Congratulations. After careful consideration and
comparison of your application to thousands of other applicants, we would like
to extend to you an invitation for acceptance into Harvard University. Prior to
your acceptance, please sign the attached contract giving Harvard sole
entitlement to any money you will earn in the next eight years, as that is the
average amount of time it takes our students to pay off their tuition
debt.
Okay, so that’s not the real Harvard acceptance
letter, but it might as well be. With debt for many college graduates getting
into tens of thousands of dollars, the aspirations of many to attend a
prestigious college may be thwarted by the exorbitant tuition fees set in place
by the nation’s universities. Many argue, however, that these fees are justified
by the increased income the degree holder will benefit from upon entering the
workforce. The question then remains: Are colleges charging too much for higher
education? In the following, I will attempt to present both sides of the
argument.
Yes, they’re money hungry pirates.
Colleges charge entirely too much for what they give
in return. College tuition rates have been on the steady rise , with states like
Texas deregulating tuition altogether and putting the decisions in the hands of
the universities’ board of reagents. Needless to say, this affects middle class
students the most as they struggle to stay afloat without the financial aid of
the lower class students or the wealth of the upper class.
Universities are not justified in charging students
more merely because a college
degree leads to increased income in the future. How much of my future
income will I need to devote to repaying college debt? Is it right that students
sometimes have to spend more years of their lives paying for college than
attending it? While some people go on to possess fame and fortune, one cannot
attribute their success completely to their college degree, as thousands of
others with the same degree go on to live relatively unspectacular lives. For
example, on the one hand, it can be said that Walter Cronkite’s success is
attributed to his education at The University of Texas; on the other hand, one
can argue that it was his natural charisma that brought him to fame. Either way,
we can’t know for sure; although it seems that colleges often use the former
argument to justify their high tuition rates.
No, it’s totally worth it.
College tuition rates are justified when you consider
what they provide. When people think about college tuition, all they consider
are the courses they will take. College is much more than classroom lectures and
Saturday morning labs. The tuition students pay for covers the college campus
experience. The libraries, the museums, the gyms, they all need to be paid for,
and that bill is included into the tuition. If you take a step back and think
about all the amenities college students utilize on campus, including
extracurricular activities, many of which are school sponsored, you will realize
that the price of tuition is actually quite reasonable for what you get. In many
universities, students get discount prices to concerts and plays, free admission
to see guest speakers, and a host of other special treatments as a result of
being a student. While schools that charge a ridiculous amount for tuition often
cannot justify their actions, the cost of education at most schools is, in
actuality, quite fair.
Tuition rates and
other facts pertaining to the top 120 US colleges can be found here.
COPYRIGHT
All
content included on this site, such as text, graphics, logos, button icons,
images, audio clips, digital downloads, data compilations, and software is the
property of this site's owner or its content suppliers and protected by United
States and international copyright laws. The compilation of all content on this
site is the exclusive property of this site's owner and protected by U.S. and
international copyright laws.