Research Paper

Mary Biviens

WIFYS

Dr. Shannon Mortimore- Smith

4/22/2015

Research Paper

Nowadays most people want a college degree but not everyone is able to pay the price for education. Each year the rise of education cost has been increasing making it harder for students to afford it. The growth of college tuition increases in student debt and leads students t not attend or even drop out of school because college loans do not provide much support. College tuition should find its way to reduce in cost so that more students are able to receive an affordable education. “For America to remain competitive, we must tackle the college affordability crisis head on” (Harkin 1).

My experience transitioning to college was a big step for me in dealing with finances. I had to attend a summer program for me to attend the university that I was applying to. The term in total cost had me to pay nearly four thousand out of pocket because financial aid do not cover summer semesters. Neither of my parents have a job or great credit so it was a struggle for me to find a loan or afford it on my own. Sure there are still resources of scholarships but they are not always promising. I thought I had to drop out because I could not afford it. I do not wish to think of something like that because of the money situation, for anyone to think someone of that on that matter.

Inside of Matt Taibbi’s, The college loan scandal, Taibbis makes a very interesting point claiming the university- tuition system is really exploitative and unfair. His reasons that follow’s this statement are that loans were created to help put low- and middle-income students into universities and also result in colleges remodeling through campus expenses also any other services and curricular activities. As an example, Taibbis talks about a scientist named Alan Collinge. He has graduated with a degree in aerospace engineering and earned a research job working at Caltech. He had asked for a raise and before you knew it Collinge lost his job. He was still in debt from $38,000 by fees, penalties, and accrued interest. As a result he now has to deal with his loans from college which didn’t really land him a promising goal or job.

“Reducing tuition is a noble goal and is one of the primary ways to ensure that the dream of a college education be a reality for more Americans in the days ahead” (Campo 2), is the quote in which Dr. Campo states in his article, Why we need to reduce college tuition. I agree with his statement because I feel that if tuition keeps increasing many students will drop out of college or either decide not to attend because they cannot afford it. “Higher tuition costs are surely driving students away” (Campo 2) but the reason here to why tuition is not reducing is because institutions may have to cut back on features (resources, sports, activities, etc.), reduce costs, and be mostly focused on academics. If quality through entertainment decreases enrollment could develop students to transfer possibly. Small class sizes could leave professors becoming harried towards students who might feel lamented by the situation (Taibbi 2).

Institutions all have made attempts to make the tuition bills more affordable but why haven’t they made a decrease in tuition yet? “-With state budget cuts causing a wide range of dismal conditions including program cutbacks and tuition hikes to make up for last state revenue”(Campo 2). Universities have suggested offering discounts or scholarships among students to help reduce tuition cost. Also, schools turn to endowments and alumni gifts to help cover some bills. Some universities have found solutions to reduce cost by providing “the use of technology” so students could only take online classes.

To offer a solution here that I think could benefit decrease in tuition would be to continue providing loans and scholarships for students but also have the federal government help pay for some of the academic programs  along with it’s school using they’re own money paying for new construction or dropping a few professors. This issue is important because to move on a better society we need to invest our ability to attend college. Anyone who strives for the opportunity to go to school should be able to go and made affordable for them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Works Cited

Block, Gene D., et al. “The Debt Crisis In Higher Ed.” Time 10.18 (2012): 44-51. Academic                                            gvhubgbguhuhh Search Complete. Web. 23 Apr. 2015.

Campo, Carlos. “Why We Need To Reduce College Tuition.” Huffington Post. (2013),       gggggggggggggggWeb. 23 Apr. 2015.

Taibbi, Matt. “The College Loan Scandal.” Rolling Stone 1190 (2013): 34-3. Academic gggggggggggggggSearch Complete. Web. 23 Apr. 2015.