Cost of going to college getting steeper, student debt growing larger
Since the late 1940s - as a result of the passage (in 1944) of what is colloquially known as the GI Bill - Americans have been brought up to believe that almost universal availability of a college degree is the Golden Key to attaining the American Dream. For the young men (and women) of the Greatest Generation, their kids and grandkids, the idea that going to a college or university and earning a degree practically guarantees success in getting a good-paying job, owning a house, and the ability to raise well-educated children has been drummed into our collective consciousness that it almost seems like an inalienable birthright.
From my perspective, although there are many grains of truth to the Great American College Myth, it seems to me that going to college and earning a bachelor's or post-graduate degree is less a guarantee of getting a well-rounded education and attaining financial security and more of a quixotic endeavor that does more harm than good.
According to Time magazine reporter Kayla Webber's article, College Graduates Face Record-High Debt In the Age of Record-High Unemployment (Time magazine, November 14, 2011):
"The news just keeps getting worse for college graduates. According to a report out today from the Project on Student Debt, college seniors who graduated with student loans in 2010 owed an average of $25,250—the highest level ever recorded and a 5% increase from the previous year.Those debt-carrying graduates also faced an impossibly tough job market, as unemployment for new college graduates hovered at 9.1%."
Webber points out that the average student debt levels in the report do not take into account private for-profit institutions such as University of Phoenix or Kaplan University, "which often saddle their students with much more debt than a traditional college, as too few provide the data to be included in the study — meaning that the state of student debt is likely much worse than we know."
If that isn't enough to make one worry about one's college plans, consider the plight of Florida high school seniors and college students now attending state universities such as Florida International University. The state Board of Governors, which oversees Florida's 12 public universities, approved a tuition hike that averaged an increase of 15% (not every institution received the full amount) even though Gov. Rick Scott was opposed to such a move.
From my perspective, although there are many grains of truth to the Great American College Myth, it seems to me that going to college and earning a bachelor's or post-graduate degree is less a guarantee of getting a well-rounded education and attaining financial security and more of a quixotic endeavor that does more harm than good.
According to Time magazine reporter Kayla Webber's article, College Graduates Face Record-High Debt In the Age of Record-High Unemployment (Time magazine, November 14, 2011):
"The news just keeps getting worse for college graduates. According to a report out today from the Project on Student Debt, college seniors who graduated with student loans in 2010 owed an average of $25,250—the highest level ever recorded and a 5% increase from the previous year.Those debt-carrying graduates also faced an impossibly tough job market, as unemployment for new college graduates hovered at 9.1%."
Webber points out that the average student debt levels in the report do not take into account private for-profit institutions such as University of Phoenix or Kaplan University, "which often saddle their students with much more debt than a traditional college, as too few provide the data to be included in the study — meaning that the state of student debt is likely much worse than we know."
The article also cited some other findings from the report:
- The average debt load ranged from $950 to $55,250, and the proportion of students who graduated with loans ranged from 2% to 100%
- 98 colleges reported that their 2010 graduates owed an average of more than $35,000
- 73 colleges reported that more than 90% of their graduates left with debt
- The states with the highest average debt are all in the Northeast and Midwest, while states with the lowest debt are concentrated in the West
- New Hampshire had the highest average debt at $31,048, followed by Maine with $29,983
- Utah had the lowest average debt at $15,509, followed by Hawaii with $15,550
If that isn't enough to make one worry about one's college plans, consider the plight of Florida high school seniors and college students now attending state universities such as Florida International University. The state Board of Governors, which oversees Florida's 12 public universities, approved a tuition hike that averaged an increase of 15% (not every institution received the full amount) even though Gov. Rick Scott was opposed to such a move.
According to the Miami Herald, "It was a defeat for Scott, who spoke out against raising the rates when he appeared before the board on Tuesday. He said he was disappointed.
" 'Tuition rates have risen 71 percent over the past four years and graduates are facing unprecedented levels of debt,' Scott said in a statement. 'We can't continue on this path.'
"University officials, though, say the increases will still leave Florida tuition rates among the nation's lowest and that they are needed to at least partly offset a $300 million budget cut that Scott and Legislature ordered for the State University System."
Not only do high school graduates have to look forward to the many challenges inherent to college life (being on their own for the first time, balancing work with studies, dating, the daily grind of academia, tough professors and even tougher exams and term papers), but now they face the prospect of graduating from college, knee-deep in debt...and in a still-stagnant job market.
Not only do high school graduates have to look forward to the many challenges inherent to college life (being on their own for the first time, balancing work with studies, dating, the daily grind of academia, tough professors and even tougher exams and term papers), but now they face the prospect of graduating from college, knee-deep in debt...and in a still-stagnant job market.
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