College tuition

1. 56

   Courtney423posted 12 years ago

   Why does college tuition have to be so expensive? Why is it so difficult to receive financial help?
   From recent experience, I've had to ask myself these questions. A college education is hard to come by these days, and cost could be the reason why! Even at a two-year college, one class alone is close to 400 dollars, and it's not like students can work a full-time job in order to pay for tuition because they are busy going to classes.
   I believe that college expenses are to blame for students who withdrawal; not all but most. I have had to drop many classes because I cannot afford it. Even with financial aid, I find it difficult to pay for a full semester.
   It is also very overwhelming and stressful. There is so much that must be paid for and within such a short amount of time. It would be easier if students were able to make payments, but some schools don't even have that option, like mine.
   Something must be done to help alleviate the problems with college tuition so that students can graduate and begin the careers they worked so very hard to earn!

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   1. 48

      Doodleheadposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Here is the answer you were not expecting:  the answer is that the government became involved in it.   
      
      When I attended the U of Wisconsin at Madison in the seventies I had my own bedroom with 3 other roomies and I worked at McDonald's or as a hotel maid in the summer and I could afford my groceries, my rent (in a nice big house in a nice area) AND my tuition.   Tuition for a whole year was maybe $600 or something.  That's for a full time student at a major U.
      
      In those days there was financial aid, but it was just catching on.  Then the government started advertising student loans.   Guess what-if the government said the maximum loan per year for financial aid was $10000 now all the colleges raised their tuition to the maximum level.   It wasn't that way before.  There was a free market.   The market depended on what people would and could pay.   College was more of a time investment than a money investment.   Now it is both.
      
      The whole thing is really absurd.   I don't know if I am making this clear or not.   The point is the government is out of control.   Everything the government gets into (like mortgage guarantees for example through Fannie and Freddie.)   In like fashion, before the government got into housing loans houses were affordable.   The free market is destroyed.
      
      To have a free market we must go back to the Constitution.   Ron Paul is the only candidate that "gets this".   The Democrats actually think there should be MORE STUDENT loans.   Guess what would happen if there were higher student loan annual limits...what do you think colleges would do right away?  They would raise their tuition to whatever the maximum allowable loan limits would be.  The American public does not understand this.
      
      if I were you I would attend a junior college 2 years.   Get excellent grades.   Take your time;  just get good grades.   After that, apply to a private school with a big endowment.  Examples are Swarthmore, Duke, Rice, Claremont, Princeton.   Look on Google to find large college endowments.  Then apply to a school where you will add to their diversity.   you might be from the west coast, so you apply to a school on the east coast.   You may have grown up in a big city buy you could apply to a semi rural school.   (these are  just examples)   Maybe you do a skill that makes you stand out like running or music or something.   Emphasize that in your application.   These schools with big endowments usually want a diverse population.   They will either offer you tons of grant money if you are a good student, OR they will match the price in tuition of a state school.   So instead of attendiing cheap old podunk university you can attend Notre Dame or something cool.  And most likely you will wind up with LESS student loan debt that otherwise.   I had less than stellar grades but got full fellowships to grad school ONLY because o diversity.  Scholarship is needed, but diversity puts you over the hump.  Believe it.
      
      This is an excellent question , by the way.  Good for you for asking it.

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2. 61

   Mesha Minnermanposted 12 years ago

   I just graduated and the advice I give is scholarships apps scholarships apps and  scholarship apps....part time job and good grades and extracurricular activities for more aid maybe a sport perhaps

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3. 52

   jcalesposted 12 years ago

   Wow!. at a 2 yr college for me it was only $10/unit (before transferring to a 4 yr university).  It appears tuition is not in check as the inflation rate for that is on par with the stock market from the late 90s except tuition will not crash to single digits.
   
   It always happens, without a regulator to oversee price increases fraud will occur.
   Why is it going up so much?  utilities?, books?, educators? campus expansion and newer buildings?  Yes.  but $400/unit is absurd. I remember when CSU schools, UCLA were $600 per qtr for 5 to 6 courses & USC was $15,000 per semester now what is it? I'd be terrified. tuition has risen a lot while wages have flat-lined.

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