become a sort of catchall for everything ranging from borrowing to budgeting to credit card use to repayment. That we lump all these topics together under one heading is not a bad thing. The problem is, however, debt management really refers to activities that happen after incurring debt. The term doesn t accurately describe financial planning activities that aid officers so conscientiously try to emphasize to students before borrowing.
Debt also carries a negative connotation.
Although it s a fact of life for most of us, being in debt still brings a perception of vulnerability. Popular film and literature are filled with characters like George Bailey in It s a Wonderful Life and Tom Joad in the Grapes of Wrath who, though noble and ultimately heroic, are portrayed as vulnerable and weakened by their indebtedness. It s only when these characters break out of debt and out of the grips of their controlling benefactors that they become empowered. In our society, being in debt is equated with not having control over one s fate. What s needed in the financial aid industry is to replace our familiar uses of the term debt management with a label that more accurately describes the full continuum of planning and paying for one s education.