Arthur C. Brooks presents his opinion on an idea gaining prevalence across the United States in his published article, “My Valuable, Cheap College Degree.” This new idea is a college degree which costs the student a total of $10,000, also known as the 10K-B.A. Inspired by a challenge to educators from Bill Gates, governors in the states of Texas, Florida, Wisconsin, and a state assemblyman in California have recently made efforts to make this idea a reality. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, in 2011, the average tuition for just one year at a four-year private university was nearly $33,000. While the median inflation-adjusted household income fell by seven percent between 2006 and 2011, the average real tuition at public four-year colleges increased over that period by eighteen percent (1). To prove how rapidly the cost to attend college rose, researchers compared college tuition to the increasing cost of healthcare. Research showed that college tuition increased at twice the rate of healthcare costs over the past twenty-five years. While college tuition rapidly increased, average income fell, which left families in deeper debt with each upcoming year. High tuition costs make getting a college education unattainable for many low and middle income students. Luckily, thanks to an up-and-coming alternative to the typical college experience, there is now a chance for some of these students to pursue their dreams of higher education. “The 10K-B.A. rethinks the costliest part of higher education – the traditional classroom teaching” (1); instead, there is a higher reliance on online and distance-learning alternatives to make the cost of higher education more affordable. Prior to publication of “My Valua... ... middle of paper ... ...song adds to the overall experience of going to college. However, Brooks’ argument reflects that not everyone is looking for that experience. Society should not look upon the 10K-B.A. as a negative option. There are many positives that come from earning any college degree. “The entrepreneurs who see a way for millions to go to college affordably are the ones who understand the American dream. That dream is the opportunity to build a life through earned success. That starts with education” (3). In reality, not all Americans can afford a brick and mortar education, but as Arthur Brooks demonstrated in his article, the 10K-B.A. provides an alternative way for students to earn a college degree and start their way to the American dream. Works Cited Brooks, Arthur C. “My Valuable, Cheap College Degree.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 31 Jan. 2013. Web.
Caroline Bird writes the statement in her 1975 article “The Case Against College (Bird 15-18)” that not every high school graduate is ready to attend college. It is 2010 and this article is still valid today. Some of the college students I have been around were not mature enough for obedience school let alone college. A few of the points she makes in the article are: College has never worked its magic for everyone. Does it make you a better person? Are colleges responsible for your children? Are my children living in a country club? I will use some of my own experiences as an example of college life, as well as examples from my daughter’s college experience, along with my nephews as well. All to find the answer to the big question: Are you ready for a college education?
...o further the point that college is not for everyone. It also reinforces the point that for particular people, college is a tremendous investment.
Muller, Gilbert H. The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues across the Disciplines. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2008. Print.
Community colleges and vocational tracks are not wrong about the high cost of traditional higher education. According to the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics, one year at a public, four-year institution costs upwards of $23,000 on average, while private institutions will cost nearly $10,000 more on average. Coupled with the fact that prices at public institutions rose 42 percent and private institutions rose 31 percent between 2001 and 2011, it’s not a shock that parents and students alike worry about paying for college. However, this won’t always be the case, as this rise in prices simply cannot continue the way it has. Eventually, people will be unable to pay the price that colleges charge. They will either settle for com...
Katherine Porters essay “The Value of a College Degree” first appeared in 2002. At the present time of the essay was published most of Porters references where a time period of 1992-2002 spanning over ten years of resources although, one reference that was cited was from the year of 1961. Her resources indicated the statics that were taken from several US Government departments, colleges, and authors who are knowledgeable about finances. These sources help produce the economic issues with higher education and compared benefits of having a degree, along with the social aspects of attending college.
During autumn, many people are excited for the beautiful colors, football, Halloween, and much more, but fall also is the start of a new school year. As thousands of students head off to college, some wonder “Is all of this time and money worth it?” (DeMause par. 1). With the price of a college education at an all-time high, Neil DeMause analyses the true value of college in his essay “What’s the Value of a College Degree.” In the paper, he examines whether the time and money that is “wasted” on college could be put to better use. He also digs into whether some colleges or degrees have more worth than others. Using all of these components, DeMause investigates the value of college. When the fallacies are ignored, DeMause- with strong support- is able to answer the 150,000 dollar question that college is, in fact, worth it.
Education comes at a high price for this generation and not just financially. Going to college can give students plenty of debt with no promise of a job in return, which can set a student father back on their course of life. Young adults trying to start their lives by going to college encounter many setbacks. Today the average cost for a private university is $25...
