The Benefits Of Expensive College Tuitions

Have you ever just stopped to think about what it must be like to be “qualified” for a job yet be unemployed and homeless? Starving on the streets because you paid everything you had to an institution that was supposed to guarantee a better life, a more stable and successful career. Obviously this is an extreme case, not everyone who pays for college ends up living on the streets and broke, but almost every college graduate is in debt. For as long as college has been around it has always meant a better life, it’s always been that people who went to college were more successful, smarter, and would make way more money than someone who didn’t go to college ever would. Lately, however, college has become so expensive that going to college will more than likely leave you in debt working for years upon years just to pay back what you owe and then start making money for yourself.

This week for PLN I read "Is College Worth It? Clearly, New Data Say" by David Leonhardt is about how college is worth it even with its cost. In the article, it describes how important a degree is. It said in the article that 98% of people with a degree made more money than people without a degree. There is nothing inevitable about this trend. If there were more college graduates the pay gap would shrink. The true cost of a degree is negative $500,000. The unemployment rate for 25 and 34 years old is 3%. That is from having a degree. The average hourly wage for a college graduates has risen 1% to 32.60.

According to College Board, “The median income for families headed by a bachelor's degree holder was $100,096 in 2011—more than double than that for a family headed by a high school graduate,” (College Board). Though this is a valid statement demonstrating the economic benefit a college education in the long run; College Board does not take into account the initial price tag of what it takes to attend college in the first place. According to ProCon.org on the topic of college education, “Between 2003 and 2012 the number of 25-year-olds with student debt increased from 25% to 43%, and their average loan balance was $20,326 in 2012--a 91% increase since 2003,”

College costs go up faster than incomes. This is copping out low and middle-class families from getting a decent college education. College is becoming so expensive that it is a dream to a lot of less fortunate people. The tuitions and fees are public universities have increased almost 130% over the past 20 years. Education prices shouldn't increase as jobs and income decrease; that doesn't make sense. For colleges to increase tuition fairly, incomes would have to increase making the average annual income more than $50,000. Whereas, in 2008, the median income was $33,000. That's a big difference. As prices increase, education opportunities decrease. This leads to a decrease in jobs. Ironic because businesses are looking for well-educated employees.

A lot of people will argue, that college is too expensive. Not everyone can go to college, for financial reasons. Also, they may get into college, but end up having to leave because they cannot afford the remaining balances; or, they received financial aid, but end up having to take out loans they are going to be paying back forever. It is like once they graduate they will be working mostly to pay off their student loan debt. This also discourages some students. In some cases, they will not even take the initiative to try because it is so costly. I do not understand why it cost so much to want to better yourself, and possibly put us in debt for the rest of our life just to receive a higher education. Not only has the cost of college risen over a period of time, but it continues to go up. Yes, they have alternatives for paying student debts, but what if you do not qualify? Lastly, you are not guaranteed a job just because you graduate and have a college degree(s).

There is a big difference between having a college degree and a high school diploma. To be exact, there is about a $400 per week difference in what is earned between those who only have a high school diploma and those who have bachelor’s degree. There also is a major substantial difference in unemployment. With a high school diploma, you are looking to earn $1.2 million, but those with a bachelor’s degree can look to see an increase which is $2.1 million. Also, people with a master’s degree look to get around $2.5 million over a lifetime. These are all reasons why college is important to intend. The only thing in the way costs of tuition for most people. If we helped lower the cost with some revenue from the NCAA and colleges that receive extra than it could help create more opportunities for people in

In 2016, college grads graduated with an average of $37,172 in student loan debt. This is a 6% increase from the previous year, and the rates increase as colleges become more expensive. Going to a University or College is looked upon as a luxury or a privilege nowadays. Good paying jobs that supply good living standards are requiring at least a bachelor’s degree to be considered for hiring. Any persons, including college students, should not be forced to live with, be pressured by, or be under the control of student loan debt. Student loan debt has been proven to have an impact on a person’s mental health. It keeps the less fortunate from having a chance to prosper in a competitive workforce, and the system that provides financial aid (FAFSA) doesn’t always meet a person’s needs completely. College should be an earned right for those who have stuck through the education process as an adolescent.

