The Dodd-Frank law requires the Education Department and the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to report on private education loans by July. As part of that, the consumer bureau recently announced it was seeking answers from students, schools and lenders to a series of questions. Among them: Where do families learn about private loans? Why do students take out these loans before making full use of federal aid? Do private lenders provide adequate disclosures? And how does debt affect a new graduate's career choice? "The private student loan market is one of the least-understood consumer credit markets," Raj Date, the bureau's acting leader, said in a statement. "It has been operating in the shadows for too long."
