COLLEGE TUITIONS BECOMING OVERBEARING FOR STUDENTS
By: Jonathan Acosta
The Worth of College
passing the inflation rate. (Thompson, 2014).
The majority of universities have started to raise
their tuition rates which ended up passing the
inflation rate due to the Great Recession in 2008
as states began to cut budgets for college
education to adjust to inflation. (Leachman,
Johnson, Palacios & Oliff, 2013). Due to many
states cutting funds for the higher education, the
average tuition at a four year university has
grown by $1,850, or 27 percent. (Leachman,
Johnson, Palacios & Oliff, 2013). The cutting of
states funds of higher education is then the
primary reason for the growing tuition costs.
Decrease Enrollment
Due to higher college tuition, college students or
upcoming college students will have to face the
risks of paying at a higher cost. Before starting
college, one would have to enroll and with the
growing tuition costs, that can cause many high
school students to not enroll as college would be
too expensive for them. The New York Times
reported in 2013 that many colleges are
projecting lower enrollment rates for the coming
years, and Time reported in 2012 that college
enrollment has slipped slightly over the past few
years which again indicates the possibility of
less people attending college. (Thompson, 2014).
Even worse, those who are from low-income
family are less likely to attend college as they
would not be able to pay for their higher
education and consequently, create a bigger gap
between
College education, for many people is a
huge investment to obtaining a degree and
getting a good job to have a better life. College
graduates are more likely to earn higher salaries
and job benefits such as health insurance and
pension plans as compared to people without
college degrees. Not only job benefits are good
for college graduates but their level of
knowledge will grow, and they will become
better people on the workforce. Since college is
a door to better life, colleges enrollment have
increased over the past recent years. Though
more students are enrolling into college to
pursue better lives for their future, they will
soon realize the obstacle that is blocking their
paths to earning their degrees or having better
lives is the growing tuition cost.
For the past recent years, college tuition
has increased for the majority of universities
throughout the country. For some people, the
increasing of college tuition may seem
reasonable due to the rate of inflation but that is
not the case as college tuition are actually out-
between the rich and the poor. (Leachman,
Johnson, Palacios & Oliff, 2013). Therefore not
allowing the poor to have the same job
opportunities as the rich because of the
expensive tuition.
Higher Tuition Leads To Higher Debt
Even for those who can attend college are still
likely to face the risks of high tuition which is
the possibility of getting into high student debts.
Not only tuition increased from the Great
Recession but student debts have increased too,
and theyre still growing. Between 2007-08 and
2010-11 school years, the amount of debt
incurred by the average bachelors degree
recipient at a public four-year institution grew
from $11,800 to $13,600 (in 2011 dollars), an
inflation adjusted increase of $1,800, or 15
percent. (Leachman, Johnson, Palacios &
Oliff, 2013). This shows that student debt levels
have grown since the beginning of the
recession. Since college is becoming more
expensive, college students will have to take out
student loans to pay for their tuitions but that
will cause problems when they graduate as they
will be burdened with mounting levels of
debt. (Leachman, Johnson, Palacios & Oliff,
2013).
Solution
As colleges are becoming more expensive,
doors that allow many people to be successful
are being closed. To open those doors, states
need to stop cutting college funds and instead
cut funds for other programs and focus more
into college education. College education is the
key to obtaining a better lifestyle and not only
that it will benefit college graduates, but the
whole country as the economy will be improved
since it will be benefited from the workforce full
of college graduates. College is worth of
attending and graduating with a degree as it is a
huge investment to getting closer to the pursuit
of happiness. If the states stop cutting their
college funds then universities will lower their
tuitions, which then everyone can have the
opportunity to enroll into college and become
successful when they graduate with their
degrees.
Reference:
Leachman, M., Johnson, I., Palacios, V., & Oliff, P. (2013, March 19). Recent deep state higher
education cuts may harm students and the economy for years to come. Center on
Budget and Policy Priorities, 14-15. Retrieved, from http://www.cbpp.org/files/3-19-
13sfp.pdf
Thompson, V. (2014). How tuition increases affect college students. GlobalPost.
Retrieved, from http://everydaylife.globalpost.com/tuition-increases-affect-college-
students-7007.html