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, college tuition and relevant fees have increased by 893 percent (“College costs and the CPI”). 893 percent is a very daunting percentage considering that it has surpassed the rise in the costs of Medicare, food, and housing. As America is trying to pull out of a recession, many students are looking for higher education so they can attain a gratified job. However, their vision is being stained by the dreadful rise in college costs. College tuition is rising beyond inflation. Such an immense rise in tuition has many serious implications for students; for example, fewer students are attending private colleges, fewer students are staying enrolled in college, and fewer students are working in the fields in which they majored in.
Rep. Dick Zimmer predicts that at the current rate of rising college costs, by the year 2000 the average price tag for attending a four-year public university will be over $50,000 and the average four-year cost at a private university will exceed $104,000. (College costs continue to climb, 14) During the years between 1970 and 1994, the consumer price index increased just under four times, but the average cost of tuition, room, and board at four-year public colleges went up nearly five times, and private college costs rose almost seven times, from just under $3,000 to over $20,000. According to the U.S. News Cost of College Index, the average middle-class worker must now labor 95 days to pay for a year at an average private college. Two decades ago, it took slightly more than half as long to pay for the same education. (Elfin, 90) By 1994, the average four-year cost at a private college was over three times the typical family's annual income. (Reiland, 59) However, The College Board recently announced that US college tuition and fees for 1996-97 increased at nearly the same rate as they had in the previous year, adding that the more than $50...
Steve Cohen shows the disparity between the rising cost of college and a family’s capability to afford it. Cohen explains “Tuition has risen almost 1,200 percent in the last 35 years, and the sticker price for many four-year private colleges and out-of-state public universities exceeds $250,000.” Moreover, he goes on to say that even at public universities, it is about $80,000 for four years for tuition and other college related expenses. Later in his article, Cohen explains how this leaves middle-class families in a very uncomfortable situation. The parents or other money-making entities in the household want their student to go to college and earn a degree, but now there can be an element of stress in figuring out how the fees will be paid for. Furth...
Since the 1973-74 school year to the 2008-2009 school year, the price of attending a four-year public or private school has roughly tripled after adjusting for inflation according to College Board. (Update). The current price of college tuition leaves students with many problems in order to receive a college degree which most careers today require. Attending college is part of the “American Dream” and the freedoms that this great country offers but when students can not afford the freedoms we offer, then it becomes a problem. Most college students are left with substantial amounts of debt restricting them from further advancing in their careers after they graduate and the average family can not keep up with the rising costs of education and have to resort to finding other ways to get the desperately needed money. College Tuition--tripling in 40 years, leaving students with large amounts of debt, accounting for 3.3% of the total U.S. gdp-- should be lowered.
College has long been a bastion of hope for those not fortunate enough to inherit a business or fortune from their predecessors, on the other side of the coin; it has also been the site of major controversy and debate, especially surrounding the ever-growing cost of attendance and the rewards that a degree realistically gives onto its holder. The debate is not a new one, but with the recent economic downturn, and the vast sums of new college graduates entering the world without the chance of finding a job, more fuel was added to the fire, and the debate began anew. In order to present new arguments on both sides, articles have been written and published in major newspapers like The Economist and The New York Times, with some varying data and conclusions. David Leonhardt, author of the article published in the NYT by the name of, “Is College Worth?
Even though there's no exact answer to what it costs to go to college today, it is possible to make a good guess. Figure out what kind of school you want to attend and find out how much it costs to attend. From there, tack on an estimated percentage increase — five percent per year is a good guess(Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation, 2014). According to Merkein(2013) the average sticker prices at the nation's four-year public universities rose 2.9% this year, the smallest annual increase in more than three decades, suggesting that the steeper increases over the past few years "did not signal a new era of accelerating prices," says a report out Wednesday(Merkein , 2013). “A college education is one of the best investments that students and families can make,” Coleman (Hechinger, 2013). Yet ...
College tuition will be the bane of certain student’s existence in the near future but it was not always this way. For quite a length of time, people did not pay much for their college degrees. However, in today’s day-of-age that is not nearly the case. A large portion of people are realizing that tuition is very unreasonable and want to change it to be more affordable. While researching college tuition I found not only that I was right about tuition being too high, but I also found that it has inflated more than I assumed it had. Since 1975 to now, tuition has increased by roughly four times the original amount at a four year university.
Carlson, Scott. “A President, Fighting For Every Nickel. (Cover Story).” Chronicle of Higher Education 56.30 2010: A1-A19. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 May 2014.