Alana Semuels All Night Long: The Reality Of Paying For College?

Alene Semuels is a writer for The Atlantic, and formerly wrote for The Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The author's purpose for writing this article was to inform college students and the public about opportunities to work while in college. Also it shows college students that working a full time job might not be the wisest thing to do while attending college full time. When this article was written, there was a new trend beginning to arise. In 2015, Georgetown University did a study of students who worked while in college. They found that 70 percent of students were employed while in college and 25 percent of those students are working full time while simultaneously going to college full time. Both the Chicago Tribune and CNBC wrote articles about the findings in the Georgetown study. Putting these things together, Semuels felt persuaded to talk about the topic from two

“Even with scholarships or free tuition, these students struggle with hefty fees and living costs, and they pay the opportunity cost of taking courses rather than getting a job. ”(Shell Par. 7) Considering all of the scholarships and free tuition that can be earned, it unfortunately does not cover all of the expenses and all of the living costs that college students need. Additionally, in college, students are not able to work a full-time job, meaning it is harder for them to make

Some people think that getting a college education is not really a good idea anymore. According to Abel and Deitz, “In recent years, students have been paying more to attend college and earning less upon graduation—trends that have led many observers to question whether a college education remains a good investment” (2014, p. 1). If the student cannot find a job that pays a decent amount of money, after graduation why should the government ‘fund it?. College costs are rising each year. Future generations may not be able to go to college because tuition will be too high. But Abel and Deitz

Over the past twenty-five years, college costs have accumulatively risen four-hundred percent. The percent of parents who contribute to their child’s student debt has dropped from thirty-seven percent to twenty-seven percent, compared to three years ago. Due to the lack of aid, most students have to try to balance a job and school at the same time resulting in eighty-five percent of college students working at least twenty hours a week. It has also been noted that students who work twenty hours or more a week while attending classes at the same time are less likely to graduate due to the high stress environment. Sixty-two percent of college students who drop out were responsible for their own college education. Even when students drop out, thirty percent are still faced with college debt, creating a loophole impossible to recover

A former president, Theodore Roosevelt, once said, “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are,” but yet more than 30% of students don’t attend college the following fall after graduation. As of right now, college is only an option for students, not a requirement. But as technology increases, and jobs become tougher to get a hold of, college is more of a necessity and definitely worth the price tag. It has long term benefits and increases the chances of a successful future. College is definitely worth the cost for the reasons that college graduates have a higher salary than a high school graduates, more and more jobs recently require a college degree, and college graduates more likely to have health insurance and retirement plans.

College is a dream that almost every American wants to come true, however, with the extreme rise in the costs of tuition it is a dream that has quickly turned into a nightmare. “Tuition at a private university is now roughly three times as expensive as it was in 1974, costing an average of $31,000 a year; public tuition, at $9,000, has risen nearly four times,” (Davidson). “For the average American household that doesn 't receive a lot of financial aid, higher education is simply out of reach,” (Davidson). That is why many students have begun questioning the worth of a college degree and if the amount of debt that is received upon exiting college is all for the better. And considering that costs have risen much faster than the rate of inflation, many are starting to believe that college just isn 't necessary any more. However, according to White, economically, the answer would still be a yes. “While unemployment rates for new grads and experienced workers alike have fluctuated throughout the recession and recovery, the earnings premium that college-and advanced-degree holders enjoy over their peers who didn 't attend college has remained relatively stable, and in some instances, grown, according to the report that was released this week,” (White). A study was shown that many college grads are able to get earnings that are significantly higher than those who did not get enough education or only hold a high school diploma (White). Even

For years adults have been questioning whether or not college is worth its cost. Over time the price for college has increased drastically and the potential income of a college graduate is barely following that trend. As colleges become more wealthy and powerful, they’re too pricy for someone to afford without help and debt.

