Borrowed $96,000 for a bachelor's degree. Paid back $165,356 already. Still owes $220,810.73. "I have paid almost double what I even borrowed in the first place, and I owe so much money. I am running backwards at this point" This is not a bug in the system. This IS the system. Designed exactly this way. Interest compounds faster than payments can touch principal, and the whole thing is federally backed so there's zero market pressure to fix it. Legal loan sharking with a diploma attached.