Comments on: The Price of College

By: Rae Marie

Rae Marie — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 02:51:00 +0000

I was college material and I did well. I always saw college as a way to get my family out of the poverty we were in (I was homeless periodically though college) Then when I graduated, I couldn’t find work. What should be done about people like me who’s hops and dreams depended on college and who’s hopes and dreams are now shattered by debt and inability to find work? By the way, I don’t support Obama or anything he does.

By: Proteios1

Proteios1 — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 14:30:00 +0000

We do. We expend major amounts of our budget towards scholarships..what one faculty member disparagingly referred to as buying our students. But a don’t agree. We must compliment pell grants, subsidies, parental funds and loans by returning some of our tuition to the students.
But we all know math. To do that means I, as a faculty member don’t get raises very often. Gas prices went up for me too. But I accept this as I love my job. And math lesson two…if I give money as scholarships as you suggest..and we do, by how much of another students tuition do I have to increase. Right now, stimates are that around 40% of tuition is to support scholarships, affirmative action and international students.
This means if everyone just paid their own way, tuition would go down..a lot. So I’m right there with you on helping students out. But we’re not the fed who magically just prints more money. It has to come from somewhere and right ow its primarily other students tuition and fees.

By: kg

kg — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 02:17:00 +0000

Sorry, guys. The only thing that will bring the cost of college down is competition. The middle class is finally starting to reject the high cost of ‘traditional’ universities for community colleges and trade schools. I went to a private, liberal arts school (class of 2000). My peers and I have lived through the ‘debt-for-diploma’ age and I can promise you we will not let our children make the mistake we made. Namely: paying for swanky dorms, state-of-the-art fitness facilities, athletic teams, class trips, etc. that do not help you get jobs when you graduate. This whole higher education paradigm is going to come crashing down in the next 15 years and it will have everything to do cost.

By: Michelle Marie Allen

Michelle Marie Allen — Mon, 24 Sep 2012 19:53:00 +0000

Your tone sounds a bit arrogant. And praytell who would determine who would do what to contribute to society ? At what age would this determination be made for a future student or apprentice in a trade ?
Your statement is totally absurd in that we live in a country which guarantees the freedom to choose. By your standards, Albert Einstein would have been relegated to stay in his job during his 20′s as a patent office clerk because he was considered a “learning disabled” student when he was in his early education days.
The ridiculously high cost of education is what needs to be addressed not taking away the right for any individual to choose what they will pursue in the area of higher education. And by the way, many college students are older adults with families who work and go to school. My dear grandfather went to evening classes and drove a beer delivery truck with his brother(they were both abandoned when they were 6&7 years old respectively) during the depression. He also had a wife and 3 children to support. He was a talented and gifted man who obtained a degree as an engineer who had designs of many aircraft engines cross his drafting table. People like you would have him in poverty because his early education wouldn’t have reflected his dormant abilities and intelligence which by your statement would have deemed him not “qualified” to obtain a higher level of eduction.

By: Ann

Ann — Sat, 01 Sep 2012 18:10:00 +0000

That might or might not help. What we really need is for society to drop the narcissistic attitude and for everyone to be realistic about what they can contribute to society (and not to their own sense of “self-worth”), and for parents to be realistic about what their child truly is capable of doing (and in conjunction, to hold the child accountable for their lack of success at school). Just because you enjoy something does not mean you are 1) called to it, 2) good at it, 3) able to make a living at it.

By: eyeclinic

eyeclinic — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 13:34:00 +0000

We need to make colleges accountable, by having them hold and disburse the loans. That way, they will incur the cost of financing educations for students that have little to no hope of obtaining gainful employment. Only then will they stop producing graduates with meaningless degrees and overwhelming debt. Only then will they limit the useless degree programs they offer. Only then will parents realize that their litttle Tom or Suzie is not college material. This will limit the need for colleges and universities,encourage competition, and reduce overall costs.