Cavit Ula, Michael Gruber

5/14/14

Cost of College is too high.

College is becoming less and less affordable for the average student.  The average cost of tuition for the 2013-2014 school year was $30,000.00, and at the end of four years a student will be left with an average of $29,000.00 of debt. The average income of a median family in the U.S is $51,000.00. With college becoming exceedingly important to a student’s future as time progresses, such high prices for an education are unacceptable.  An education is becoming almost necessary to have a shot at securing a future, and higher education seems to be turning into a privilege more than a right.  This is quite alarming, and to have a chance at a future, extreme changes must be made – and fast.

If we do the math here, after four years of college the students will owe more than what they make in a year. It takes time for college graduates to find a job where they get paid well. Also students end up not finding a job in the field they major in, and they end up going back to college to major in different fields.  It’s just not adding up the cost of college shouldn’t put you behind.  College should a head start not a setback.

However, this is a solvable problem.  Tax reform and redistribution of government funds could help in alleviating the problem.  Instead of putting so much money towards national defense, we should put that money into education so college is affordable for students.  Maybe, if we were to spend more money on education and less on defense all of the defense wouldn’t needed because we’d be smart enough to stay out of wars. Also are economy wouldn’t be in debt.  

An expensive education leads to a less educated population, which leads to less educated and often bad decisions, which in turn runs the risk the country falling into trouble which could have been prevented.  Knowledge is power and knowledge is becoming less affordable in this country and the rich continue to hold power getting richer as the poor get poorer and the gap between the classes grows every day.