@kac425, a kid can’t borrow $40K on their own via federal loans, and it is pretty rare that anyone out here recommends going further than that federal limit in loans, even with a cosigner or Parent Plus loan. $27,000 is the max federal loan amount over 4 years.
I also think the loan advisability is situational. A kid who is going to be an engineering or CS major and clearly has the chops and interest in the major? The risk of future adverse consequences from those federal loans is low. But a kid with med school or law school or vet school ambitions, or a kid in a major with poor job prospects or known low salary potential – if it were my kid, I’d be encouraging alternatives with minimal or no debt.