Reply #28: I guess I'm comparing it to my degrees

[KitSileya]

I have a batchelor's and a master's - well, the old Norwegian equivalent, which is slightly more than that, a candidata magistera equaling years 2 to 5 of college in the US, (our last year of high school being considered the same as the first year of college in the US) and my candidata philologica adding another 2 years to that, as well as a year to get my candidata paedagogica or teacher's license. 7 years at Norwegian uni, and one year extra as exchange student at UofO during my Masters (on scholarship, so no tuition) and I paid about $1000 in registration fees etc. The student loans I got were for living expenses, as you're not supposed to work alongside school, since a uni education is a full-time job in and of itself. No one is supposed to be denied a higher education because of family background, only academic excellence is supposed to decide.

Either way, my student loans were less than my first full year's salary, and so it is for pretty much everyone who goes to college in Norway. That is the opposite extreme, but considering Norway has the cheapest academic labor in the world, it is appropriate (We don't get paid much more than an industrial worker, really.)