An article by HO, J.D says, “the National Center for education statistics reports an average tuition of 25,409 for the 2014-15 academic year at four-year colleges and universities.” It’s amazing how costly is to get an education. Where many questions, Should the amount of wealth you make determine whether you attend college or not.? Many students going college are in college debt College expenses are getting higher, every individual that is thinking of going college goes through the financial struggle. As many think of a question of how much income they need to pay college tuition.? In regrade to making their college life, usually, student tend to go school and work. although, going school and working becomes the habit but the student will have a dangerous effect on their study. They would have less time to study and take a rest. Education has given many an opportunity to change the world and taught people to saves other people lives. Now our world has doctors, pilots, engineers, scientist and much more that people are not seeing. The life cycle of humans is amazing where we lose another and get even smarter and betters. In this cycle, many have not have gotten an opportunity to show the talent because of college tuitions rising every year. There have been different college grants and some help on college fee if you are under poverty level. Education should not be compared with the price, we can buy a nice dress with a good price but we cannot buy an education at a price

The Education system within America has shifted its focus from teaching to the bottom line. Having a full time job and being a fulltime student is not a new story. For most of our parents it was commonplace to work and go to school. Unfortunately, things are changing for my generation in school: textbooks are being updated every semester, special “attendance clickers” are required in large lecture halls, and getting the accurate guidance so you can only take the classes necessary to graduate. These are a few things that signify problems with and within most colleges and their lack of focus on helping the student achieve their own personal goals to graduate and then join the work

• Students are increasingly likely to work while in college. Since 1984, the fraction of

I work thrity-five hours a week at a warehouse in Ontario California. When I first registered for college classes, I figured college would be fairly easy to fit into my schedule. After all, I thought, college students are not in class all day, like high school students are. So, I assumed the twelve hours a week I’d spend in class wouldn’t be too much of a load. But I was in for a big surprise. My first semester at college showed me that students who work while going to college face problems at school, at work, and at home.

College tuition has been an increasingly intense topic of discussion over the years. The costs of higher education have been debated by many people, and it has been discussed as to whether costs are becoming too high for students to afford. College has become more and more popular, and now as many as 20 million students attend universities reported by The National Center for Education Statistics (1). The value of a college degree is immense, but college tuition is becoming too expensive for students to afford, and furthering the problem are students’ lack of knowledge on how to pay and earn money towards their college degree.

Does college really give graduates the tools and knowledge required to succeed? In the article “Where College Fails Us”, author Caroline Bird attempts to argue that college may not be worth as much as people are led to believe. Bird believes that with the rise in college graduates being well above the Department of Labor Statistics anticipated job needs, college is quickly becoming a waste of time. Moreover, several reasons listed depict colleges many shortcomings, including the stress it puts on students and the unrealistic expectations it gives them combined with huge financial burdens. The author believes that the successful college graduates would have been successful regardless of their education, and that the majority of students felt forced to attend. Finally, she states that before wasting your money on a college education the reader should reflect on her article and determine if there is still value in a college experience. Although Caroline Bird presents many persuading arguments against the college experience in her article, I believe her logic to be outdated and generalized, and her content lacking of discrediting information. I disagree that all college graduates are taking dead-end jobs, and universities have withdrawn from the social side of their educational experience.

The first cause of students dropping out of college is due to the fact that they are unable to balance their work and school together. A questionnaire was completed by 42 first- and second-year students from a single degree program at the end of Semester 2. Findings - Within this group, 83 per cent of students worked at some point during term-time of their degree program. In total 58 per cent of those students who worked did so to either cover or contribute to basic costs of living. While the majority of students felt they could balance work and study, half of all students questioned felt that working could have a negative impact on their degree classification (Working to live). Even full-time

Education is one of the biggest factors that will determine the nation's fate going forward. According to, Helena G “Free College Tuition”, she states, “Most college students usually have part-time jobs and are full-time students. They have to rely on their job, as much as their academics, to be able to pay for all necessary books and classes that they are required to take.” Students that go towards a higher education work. Most likely, they have responsibilities at home.