The economy of higher education
Family incomes aren't keeping up with rising cost of higher education -- how college and university degrees are out of reach for most young Americans.
Even when the recession is finally over, the US may have problems competing with the rest of the world. That's because of a growing education gap. Family incomes aren't keeping up with rising cost of higher education.
The unemployment rate for college and university graduates is half what it is for the workforce as a whole. But rising costs are putting college and university degrees out of reach for most young Americans. In the past 25 years, tuition and fees have gone up 439% while median income has risen by 147%, and student loans are saddling graduates with more and more debt. For the first time in American history, older adults have more education than younger ones, while other countries are educating their children faster. That's ominous news for a country that attained world leadership because of higher education.
Guests:
- Will Doyle: Assistant Professor of Higher Education, Vanderbilt University
- Arthur Rothkopf: Senior Vice-President, US Chamber of Commerce
- Barmak Nassirian: Associate Executive Director, American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers
- Kimberly Johnston: Senior Associate Director of Admissions, University of Maine
Hosted by award-winning journalist Warren Olney, "To the Point" presents informative and thought-provoking discussion of major news stories — front-page issues that attract a savvy and serious news audience.
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Will Doyle, Arthur Rothkopf, and Barmak Nassirian all have provided reasons why education is essential for financial wealth for individual American citizens (according to how much more the average salary of a high school graduate is $27,915 compared to that of a college grad who earns about $51,206 and an advanced degree holder who earns $74,602 per year) and for America’s global dominance. Education though, even 4 years later, is almost impossible to receive. According to Doyle since the year 2000, there has been an astronomical rise in tuition prices while the average household salary remains stagnant. The reason, I have found, behind this phenomena is that since we are in the midst of a recession, educational institution are deprived of the funds needed to support their educational resources to students and thus turn to tuition from families for resources. This is clearly shown in a survey of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) 87 member schools found that 85% had had their state funds cut and that 50% had seen a drop in financial resources despite tuition hikes and increasing enrolment.” While families continue to feed into these schools, eventually tuition becomes too much of a burden, since “in the past 25 years, tuition and fees have gone up 439% while median income has risen by 147%”. Most students leave college with an astonishing amount of debt according to ] Lisa Van Deusen in 2002 the average undergraduate debt was $18,900, grad students owed $31,700 additionally, and advanced degree holders owed about $91,700. According to Arthur Rothkopf, Pell grants should be a supporter of these students rather than just a slight painkiller to the financial burden placed upon college students. To finance education, students turn to government. But even the Pell grant, is on a course that will put the program about $3 billion over budget for 2011 (Clark par 3-4). And the Pell grant only awards up to $5,500. Students thus must find some other alternative to fund their education.
With education seeking alternative revenues, with the lack of state support it seems as the contributors mentioned that the overall quality of education is declining. ). According to David Shulenburger, “classes are swollen into the hundreds; there are fewer teaching assistants; hands-on laboratory sections and some whole courses have disappeared, programs and departments have vanished.. ‘Most undergraduates will experience larger classes and shorter hours of availability for labs and libraries…” Marris Rothkopf considers this as a factor for disaster since the retiring baby boomers who drove this country to its peek now are retiring, the new generation who as a result of the lack of quality education, are now running a country against a more well trained, overall better educated, global competition.
With this I pray that the government will consider more focus on the benefits of funding higher education since according to “The economy of higher education”, education will always provide benefits in return.
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