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Too little is known about whether money spent on higher education is worth it

economist.com

21–30 of 83 posts

Re: Too little is known about whether money spent on higher education is worth it

#21
post #18

Higher education improves economy and reduces unemployment. "whether it is worth it?" is wrong and irrelevant question.

Many actions have diminishing returns, education included. The article asks some decent questions, but presents them as if they are not being already addressed. It is akin to asking is pollution bad without mentioning that there is recycling.

Re: Too little is known about whether money spent on higher education is worth it

#22
post #14

Really? The author is advocating extending universal testing to higher education? Because that's working so well in secondary schools... /s Common core is a failure. The idea of extending that model to cover an even broader, more diverse set of subjects and topics is really poorly thought out. Who's going to design these tests? What professor is going to give a shit about them when their evaulations are based solely…

While I agree with your general sentiments, I find that most people who bash the Common Core State Standards don't really understand them. Why, exactly, do you feel that Common Core is a failure? Education is one of the few areas that the state has clear, Constitutionally defined authority to manage over the federal government. Yet, 46 out of 50 states have accepted the Common Core, which seems to me to be a tremendo…

Maybe the Common Core standard is fine, but whoever is coming up with the actual problem sets for the Common Core seems to be an actual crazy person.

Re: Too little is known about whether money spent on higher education is worth it

#23
post #18

Higher education improves economy and reduces unemployment. "whether it is worth it?" is wrong and irrelevant question.

Many actions have diminishing returns, education included. The article asks some decent questions, but presents them as if they are not being already addressed. It is akin to asking is pollution bad without mentioning that there is recycling.

Well its good for government :-)

Re: Too little is known about whether money spent on higher education is worth it

#24
post #19
post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Similar? I don't know about France, but in Germany it's free, in Holland you even get money from the government to study.

My old University in the US charges in state students 7,000$ per year for tuition 2014-2015 it's 10,200/year out of state. Plenty of people come up with most or all of that as working students. And one of my roommates came from Europe because it was cheaper than any school in his country though this was a while ago. My little sister got into a school that charges (ED: 43.2k tuition/year 2015-2016) which she wanted to…

"Good" private schools (Harvard, Stanford, MIT etc.) charge a lot for tuition then redistribute funds so that people from less affluent backgrounds get need-based scholarships. I think this pressures other private schools to raise costs in order to seem competitive, even though they don't often have the same generous financial aid. In some cases, going to Stanford may be more affordable than going to Berkeley even if you're in-state.

The strange consequence of this is that it is almost better (from a selfish viewpoint), if you are not rich, to not have money saved for college if you send your kid to Harvard, because they'll take any money you do have.

The room and board cost is mostly based on cost of living (Boston and the Bay area are more expensive than Madison, Wisconsin), but financial aid will often cover that too.

Re: Too little is known about whether money spent on higher education is worth it

#27
post #14

Really? The author is advocating extending universal testing to higher education? Because that's working so well in secondary schools... /s Common core is a failure. The idea of extending that model to cover an even broader, more diverse set of subjects and topics is really poorly thought out. Who's going to design these tests? What professor is going to give a shit about them when their evaulations are based solely…

While I agree with your general sentiments, I find that most people who bash the Common Core State Standards don't really understand them. Why, exactly, do you feel that Common Core is a failure? Education is one of the few areas that the state has clear, Constitutionally defined authority to manage over the federal government. Yet, 46 out of 50 states have accepted the Common Core, which seems to me to be a tremendo…

I'm not going to weigh in on CC itself (I don't have an opinion either way), I just want to point out that when Texas, NY and California (or any combination of those 3) adopt a standard it becomes almost impossible to find a text book or other resources that are not geared toward that standard, and thus becomes very difficult to generate curriculum.

So with California and NY adopting CC this fuels the adoption of CC in more states as a standard because it opens access to more resources at reduced cost since you aren't buying, essentially, custom materials and books. I think that rubs a lot of people the wrong way and has contributed to a lot of noise around CC.

Re: Too little is known about whether money spent on higher education is worth it

#28
post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I grew up in an African village of 200, miles from anywhere and anything. I finished school but didn't go to university. Armed with that and my interest in computers I've managed to land jobs at both Microsoft and Nokia. As ever, every example has a counter-example. I don't know which approach is right, but crazy grateful I didn't go through the American system. The cost strikes me as crippling.

In most other Western countries the universities are pretty much the same as American ones, just without the crippling costs. U of T charges $10K USD annually for tuition, for an undergrad science degree, for a Canadian. McGill charges Quebec residents a stunning $2,000 a year for a science degree. There is no significant difference between U of T or McGill and any American university you care to name. Student costs…

I wonder how the total costs (to the student and the government) differ. I'm sure that the U.S. is still way more expensive. I wonder, too, how much freedom students have to choose their schools; my suspicion is that students have too much here, and consequently chase fancy dorms and amenities, driving costs up as schools seek to one-up one another.

Re: Too little is known about whether money spent on higher education is worth it

#29
Worth a watch:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/collegeinc/view/

Interviews an ex rocker, coke addict, making $$$ starting for profit schools, who's latest endeavor (Hope University or some such nonsense) milks tuition grants from ex-cons and the homeless. University of Phoenixes are strategically located near freeway exits.

Re: Too little is known about whether money spent on higher education is worth it

#30
post #5

Growing up in the late 20th century, I cannot imagine not having gone to university. Without it, I'd still live in a small village and probably doing some menial work in a factory or on a farm. I would not have had the experience of focussing on a subject for five years straight. I would not have had the experience of being able to reflect on society and my role in it. I would not have had the experience of discoveri…

I never went to HS or college. It's pretty easy to learn if you're motivated and have an internet connection. I have a high-paying career that I made for myself. Of course, whenever I bring this up people write me off as some kind of genius (I'm not) or some kind of exception. I'm really not. Yes, statistics show that going to college is correlated with more financial success than those who do not attend college. I s…

What gives you the impressions that colleges are some sort of job training program? Having experience is much more beneficial for preparing and gaining a job. A degree without the accompanying internship, volunteer work, or portfolio is not worth as much to an employer.
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