The academic industrial complex has since moved on to focusing on wealthy international students, a group that is even less cost sensitive than an American student with a blank check.
High tuition costs mostly stem from the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 1993
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Re: High tuition costs mostly stem from the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 1993
#62Why are tuition fees and student loans necessary? Instead of the government backing up or paying up the student loans, can't it just pay the university directly and then the student would study for free? (after perhaps some common sense adjustments to prevent abuse). Like in, you know, Europe.
Re: High tuition costs mostly stem from the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 1993
#63So where is the money going? If the price of something is increasing faster than inflation then I expect something in return for the extra money I am paying like a bigger house, faster computer, whatever. I went to college in the 1990's. Are college students getting a better education or experience for all the extra money they are paying? I've seen my university's new classrooms, student center, library, dorms, etc.…
The money is going into a bottomless pit of administrative and bureaucratic overhead. Universities are caught up in a zero-sum competition for the top students (and athletes). To attract these students they invest in massive infrastructure projects (new buildings and renovations), often with the support of earmarked donations from wealthy alumni. These new facilities must then be staffed with administrators and maint…
Is the admin always on vacation? I applied to my undergraduate almamater for several positions and wasn't hearing back. I would call every week for about 6 weeks and received out of office messages for each person that entire time. It really gave the impression that people are collecting state funded salaries while doing very very little.
Re: High tuition costs mostly stem from the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 1993
#64Earlier quoted context omitted.
few people want to go there because the bit of paper you get at the end is the value and those a worth less than the bits of paper you get from other universities.
There's also a stigma against this path. I went to a community college for two years (it was free), and then transferred the University of Florida to finish my degree (a fine public R1 university by any standard), paying exactly $0 for my degree. I know people who followed that same path and went on to top tier law schools, medical schools, bulge bracket investment banking, etc. Now I can look back and be grateful th…
I understand feeling embarrassed but I think sharing your experience with your peers and (perhaps more importantly) their kids could help reduce the stigma, even if just a little.
Re: High tuition costs mostly stem from the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 1993
#65Might be an unpopular opinion... but this is exactly why we shouldn't do student loan debt forgiveness. The root core of the issue wouldn't at all be addressed and it would actually be a signal to universities and students alike, that Universities can charge more, and students can continue to take out larger loans because... they might be forgiven at some future point in time.
Student debt is mostly held by the richer half of the US population. Serious question: would it do more good if instead of giving money to people with student debt, you gave money to people without it?
The first test of a potential policy is whether it's better than doing exactly the opposite. If you can't even prove that, it's probably not a good policy.
Re: High tuition costs mostly stem from the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 1993
#66Might be an unpopular opinion... but this is exactly why we shouldn't do student loan debt forgiveness. The root core of the issue wouldn't at all be addressed and it would actually be a signal to universities and students alike, that Universities can charge more, and students can continue to take out larger loans because... they might be forgiven at some future point in time.
> this is exactly why we shouldn't do student loan debt forgiveness. The root core of the issue wouldn't at all be addressed
This is a false dichotomy. The root core of the issue should be addressed. However, that would require an act of Congress, whereas federal student loan forgiveness can be accomplished immediately via executive action. This is why people are calling for it now, because it can be done right now. Also, the President promised to do so multiple times during his campaign.
> Universities can charge more, and students can continue to take out larger loans
Universities are already charging more, and students are continuing to take out larger loans despite the lack of forgiveness.
Re: High tuition costs mostly stem from the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 1993
#67I mean, yeah. But also, the expectations placed on colleges have grown exponentially. Retention staff, student life staff, counseling staff, new innovative (read: Expensive) programs, the 'experience'. These all cost money. My experience of expectations of college in the 90's - can I drink? Do the faculty let me miss if I need to? My experience of expectations of college now - is my child safe? Can s/he access approp…
When I send my own children to college, it will be exclusively through extension courses. No frills. A long time professor at Harvard did the same thing for his children and gave me this idea.
I feel strongly that these expectations could well lead to the undoing of Western Civilization.
"...is my child safe..." Perhaps the issue is that the people who go to college these days are still... children?
Re: High tuition costs mostly stem from the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 1993
#68Michigan cut basically all remaining funding for higher education while I was in college. I saw double-digit percent increases every year. A few years ago I went back to look, assuming sky-high tuition rates, but they ended up only being a little bit higher than when I went. So why did tuition get high? The state stopped subsidizing it directly.
Given that degree holders go on to make wages much higher than those without, is it really fair that those without subsidize the education expenses of people who will go on to out earn them? Especially given how vanishingly little of it goes to actual education and instead administration and sporting programs.
Given that people who finished school make a lot more money than those that haven't, why should final 2 years of schooking be free?
You could make this argument about anything:
Given that people who are well read make more money, why do we subsidise public libraries?
Given that people with access to transport make wages higher than those without, is it really fair that we pay for highways out of taxes?
Re: High tuition costs mostly stem from the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 1993
#69Might be an unpopular opinion... but this is exactly why we shouldn't do student loan debt forgiveness. The root core of the issue wouldn't at all be addressed and it would actually be a signal to universities and students alike, that Universities can charge more, and students can continue to take out larger loans because... they might be forgiven at some future point in time.
> this is exactly why we shouldn't do student loan debt forgiveness. The root core of the issue wouldn't at all be addressed This is a false dichotomy. The root core of the issue should be addressed. However, that would require an act of Congress, whereas federal student loan forgiveness can be accomplished immediately via executive action. This is why people are calling for it now, because it can be done right now.…
>"However, that would require an act of Congress, whereas federal student loan forgiveness can be accomplished immediately via executive action. This is why people are calling for it now, because it can be done right now. Also, the President promised to do so multiple times during his campaign."
I can't be the only one who feels like this is simply 'buying votes' in an attempt to try and salvage some seats for the upcoming midterms. And, of course the people with debt want the debt forgiven unilaterally and post-haste, so it makes sense they're clamoring for it. In a democracy, who turns down free money?
Re: High tuition costs mostly stem from the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 1993
#70I mean, yeah. But also, the expectations placed on colleges have grown exponentially. Retention staff, student life staff, counseling staff, new innovative (read: Expensive) programs, the 'experience'. These all cost money. My experience of expectations of college in the 90's - can I drink? Do the faculty let me miss if I need to? My experience of expectations of college now - is my child safe? Can s/he access approp…
Isn’t this in some ways just growing up and directly having experience with the intricacies of a big system?
All those new things sound like considerations that were there before, yes even in the vaunted 90s to me.
Maybe the average role of parent has changed - I sorta remember college being perceived culturally as roughly a time to go be an adult, make your own choices haven taken a rough idea of the path, and get out of your parents wing.
I can’t see many the students being so interested in the things you listed. But then again, I never got to go because of the cost, and I don’t see first hand what expectations students have on them - but even if they do do care deeply about these expensive systems, where does that failure fall? Certainly not on the students who must work in the system that is set up for them.