Book Description:

This study recommends employing "human capital contracts" wherein students agree to pay a percentage of their income over time in exchange for funds to finance their education. The main difference between "human capital contracts" and loans is the variable value of the payments students make during the repayment period. Their financial consequences, of risk transfer from students to investors and increased information regarding future graduates' earnings, make the contracts an attractive alternative in funding higher education.

'Miguel Palacios Lleras has written the authoritative work on the revolution that is underway to integrate human capital into our financial system. The book makes the dimensions of this revolution clear, and provides real impetus and inspiration to propel it to the next level in the future. The results for our society and our lives will be profound.' Robert J. Schiller, Stanley B. Resor Professor of Economics at Yale University and author of The New Financial Order: Risk in the 21st Century (Princeton University Press, 2003) and Irrational Exuberance (Princeton University Press, 2000)

'Little can be more important to the welfare of our civilization than finding ways to match educational opportunities to human capability. Too often, human resources are squandered by failure to make these opportunities available to deserving but poorly financed individuals. Investing in Human Capital describes an exciting remedy: equity investments in the fruits of educational investment. Although this idea is not new, it is virtually untried and this book more than any other shows in detail how to turn it into a successful reality.' Mark Rubinstein, Paul Stephens Professor of Applied Investment Analysis, Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley