College Tuition Benefit Analysis

As it is, there is about $1 trillion in college debt in America. A Philadelphia Enquirer article warns that, “The average debt owed per person is $25,000 -- the highest level of student debt in the nation's history,” and that the number is increased by tens of thousands of dollars for those who go on to get higher degrees. $25,000 is a lot but the reality is that a lot of people have even more than that. For example, what if someone goes to an expensive private college and their tuition is anywhere between 30 and 70 thousand per year. In total they could be paying between 120 and 240 thousand dollars per year. The majority of the country is most likely unable to easily pay for that and could end up with extensive amounts of debt just because they went to the college that they wanted to. Student’s education shouldn’t be compromised just because the school they want to go to has a high tuition. Alarmingly, “Study after study has shown the number one barrier to attending college is the published rate of tuition.”(Lowe) The amount of student debt as a result of a school’s high tuition should decide where people should go to school. If tuition is decreased then simultaneously, student debt would be as well.

College tuition is a subject that I am certain is on every college student's mind. The current cost of college has become so outrageously high and so students are graduating college with what you think is a feeling of excitement for their lives starting, when in reality they are entering a pool of stress due to high amounts of debt and no job guarantees. With that being said overly expensive College Tuition is merely taking away opportunities from potential students. According to Collegefactual.com, you will see that 20 years ago the average college tuition for a student at any University was around $6,285 for the room, board, and tuition. Today, according to Niche.com, the average tuition for almost any college is over $30,000 for those same things. Today, this isn't even offered for those same colleges, we don’t even know what is actually causing the raising tuition. At this point in time, we are paying for the name. Just like clothing, we pay more for the “high end” (a.k.a the college name) items. This is an issue that not only affects college students, but people who want a good education. College tuition should be lowered because the average student debt is too high, FAFSA results can be misleading and not high enough, and there is not enough access to college for deserving students.

Increased tuitions are results of a variety of factors. Shrinkage of state budget and low endowments cause by the recession forcing colleges to make up the cost somehow (Lee). The government has increased their support during the recession. For example, in the form of Pell Grants which doubled over the years. Andrew Kelly, director of the Center on Higher Education Reform at the American Enterprise Institute, writes “... the increase of federal spending has been completely eroded by the rising tuition prices”(Bidwell). Higher tuition defeats the purpose of the federal government increasing their support.

Universities used to be a privilege for most academic students to attend and it was very affordable, but currently the price per year to attend college has drastically increased. For instance, in the “1970’s the average cost was 10,000 dollars a year and today the average cost is 30,000 dollars a year” (CQ Researcher). This is a triple increase in the price per year to attend college. Allowing this increase on college tuition has impacted the student’s attendance rate. This is a significant financial burden for college students and their family. Some believe that college shouldn’t be free because we are risking the value of college education, while others think it should be free because we are trying to avoid having our upcoming generation

Since 1974, tuition has been on the rise and has reached new heights. One reason why tuition is increasing is because of “the state governments’ unwillingness or inability to raise per-student financing” (Davidson). The government is spending less on college and moving those funds into other categories, such as the military. Furthermore, colleges are spending less on each student than they did during pre-recession (Fox). Even after the recession, the government is continuously cutting more and more from education funds. As the government cuts more from education funds, tuition cost will steadily increase to compensate the loss. Tuition increased from 1994 to 2015 is depicted in the graph on the next page. Drawing a conclusion from the graph, it is possible that if this trend continues, public colleges will approximately reach the same price as private colleges one day. The amount of financial aid given is unable to meet the needs of lower income students,

There is no escaping the fact that the cost of college tuition continues to rise in the United States each year. To make it worse, having a college degree is no longer an option, but a requirement in today’s society. According to data gathered by the College Board, total costs at public four-year institutions rose more rapidly between 2003-04 and 2013-14 than they did during either of the two preceding decades (Collegeboard.com). Students are pressured to continue into higher education but yet, the increasing costs of books and tuition make us think about twice. Sometimes, some of these students have to leave with their education partially finished, leaving them with crushing debts. It is important to find the means to prevent these

College tuition is an expensive entity to pay for and not many people have the luxury of having college being completely paid for, however, so many people that have previous experience like teachers, counselors, and parents, want students to pursue this expensive entity so their future is brighter. Why is being a college student becoming a luxury that fewer people can afford and attend to? Factors like the actual cost for college tuition, costs for higher education, the working class and their difficulties of paying for other things in addition to tuition, proposals from our government, and tuition remission, is when we begin to see how big of a problem tuition costs actually are. School is an important opportunity that I have taken like many of my teachers, parents, and government have told me to take, but I still struggle paying for it; if school is a value that people should be taking advantage of, tuition needs to be more affordable in order to do so.

