In 2014, over 10.6 billion dollars were distributed to parents under an unusual federal loan program, known as Parent PLUS. Yet while most federal financial aid is meticulously tracked, understanding how Parent PLUS loans are used remains incredibly difficult. The lack of data collection and reporting on Parent PLUS clouds our ability to evaluate their true impact on access and makes it impossible to understand how they affect the lives of the families who take them on. Data on Parent PLUS loans are particularly important due to their unique role in federal student aid: these are the only loans made directly to the parents of students, and because their terms are less generous than other student loans, they’re usually taken out only after other federal resources have been exhausted. The loans are virtually unlimited, yet they are made without regard to a parent’s ability to repay. In effect, these loans can mean certain students are able to attend institutions they wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford. But some of these same families will do so through taking on debt they might not be able to repay.
Read more at New America's Ed Central: http://www.edcentral.org/parent-plus-loans/