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

College graduates tend to make more money than high school graduates. According to the Economic Policy Institute, “College graduates, on average, earned 56% more than high school grads in 2015” (Pay Gap Between…). Although, this stat might not be for everyone it is for the majority of people. Jobs tend to pay higher if the person has a college degree than if one did not. To be successful people might have to spend money to make money. If someone spends thousands for college for 4 plus years, but in return they are making 56% more money than a high school graduate in the long run it will be worth it. They will have a lot of debt and student loans to pay, but once they pay it off they will start catching up to high school graduate in profit quickly. Many jobs would rather have someone with a college degree than one with just a high school diploma. The stats prove that people tend to make more later on than someone who goes straight into the workforce.

That doesn’t mean it’s always in someone’s best interest to go to college. “By telling all young people that they should go to college no matter what, we are actually doing them a disservice,” wrote Stephanie Owen and Isabel Sawhill in “Should Everyone Go to College?” (Downey N. pag.). You should always consider your intended occupation. A degree doesn’t always promise to make you more money than if you only had a high school education. Recognizing tuition cost is out pacing inflation, you have to make sure your degree is worth the time, money, and effort you’re about to put into it. ‘’With fast-rising tuitions and stagnant wages, fewer of us are immune from borrowing to pay for our university education. And delaying or forgoing college while we save is a difficult option: according to the Center for American Progress, weekly earnings for workers with a bachelor’s degree were $1,066 in 2012, compared to $652 for workers with a high school diploma. Those without a degree are nearly twice as likely to be unemployed. For many, going to college, then, is simultaneously a rational economic choice and an economic disaster’’ (Clark N. pag.). Often if a four-year degree isn’t right for someone they might try a different, cheaper route such as; training certification, a trade school, or online courses (Downey N.

College tuition has been on the rise as the demand for higher education has increased each year. Politicians debate whether public college should be made free through regulation by the government or to let the institutions set their prices themselves. A problem to this proposal is that private universities would still set their own high prices for tuition. Free college tuition does not ensure that a student will finish college or receive a great education because it is up to them on what they do with the education at the university. It is not possible for public college to be tuition free because of the amount of money the government will have to spend and that it will not result in better educated people.

College gives its graduates the greatest ability to achieve a higher paying job. Furthermore, adults who attend college earn higher wages over those who do not. As emphasized in “College Grads Find Big Degree of Debt, Difficulty; American Families Start to Wonder Whether Education Cost Is Worth It” by Patrice Hill, a staff writer for The Washington Times, employees who have a

As a result of the intensiveness of the student loans program, schools will get any figure that they propose as the tuition. Colleges have no reason to reduce costs unless there comes a time that students simply can’t afford their sticker price and wouldn’t be qualified for a loan either. It is only then that the academic institutions are obligated to reconsider their spending and tuitions. In simpler terms, college tuition does not abide by laws of supply and demand due to the infinite supply of student loans from the government. Several similar scenarios of a reckless supply of money to a sector have happened during the last century and had severe consequences. One such case was the effort to expand home ownership. The U.S. government eagerly

Everyone says "college is really expensive" but they never tell you how expensive college actually is so, one thing I wish I knew before starting college is how much the college I want to attend cost including room and board. Knowing how much college tuition and expenses cost would prevent me from taking out loans and taking on huge debt. I would also be able to focus more on school and classes knowing that

A four-year degree costs students “more than $19,000” (Stieger), and in this day and age it is nearly impossible to survive with only a high school education; being well qualified for a specific career position is very important to employers. George Leef, author of “Why on Earth Do We Have a ‘Student Loan Crisis’?,” says it best when he states that “college graduates are somewhat more reliable and easily trained than people with only high school diplomas … if there is a large enough number of [people] with college degrees, employers don’t have to bother with people who don’t have them” (Leef 29). That being said, I wonder how young people are expected to obtain some sort of degree, when higher education is nearly impossible for some families to afford. Although very significant changes have been made by our government offering improved financial aid to current and future students, more can still be done. Our politicians could increase the Pell Grant maximum to coincide with rising tuition costs, increase taxes on irrelevant goods and services to provide students with more direct funding, set up a “reward system” that would place more responsibility on the students (rather than themselves), and most importantly, our two main parties in office need to agree on specific changes.