Slavery and debt have this in common: You work and you don't get products for your labor. In slavery, you don't get money. In debt, you get money which goes away before you can spend it.

I think nepotism is less bad than slavery. I had debt with no degree, nothing to show for it. I had to work and not get to keep the money. I felt like a slave. I don't want other people to be in debt slavery.

Nepotism only would affect me via envy. Debt affected me daily, mentally, harshly. There were days when I could think of nothing else, miserable at my situation. Nepotism is nothing compared to being in debt slavery. Who cares what other people are doing. Am I free?

Except university education doesn't need to be that expensive. Anecdotal - I had a law school professor who went to the University of Michigan Law School in the 60s and his tuition was $18 per credit. That's about $150 today. That would be about $13,500 for the entire law degree.

The unlimited student loan situation has directly caused the bloat of university administration, salaries, and spending. It doesn't cost $40,000 a year to educate someone.

Make non-dischargeable loans more like an investment for the bank, in which they get back something tied to your income, when you earn it. And let them offer what they will according to school/major/SAT score/etc.

Then indeed expensive useless degrees will (like a gap-year in first-class hotels) be available only to the rich. But useful job training will not be.