Free College Tuition Case Study

American students owe a total of 1.3 trillion dollars in student loans, and about 44.2 million students are in debt. Colleges all over the United States require a tuition for students to attend, which is detrimental to families with low incomes. As a result, students from low income families opt to not attend college. A solution for this problem would be to institute tuition free colleges. Advocates for free colleges state that it would enable students to achieve their dreams, regardless of their monetary situation. Proponents against free colleges say that the public would have to be taxed too much to cover the expenses. College should be free because it would help the country economically, allow students to be more focussed, and it would let students to pursue any career that they would like.

Today, many people seek higher education for a better advantage in finding a job and getting a better life. Even though many people think going to a four year college directly from high school is a good idea; they are wrong. Starting out at a two year community college is more affordable. Also, it helps people explore careers and prepare people to do better in four years college later down the road.

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

As a recent analysis, America’s colleges and universities are quietly shifting the burden of their big tuition increases onto low-income students, while many higher-income families are seeing their college costs rise more slowly, or even fall” (Eskow). Though education is the basic human right, most of the people in the U.S. are not being able to gain it as because of its rising cost. Since the 1970s, tuition and fees at public institutions have increased by more than 350 percent, while pay for working- and middle-class households has stagnated. As a result, the cost of a public-college education now accounts for almost 15 percent of the average family's annual income; 40 years ago it was about 4 percent (Kenneth W. Warren and Samir Sonti). The tuition and fees are increasing in such a way that the young Americans aren’t as educated as the young citizens of many other developed countries. The U.S. ranks 14th in the world in the percentage of 25-34 year-olds with higher education (42%).” When all adults of working age are considered, the US is still one of the highest-educated countries in the world. But when this age group is considered, we are falling behind (Richard Eskow). That’s the personal loss for the young people of the U.S. Education is not a privilege of the rich and well-to-do; it is the inalienable right of every people. It is a powerful tool by which people can lift

As shown, there are strong arguments for and against free college. Thompson, Golden and Katz provided strong evidence that free college would be beneficial. However, the case against free college is more convincing. As shown earlier, free college for all will not proportionally help poorer students. That is wealthy students who do not need assistance will gain the same advantage. Not all students want to go to college or would benefit from it. Yet, these same people will be required to pay for free college through their taxes. There is little evidence that free college will increase graduation rates as more unqualified students enter the college system. Finally, and maybe most important, the resources are not available to ensure students receive

The hot topic amongst people entering college is student loan debt. With the average debt at tens of thousands of dollars, many people shy away from college, or at least do not get a full degree. As a result, many politicians have preached plans to make college free, and thus bring an end to student loan debt. However, those on the other end of the spectrum find themselves hindered in jumping aboard the free college mania, because, after all, nothing is free, everything comes at a price. And as they soon learned, what a price indeed. In fact, in order for the universities to pay staff and accommodate the student body without tuition being on the shoulders of the students, state taxes would have to be increased on the entire taxpaying population.

It’s an idea that pops up every now and then. Every year many young people work hard to pass their school-leaving exams and enter a college. However, for many of them acquiring good marks is not the only worry. Unlike the lucky minority from wealthy families, they must also think about the ways of getting money to pay for their education. For a half century, federal funding has flowed to students in the form of vouchers, and students have had the power to choose from an array of providers--public, private, and for-profit. Making education free can stretch from an array of getting rid of student debts/loans to decreasing the amount of unqualified jobs with the help of President Obama 's idea of making community colleges "free." The government claims that free education is impossible, as there is no possibility to subsidize the universities and colleges with the budget funds. Moreover, when education is fully supported financially by the state, colleges lose their independence and the spirit of democracy and freedom. .

“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.

For many in the middle class student debt has a strong and relentless grasp on their economic future. In their article "Why Free Higher Ed Can't Wait" Jeje Biola and Belinda Rodriguez state that, "Student debt has reached a record total of over $1.3 trillion" (6). This has left many people wondering where this is coming from and wanting change. This number is just too high in the minds of the average American. In the last few years free college tuition has been a hot topic in American politics, as recently as the 2016 presidential race. Candidates such as Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton proved to be a huge push for free tuition. The raising college tuition rates effect all Americans in some form or fashion, so support is quickly rising especially

It is difficult to comprehend how third world countries have tuition-free colleges and America does not. How can economically underdeveloped countries offer free colleges with little problem, but America struggles? While politicians such as Bernie Sanders, President Obama, and Kate Brown talk about making colleges and community colleges tuition-free and eventually free altogether, they fail to see the bigger problem of economic disparity. Implementing a tuition-free program where everyone is eligible is not sustainable nor fair. If a student comes from a household that makes less than the average annual salary of $56,516, tuition should be completely free. College must be tuition-free because most first world countries already have free college, it is an investment that will benefit current and future generations, and people’s inability to repay back their student loans is negatively affecting the United State’s economy.

Dreams are not cheap. I have dreamed of having a college degree for twenty years, one of the hurdles that I struggled with overcoming was the shear rising cost of higher education. In the articles, The Problem with Obama’s “Free Community College” Proposal and Obama’s Dream of Free Community College is Headed to Congress, high dropout rates and low percentages of students earning a bachelor’s degree are touched upon. While reducing the cost of college or providing free community college may not be enough to raise the dropout rate, we need to look at the other non-quantifiable costs of getting an education. If we want to enable American’s to earn that dream, we need to address the whole needs of the student and not just throw money at them.

As the presidential race approaches its zenith, the rhetorical Bernie Sanders, the crafty Hillary Clinton, and the bombastic Donald Trump lay their values, views, and optimistic visions for the future on the table, hoping the American people accept them. (make this sounds kind of sarcastically glamorous and loud and exciting). One of those, held prominently by Mr. Sanders proposes the eradication of college tuition. Published in the Washington Post, “Make College Free for All,” outlines the proposition of Sanders: “education is essential for personal and national well-being…hundreds of thousands of bright young people cannot afford to go to college… [and] leave school deeply in debt…it is time to…make colleges and universities tuition-free…All young people with the ambition and talent can reach their full potential, regardless of their circumstances at birth” (Sanders). Ambitious and talented individuals living in the U.S., in light of the outrageous amount of available resources and contrary to Mr. the opinion of Sanders, ought to fund or contribute to their so-called “essential” college education. Clearly, this exemplifies the state into which America falls – sacrificing freedom for convenience and less effort. After all, once a government funds something, it ultimately controls it.

The words “free college tuition” spark interest in any college student with accumulating debt. In fact, this topic is so incredibly supported that Bernie Sanders implemented it as a core interest in his 2016 campaign. Once Hillary Clinton became the Democratic nominee, she decided to take it on herself with an extensive plan that guaranteed students free tuition. Unsurprisingly, free tuition resonates extremely well within the student demographic. To forty million Americans, free tuition eliminates the largest problem for students: debt (Hess, 2017). However, free college tuition generates the inverse of what these low-income and middle-income students believe. In fact, free college cripples them from multiple perspectives; students will end up spending more financially, will be less likely to graduate with a degree, and will be subjected to more inequality and less exposure.

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.

Over the years, college fees have gradually risen for high school graduates. It’s been said that most jobs with a college degree earn almost double of what a high school graduate would earn. Many people all over the country have been unable to go to college because of these high fees for education. Some people think that your future shouldn’t be controlled by the amount of money you pay. If these fees continue to increase, then no one will be able to attend college. Higher education for free will increase productivity within students because they can get a good job, college is now a prerequisite, and college worthy jobs have great salaries.