Nautica Holiday
Samantha Frye
ENG 101-WN902
3 December 2018
Should College Tuition be Lowered?
In order to be successful, one must have some training or higher level of education. With that being said, the cost of college education is more than what the average person can afford. As a result of that, college education should be lowered. Lowering the cost of tuition would lead to less student debt and allow more students to attend college which would increase the amount of educated people in the general public. There are many factors that contribute to my reasoning, but it should be taken into consideration. It can eliminate stress from the students and stress can lead to other conditions.
How do graduation rates impact debt? Consider this: Only around 60 percent of four-year college students graduate in six years, and less than a third of students at community colleges graduate in three years. That amounts to a lot of student debt and not a lot of college degrees to show for it. Those students who fail to graduate are in a precarious position – burdened with debt, but lacking the qualifications to get the kind of jobs that would enable them to repay it. Tellingly, while the two-year default rate for students who have completed a degree is just 9 percent, that number jumps to 24 percent for those who did not complete a degree (Levin).
Lowered tuition would expand access to students who are looking to have an education further than high school. With the high demand of jobs opening, one must have the qualities to even be looked at. In this situation, one must ask their self, why is there not an adequate amount of people wanting to attend college? This question has many acceptable answers, but the main answer is that the cost is too much of a burden. Although there are some who are too ashamed to admit they need help, there are also ones who are willing to openly express their need for help.
There are significant resources to help, but there are still some people that will not be able to pay. For example, when someone receives an unsubsidized loan, that is money that one must be able to pay back. And in most instances, there is an extreme amount of money added for interest. If one is not able to pay for it the first time around, what makes one think they will be able to pay for it in the end. If one does decide to go to college and then go onto a job, that will also require money for taxes. The cost of living is too much for people to pay their bills and their student loans
A more educated population would add economic and social benefits to the community (Josephson). For example, free college would boost the country’s productivity. Along with greater productivity there will also be lower crime rates, better health coverage, and better citizenship for more educated people. If everyone is college educated it would decrease the time to do anything else but to better your career. As of the current state of the country, the cost of insurance is high, but it is something that you must have. That just goes on to say, just as that, a college education is also something that is necessary. The issue of why college should be free is not just an economic one. It's also a moral and philosophical one. Do we want every American, regardless of social standing, to have an equal opportunity to reach his or her potential? That's what this country is supposed to be about, yet social mobility has been eroding for the poor and middle class. And without easy and affordable access to quality higher education for everyone, the collective intelligence and goodwill of the nation could also erode.
Another reason college tuition should be lowered is that it allows students an opportunity to explore career options. Institutions like Regent University are lowering tuition to increase access, respond to the economic realities of the day, and combat a trend that must be reversed for higher education to meet its goals in America (Campo). It is okay for one not to know, but it is not okay for one not to try. If you have never done what you one day wish to do, how do you know if you like it or not? The answer is simply, you do not know. As stated before, it gives the students an opportunity to job shadow and intern. With those opportunities' students have a better chance of finding the perfect career for them if they have not already done so. In my findings, statistics have shown that over 80% of college students complete internships before their college graduation.
Argumentatively, college tuition should not be eliminated altogether. The reason being that this is where the professors earn most of their salary from. Also, with more people choosing to attend colleges because of their tuition-free status, many schools will have to create wait lists or expand the ones they already have. State budgets could become strained, which might lead to cuts and decreased access to the programs that students want to be a part of. Many students would still have to borrow money for their living expenses as well as for books and supplies, so they would still have to come out of some money. Furthermore, students might even take their college education less serious due to the fact they are not having to pay for it. As a result, graduation numbers might drop, or the people who do graduate might not be as well prepared for the workforce.
If America were to move to a tuition free college policy, where would the money come from? Those who argue why college should not be free, make the case that free college is really not free. Instead of students paying for their own education, taxpayers pay for it. Those opposing free college worry about the ever-growing costs of going to college and increasing enrollments will make publicly funded college tuition unfeasible (Kurfiss). Who gets taxed seems to vary, but it seems certain that the upper class tax payers will see an increase in the amount of money they are having to give back. That is unfair that working Americans will have to contribute a large portion of their money to pay for others to have an education. Just as they had to find money to pay for their own education, why should the upcoming students be given the privilege of not having to do the same? They should not have that benefit, if one must want something they must first work for it.
In conclusion, college students are faced with the dilemma of paying for college, but in most cases, they do not know where the money is going to come from. If tuition is lowered, or even free, students will become more open to receiving an education. But in retrospect, they must have some sense of where the money is coming from. Paying for things are all a part of growing up. When you pay for things on your own it gives you a form of responsibility. College is not for everyone, but it should be. One should not let their current circumstances define where they end in life. No dream is too big, no dream is too.
Work Cited Page:
Campo, Carlos. “Why We Need to Reduce College Tuition.” Google Search, Google, 25 Sept. 2012, 06:41, www.google.com/amp/s/m.huffpost.com/us/entry/1913576/amp.
Josephson, Amelia. “The Pros and Cons of Free College.” SmartAsset, SmartAsset, 18 May 2018, smartasset.com/student-loans/the-pros-and-cons-of-free-college.
Kurfiss, Deborah. “Should College Be Free? We Answer The Burning Question.” Student Debt Relief | Student Loan Forgiveness, Student Debt Relief | Student Loan Forgiveness, 4 Sept. 2018, www.studentdebtrelief.us/news/should-college-be-free/.
Levin, David. “Solve the Student Debt Crisis.” Google Search, Google, 13 Oct. 2017, 10:45 a.m, www.google.com/amp/s/www.usnews.com/opinion/knowledge-bank/articles/2017-10-13/to-lower-student-debt-up-graduation-rates-and-lower-college-costs?context=amp.
“Pros and Cons of Tuition-Free College.” College Raptor, www.collegeraptor.com/find-colleges/articles/affordability-college-cost/pros-cons-tuition-free-college/.
“Should College Be Free? Here's What You Need to Consider.” Trade-Schools.net, www.trade-schools.net/articles/should-college-be-free.asp.