VCollege shouldn’t just be debt free – it should be free. Period. The cost of college has skyrocketed in the recent decades, so much that many are eschewing not to go to college simply because of the price tag, while those who do are stuck in student debt that follows them throughout the years. “The bright young people who currently skip college because they can’t afford it would have the opportunity to get a degree and get better jobs. The high cost of a degree would no longer be an obstacle” (Josephson). In other words, not only do people skip college because of the cost of college tuition, but a number of students switch majors from a career they love, to a career that will simply pay off the debt. According to Kirszner and Mandell, “The costs of attending college have increased by 1000% over the last four decades” (573). This issue could be simply fixed by eliminating tuition fees. Proponents of free college would benefit the entire nation, not just the individual students who take advantage of it. It would be both a private and public benefit. After all, more and more of today's jobs are knowledge-based or require advanced technical skills. So, a better-educated workforce would help fill many of the skills gaps that prevent America's economy from growing faster.
Free higher education has several advantages. First. If free college tuition were granted to students, they would no longer be crushed by student debt. Without the weight of student loan debt, we could see an increase in the number of students able to attend college, which in turn, creates a more well-educated workforce. According to recent research by Equifax, “consumers under the age of thirty owe a combined total of $369 billion in student loans. That’s more than double the $146 billion consumers under 30 owed in 2004” (Williams). Without the weight of student loan debt, more college graduates might buy houses rather than renting apartments. They might buy more valuable things, spend more on healthy food, travel more: In essence, they could contribute more to the economy.
Secondly, free college tuition should be given to students because it will assist students to focus on their studies. Most college students have to rely on their job as much as their academics, to be able to afford for all the necessities which include books, and classes which are required. These part-time jobs really take away precious time from students. If a higher education was given, students would have more time to educate themselves. Students then would be prepared for their classes and limit the stress of their own financial situation. Students would then be able to attain employer-desired credentials, which would result in getting well-paying jobs that go unfilled. Having access to free college means you don’t need to rush into a BA program, graduate and start paying debts off. Instead, you can take the time to figure out what you really want to do.
Thirdly, free college tuition would create a boost in the percentage of people who go to college. This idea was recently explored by the OECD, they noted that “In Germany, the shift to dependence on government funding, combined with an increase in enrollment that resulted from abandoning tuition, has also meant a ten percent decline in spending per student in the last few years” (Marcus). However, Germany isn’t the only country to experience a rise in enrollment after eliminating tuition fees. Scotland, for example, had an increase in enrollment by seventeen percent after removing tuition fees. This increase in the number of people who enrolled in college could likely happen in the United States as well. In fact, Georgetown University’s Center for Education predicts that university enrollment in the United States would increase at least to nine percent if it too were to take a tuition free stand (Marcus). As a result, a better educated population could result in smarter decision-making at every level of society, which could lead to faster progress in solving our most difficult, collective challenges. Because college provides you a platform to learn. High education is critical for individual success and economic prosperity. Graduates leave with more than degrees; they leave with knowledge, skill, confidence and responsibility, which is necessary to challenge community and global issues. Higher education reduces the probability of being dependent on society for support.
On the other hand, college is a privilege not a right. The decision to go to college should be planned in advanced so the student can work toward this goal. Such as, effort in high school needs to be demonstrated in order to earn the privilege to continue a higher education. Universities need to uphold their reputation that gives degrees their value. How many students go to college just to experience the thrill and party life? Nonetheless the reason, not all students go to achieve a diploma, and other people shouldn’t have to pay for someone else to have a good time. College students need to be people who want to attend for a reason, who work hard, and worker even harder to stay there. Regardless to say, college is definitely not for everyone, but making it affordable for every citizen would increase the chances of people choosing college simply because they can. At my school, I’m surrounded by an incredibly hardworking, talented, passionate, diverse student body, who truly appreciate their ability to attend such a wonderful university. We don’t take our education for granted and our ability to attend wasn’t handed to us for free with no strings attached. But, if my college were free, I would have absolutely no motivation to have a job or support myself at all.
However, another aspect of college is finding an inexpensive school, even if you come from a low-income family who simply just can’t afford it. But, most certainly there are other options to pay one’s way instead of passing a law. This is when students receive three kinds of public benefits: tuition subsidies, living grants, and public loans (Bruenig 581). “Through various combinations of this benefit troika, almost all students are able to finance their college education” (Bruenig 581). If a student genuinely desires to attend college, they will do whatever it takes. Scholarships are earned and not handed out. Scholarships are required for the student to continually earn this privilege and the money they are being handed.
For some, “free college” means different things for different people. It could mean, subsidizing tuition to nothing. For others, “it appears to mean putting in place some mix of means-tested tuition subsidies, living grants, and even subsidized work-study jobs that, combined with expected parental assistance, allow nearly all students to leave college with little to no debt” (Bruenig 581). “Free” higher education does not mean free, it simply means someone else is getting the bill. Simply shifting who pays the bill will do little to nothing to change this issue. Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders proposed a legislation called “The College for All Act”, and in his proposal included that the cost of a ten-year time span would cost six-hundred billion dollars to make college free in the United States for all Americans attending community college or universities. “Some plan, such as the one Sen. Sanders proposed, would use a combination of federal and state funds to make public college tuition free” (Josephson). The federal and state governments would have to maintain this goal for the long-term. As a result, Americans would have to start paying much higher taxes, which, in turn, could hurt the economy since Americans would have less to spend or invest. In addition, countries like the United States have already proven that free tuition isn’t necessary for building some of the world’s most educated people. What makes educated people is determination, and persistence. And, free tuition would not likely be enough to make big improvements in social mobility that are needed throughout America. Making public colleges free for everyone wouldn’t be the best way to solve the affordability problem in America. There is other options that could work just as well, and those options would be less expensive for American taxpayers. For example, what if loans with income-based repayment were available to every student? Or, simply an income-based repayment system. Surely, taxpayers would have to help fund it since not all loans would be paid, but the tax expense and requirements would likely be considerably lower compared to what a college tuition-free system would require. This could help remove obstacles for higher education without removing the value of college and accountability. Instead of going completely tuition free, this is what should be the focus of future college plans: helping students help themselves, not just giving handouts. If we were actually going to push for a free higher education, it should not be under the students benefit, but instead under a general welfare.
In conclusion, without having to pay the full price, college students will have a more increased chance of falsely prioritizing their future options. I find it quite difficult to believe, that if students were handed free education, they will apply the same work ethic if it were not. “The goal of free college should not be to help students per se, but instead bind them to a broader welfare system” (Bruenig 583). A free college agenda has no real equal purpose, because making high education free for everyone would almost certainly mean giving more money to students from richer families rather than poorer ones. This plan for an equal higher education for all would be devastating and totally pointless.