We dive into the depths of the student loan debate with higher education expert Beth Akers, co-author of Game of Loans: The Rhetoric and Reality of Student Debt. Progressive politicians have made student loan forgiveness one of their major talking points this election cycle, citing astronomical numbers on student debt. But who really owes that money? Do loan forgiveness programs already exist for people in the worst financial hardship? What alternative tuition financing models are emerging in the free market? Beth also shares invaluable advice for students applying to colleges.

Beth Akers is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, where her work focuses on labor economics and the economics of higher education. Previously, she was a fellow at the Brookings Institution and a staff economist with the Council of Economic Advisors under President George W. Bush. Her writing and research have been featured in, among others, The New York Times, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Bloomberg, Quartz, Newsweek, and The Hill. She has appeared on CNBC, ABC News, Bloomberg TV, C-SPAN, among other TV and radio networks.