There is a serious debate taking place in this country about the need and cost of a college education. I want to talk about the cost but not in the same old way you’ve heard 1000 times over. Instead, I want to talk about the broken market in higher education and why, until we address that, we can’t even begin discussing anything else.
Good words, Dylan! I have adult child who has so impacted her financial future by striving and gaining a college degree as a working, divorced mother of two small children. Yes, she achieved the status she so desired, that of a teacher, but she is also almost $100,000 in debt due to loan interest , deferred interest, mismanagement of her loan again and again, and the greed you speak of. Biden 's $10,000 thought to her and those like her would not accomplish any meaningful thing except to pay some interest on her loan. I agree the root of the problem is the outrageous fees charged and the emphasis placed on the achievement by our society. Going forward, I would like our government to concentrate on those things, however, for now, to correct past wrongs, just cancel student debt, especially for those in service industries. The wealthy parents paid for their child's education upfront and I am tired of the voices that are still proclaiming that as an injustice if debt is cancelled.
The mess that is American higher education is complex. Yes, the cost to attend college has become absurdly inflated. American obsession with status so fuels the drive to go to college/grad school that celebrities are doing jail time for fabricating their offspring’s credentials to get into perceived “top” schools, while at the other end of the spectrum those whose parents can’t pay out-of-pocket for college are saddled with student loan debt well into their 30s and 40s. The US government, now contemplating a token 10k handout at taxpayer expense, pegs federal loans at 5%+ interest regardless of economic conditions.
Perhaps worse, though, is that many are actually paying for just a ticket to (what they hope will be) a higher quality of life rather than actually gaining new knowledge or skills. Does one really need a master’s degree to be a journalist? Does a hospital nurse need a bachelor’s degree? These used to be blue-collar vocations where one learned on the job, at the feet of skilled practitioners. Now the Ivys offer sticker-shock master’s programs in both while journalism majors toil away for minimum wage at Starbucks and studies show as many as 50% of nurses leave the profession within 5 years due to working conditions.
Oh, and colleges are now expected to provide not only faculty to teach but staff to try to help students cope with record levels of sexual assault, self-harm and suicidal ideation.
Price controls are certainly one possible solution, but may be too blunt an instrument for what ails American higher ed. The patient needs much more delicate surgery. Too bad med school is so expensive.
D, as always on point. Debt is such a stresser preventing us to be creative (creativity as you have mentioned is so important) and live with the attitude of the glass half full instead of half empty.
Good words, Dylan! I have adult child who has so impacted her financial future by striving and gaining a college degree as a working, divorced mother of two small children. Yes, she achieved the status she so desired, that of a teacher, but she is also almost $100,000 in debt due to loan interest , deferred interest, mismanagement of her loan again and again, and the greed you speak of. Biden 's $10,000 thought to her and those like her would not accomplish any meaningful thing except to pay some interest on her loan. I agree the root of the problem is the outrageous fees charged and the emphasis placed on the achievement by our society. Going forward, I would like our government to concentrate on those things, however, for now, to correct past wrongs, just cancel student debt, especially for those in service industries. The wealthy parents paid for their child's education upfront and I am tired of the voices that are still proclaiming that as an injustice if debt is cancelled.
The mess that is American higher education is complex. Yes, the cost to attend college has become absurdly inflated. American obsession with status so fuels the drive to go to college/grad school that celebrities are doing jail time for fabricating their offspring’s credentials to get into perceived “top” schools, while at the other end of the spectrum those whose parents can’t pay out-of-pocket for college are saddled with student loan debt well into their 30s and 40s. The US government, now contemplating a token 10k handout at taxpayer expense, pegs federal loans at 5%+ interest regardless of economic conditions.
Perhaps worse, though, is that many are actually paying for just a ticket to (what they hope will be) a higher quality of life rather than actually gaining new knowledge or skills. Does one really need a master’s degree to be a journalist? Does a hospital nurse need a bachelor’s degree? These used to be blue-collar vocations where one learned on the job, at the feet of skilled practitioners. Now the Ivys offer sticker-shock master’s programs in both while journalism majors toil away for minimum wage at Starbucks and studies show as many as 50% of nurses leave the profession within 5 years due to working conditions.
Oh, and colleges are now expected to provide not only faculty to teach but staff to try to help students cope with record levels of sexual assault, self-harm and suicidal ideation.
Price controls are certainly one possible solution, but may be too blunt an instrument for what ails American higher ed. The patient needs much more delicate surgery. Too bad med school is so expensive.
Yes....Dylan... ..you're are on the spot on there.... I completely agree... ..
Yeah while reading this the thought occurred I bet medical debt isn't so different.
D, as always on point. Debt is such a stresser preventing us to be creative (creativity as you have mentioned is so important) and live with the attitude of the glass half full instead of half empty.
Well said.
So true and spot on Dylan!