The Rising Cost Of Higher Education

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.

Research indicates a steep upward trend in the cost of higher education throughout the 20th century. In recent decades, America has witnessed a widening gap between inflation and tuition. An incoming freshman at a typical college incurs charges for tuition, university fees, books, room and board,

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,

In order to improve every aspect of life, especially financially; just having a high school diploma does not meet the requirements that society itself is looking for to accomplish one 's American Dream. Everyone desires and dream to go to college with the hope to be successful; but with the fact that the skyrocketing college tuition is increasing every year might turn those dreams into nightmares. There are many research have been proven that the main factors which cause the high cost of postsecondary education was the lack of funding from government, increase of students as well the increase of administrators. But beside those given facts, there are seems to be more deep hidden truth that most college students and their families have no ideas about it. Numerous of debates seem to argue about the reasons that cause the rise of college tuition was because the most money goes to athletics sport teams, the luxury accommodations for students as well as unnecessary programs and many seven-figure administrator.

“College Prices Soar Again!” “Budget Cuts Cause Even Higher Tuition!” “Higher Education Now Even Less Affordable” These are all statements that have been seen all over the media: newspapers, magazines, television, and radio. (3 SV: SV) Rising college tuition in America has been a problem for years. Many students drop out after a single year due to the pricey costs of tuition. The rapid rise can be attributed to many aspects of the economy, not just a single source. There have also been some propositions of how costs could be lowered, but these have yet to be seen. The United States has gone into a tuition crisis.

The sudden rise of college tuitions began right after the recession in 2008. Many people lost their jobs, and their current jobs were not paying well enough for them to survive through this devastating time. More people turned to higher education and college tuition began to rise because obtaining college majors will guarantee a higher pay other than minimum wage. This downturn didn’t end here because over the years, tuition rose even higher. In 2014, the debt for college students reached to 1.2 trillion dollars, that is an eighty four percent major increase since the recession. It is very difficult for every individual to repay their entire college tuition on time because their job may be underpaid. If you begin to miss your monthly payments, there will be several consequences right ahead of you.

One of the culprits hindering higher education for Americans is the tuition rates. A report by the Delta Cost Project indicates that if tuition had grown in pace with inflation, the average tuition at in-state public colleges would only have been $2,052 in 2010. The actual price of tuition was around $7,500, and it is increasing at around 5% per year, about twice as fast as the rate of inflation. Whereas everything else in the economy doubles in cost about every 32 years, college costs have been doubling around every 15 years. In a paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, titled How the Changing Market Structure of U.S. Higher Education Explains College, the author, Caroline Hoxby, states that universities have little incentive

College rising tuition is currently the hottest topics debated by political and social interest’s groups who pretty much understand that if this is not fixed soon, it will have long damaging effects on our convalescent economy. It is important to be reminded that college education play a tremendous multiplier role in our economy that holds more the 50% of college graduates. (College Has Been Oversold by Alex Tabarrok.)

Inflation has been driving college prices up since high school graduates are looking to attend college. Over 50 percent more graduates are looking to enroll in college than twenty years ago even though the college-aged population has remained the same. Therefore, because there is a high demand for colleges and not enough space in high name colleges, these colleges are able to raise their tuition, and students have no option but to pay for it. This is how inflation works when “you artificially inflate the demand for something and don’t let supply adjust, prices will go up” (Gobry). Currently, the overwhelming demand for a college education has allowed colleges to drive up their prices.

The cost of attending college has risen drastically over the years. Statistics show that there has been a 260% increase in tuition costs since 1980. The increase in tuition cost equates to an increase in money borrowed to fund higher education. An increase in money borrowed results in an increase in debt accumulated over time. As a result of the rising figures, the economy as a whole has also suffered because of the restricted financial space many graduates find themselves in upon completion of their degree. In this paper, we will discuss college costs, reasons why they have risen, and the best way for students to pay for it.

Education has always been imperative. Now more than ever, it is the only thing that helps anyone to advance in today’s society. As vital as imparting knowledge can be, it is also expensive. The average school year cost about $25,000 dollars to attend. Not to mention, the exclusion of room and board, and school fees, which is much more exorbitant. The thought of even extending free tuition all through college to obtain a Bachelor's degree is brilliant. I personally believe the U.S Government should fund for this proposal while it’s on hand because it can ease both working parents and student, time to study, and can encourage them to excel more in school.

In this day and age, the increasing cost of secondary education causes concern to many. In fact, tuition prices are increasing at a faster rate than housing prices, consumer prices and average hourly wages! It is becoming increasingly difficult for the average American to afford to go college. So why are tuition prices increasing so rapidly? This paper’s goal is to set up a demand and supply structure with which to analyze the various forces could potentially be driving up the price of a college education and causing it to rise above the Consumer Price Index. I will begin by defining long run demand and supply for the secondary education “market” and then this paper will address economy-wide factors and summarize the reports of Robert Archibald

Today colleges are growing more and more necessary for attaining a solid path towards a successful career, yet the rapidly increasing cost of tuition is driving students away from their dream of attending college, due to the preposterous amount of money that is now being demanded by colleges across the nation and world as a whole. It is sad to see students being turned away from a successful future due to the money-hungry nature of the universities that dot the globe. More and more impossible it is becoming to have a “rags-to-riches” scenario that used to highlight the American Dream, as if a student doesn’t have the riches to afford a higher education and the tuition that is drug upon its coattails, then our society is doomed to be clothed in rags forever, unless major changes are brought about to restructure and end the indefatigable growth of tuition rates across the board.

The cost of tuition at colleges and universities in the United States has seen a steady increase over last several decades. Since the 1980s, the list price for tuition has risen by roughly 7% per year, while the inflation rate has averaged 3.2% per year. The effect of this mismatch in the rise of the cost of tuition versus the average inflation rate has had monumental effects on the ability of students to afford a higher education. This, in turn, has forced more students to take out increasingly large amounts of loans, causing for the national student loan debt to grow to over $1 trillion dollars, more than total credit card

One year at the prestigious Yale University will cost an average of $38,300 (collegeboard.com). Many students who deserve to go to this school may miss out because of the cost and lack of financial aid. The rising cost of college may put higher education out of reach for the average American. This paper will look into the reasons behind the steady rise in prices, the legitimacy of a college education, and why recent graduates are struggling to find jobs in this tough economy.