Obama at University of Michigan, Ann Arbor on January 27,2012

Brief review of Obamas speech. Link to full transcript

During Obamas speech he told students that college graduates have half the unemployment rate of non-grads, and that their incomes are twice as high as those without a high school diploma. After some talk about the importance of growing industry and creating jobs in the United States he came back to the topic of college. He stated that the cost of college tuition and fees have nearly doubled during the lifetime of his audience members. He reported that federal student aid will be increased ,and mentioned  his recently announced program that will cap student loan payments at 10% of their monthly income.

Obama reminded students that interest rates on student loans are set to double in July, and  encouraged  his audience to contact members of Congress to protest the rate increase. Additionally  he said that he hopes Congress will double the number of work study jobs in the next five years.

He said that he is encouraging the states to make college more affordable, and that states will be rewarded for bringng down the cost of education and making it easier for more students to graduate. He announced a new program which he jokingly called  “know before you owe”  which will provide students more information to compare colleges and college costs.