In 1976, the average cost to attend a four year public university was $2,175; today, the average cost to attend a four year public university is $25,000 (Snyder). This means it is 1150% more expensive to go to college in The United States today than it was 30 years ago. This obviously would create a problem on how we as people are going to pay for our higher education. Today college has become almost a necessity to have a satisfactory life, and with these rising prices some individuals believe student loans are the only option. There are many reasons as to why the prices have risen, but the one undeniable fact is that this has created a problem within our country. Which, is known as the student debt crisis, and it has been on the rise the past couple years. This problem is affecting people all around the United States, and is causing multitude of problems for them all because they wanted to pursue higher education. Wanting to better your opportunities by bettering yourself is not something that needs to be punished, and sadly that is what is happening. This problem is something that needs to be fixed for the sake of Americans and our economy, but will also take time and a multitude of steps to correct.

The increased costs of tuition and fees are making it more difficult for individuals to attend college, and they are being forced to drop out, having a major impact on graduation rates. Data stated that was stated in FACT SHEET on the President’s Plan to Make College More Affordable: A , Better Bargain for the Middle Class (2015), “The average tuition at a public four-year college has increased by more than 250 percent over the past three decades, while incomes for typical families grew by only 16 percent” (“Fact Sheet”, 2015). This is causing major stress and becoming a burden on the finances of the student and their families. In order to attend college, a large percentage of students will have borrow money because of

Colleges are noticing a drop in students’ interest in a higher education, because it forces them to fall into poverty. Obtaining a higher education is a dream of many working class citizens, but the price to go to a choice college is not available economically. The majority of students use some type of student loan, they have become the norm for attending college (Johnston, Roten 24). College is becoming unaffordable to many lower class students. With tuition prices this high, students are backing out of school and looking for jobs that only require a high school diploma. Student loans should help people, but it is only hurting them because they feel like they can never repay it. Especially since student debt continues to rise. “Student loan debt rose by 328 percent from $241 million in 2003 to $1.08 trillion in 2013, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York” (Johnston, Roten 25).

“The hardest thing about going to college should not be paying for it” (Hillary Clinton). In the past decades college tuition has skyrocketed. Many aspiring students who dream of college education cannot afford it. Education used to be accessible to all forms of family situations, now it is only a privilege for those with substantial incomes. Because everyone deserves education, college tuition should be affordable and economically feasible for all students and their families.

So it’s not that colleges are spending more money to educate students, it’s that they have to get that money from someplace to replace their lost state funding; and that’s from tuition and fees from students and families (Sanchez 1). While most institutions tried to keep costs down, some took advantage of the public perception that a high tuition means a quality education (Sanchez 2). The problems that students face now are rising tuition, increasing loans and lacking financial aid to compensate. The fastest growing income for public colleges and universities in our country is tuition. Most students must take out loans to make it through college now.

Higher education costs have been increasing at a rapid pace, faster than inflation for the economy as a whole, for the past fifty years. It started in the 1960’s when the federal government passed the Higher Education Act to increase the amount of people able to afford and attend college. Regardless of the Unites States Government efforts to increase the affordability of college, federal aid programs have not risen to expectations due to the ever-increasing college prices. To lower the price of college, the government needs to cut back on student financial spending to go only to the lowest income families and create tax incentives for families to start saving up on their own.

As a result of this, states receive pressure to make up for this and must raise tuition. Grant donors are also becoming less generous in their contributions to students as well. This makes affording college even harder for students.

In the 2018 Federal Budget, President Trump has decided to cut the Pell Grant funding by $3.9 billion. Consequently, slashing funding for this grant and other grants means that families that make under $40,000 per year will struggle to put their children through college, even more than they already do (deHahn). Each year, colleges are allowed to tap into a federal budget of $600 million, of which everyone needs to share. This is only 3% of the federal budget, earning at least 1% less than the Agriculture industry (Federal Spending). With only 3% of the National budget, and a considerable amount of colleges fighting for the money, it is obvious why tuition is skyrocketing. Students are having to pay extra tuition fees