Experts at the Center for Responsible Lending applauded the CFPB for their aggressive action on the for-profit university ITT Tech. According to the CFPB, "ITT exploited its students and pushed them into high-cost private student loans that were very likely to end in default. The CFPB is seeking restitution for victims, a civil fine, and an injunction against the company."

This marks an important step forward in abusive lending practices against students, according to CRL senior policy counsel Maura Dundon.

"Abusive lending via student loans is particularly egregious practice," said Dundon. "What for-profit colleges and their associated lenders promise is a better, brighter future through education; in this case, what students received was a worthless diploma at best and the heavy burden of crippling, expensive debt at worst."

Dundon noted that this brings critical light to the issue of for-profits saddling students with unsustainable student loan debt at an important time; the Department of Education is conducting a rulemaking on career education programs, which comprise the bulk of for-profit colleges' offerings. The aim, says Dundon, would be to ensure career education programs such as those offered by ITT Tech provide quality education and training that leads to real jobs – and thus provides sufficient income for borrowers to repay their student loans.

CRL is the national leading research and advocacy organization on consumer lending, having made trailblazing efforts against payday lenders, abusive mortgage lending, and deceptive banking regulations.

For more information about abusive student loan practices or to interview an expert on this topic, please contact Catherine An at 202-349-1878 or catherine.an@responsiblelending.org

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