The cost of college has risen these last few years and has impacted students across the nation while continuing to be a problem for many people – and could result in a less educated nation.
This affects the middle class the most because they aren’t rich enough to afford full tuition of a university or private college and not poor enough to qualify for subsidies.
The total cost of tuition, including fees for an in-state student, is estimated around $39,000. For out-of-state that would be double the amount.
For some students that are intellectually gifted or those who are skilled in sports, scholarships are an option depending on overall activities.
Some join the military and attend college after serving, the military can help pay for college with the G.I. Bill. For others, a loan is the only option to take.
There have been issues with the G.I. Bill since 2009.It has affected many veterans to where they had to dip into their savings, facing eviction, and taking out loans to get by. College administrators, lawyers and government officials say the problem is a backlog of processing applications.
Colleges have been more competitive in recent years, raising tuition to help students have the best learning experience versus other colleges.
Raising tuition doesn’t just affect the students but also the professors wanting better pay and more benefits.
The cost of college has also impacted immigrant families and first generation Americans, making college unaffordable and making children face significant barriers.
Approximately a quarter of the nation are immigrants, and those children make up 30 percent of the low-income U.S. children, according to Princeton.edu article “Higher education and children in immigrant families.”
Is college worth the price? Many people ask. The majority says yes. A small percentage say no.
The cost of college can impact the student depending on where the college is located, the cost of education, living expenses, books, food and other school materials.
Many students have found ways to save money and attend college with financial aid, scholarships and grants.
One of the best options to save money is attend community college. According to collegeboard.org, attending community college will cost around $3,400 per year, while for a public four-year college (in-state students) will estimate around $9,000 per year. For out-of-state students attending public four-year colleges would estimate up to $23,000 per year.
Education inflation has rose 5.2 percent and continues to grow slowly. According to Forbes Magazine’s article “on the cost of college” If the inflation keeps maintaining its 5.2 percent average then future students will not be able to afford college.
The inflation of education means that future in-state (public) students would be paying around $60,000 per year, while students attending private colleges would be paying around $200,000.
While the cost of education keeps rising, having no education would be the worst situation in the scenario and having to work for a low wage job.
Less education in the United States would hurt its reputation and lose its ability to compete globally.
If we continue down this path of education, the economy will suffer significantly and the future children of America will have to suffer the consequences of not being able to afford college.