Paper Example on Cheaper Higher Education Tuition Fees

Introduction

Over the last few decades, the issue of tuition fee in higher education institutions has been one of the areas that have continued to attract interests from both the political and public domain. In the United States, the federal and state governments have not been keeping pace with the rising costs of different learning products and services the affected institutions have to incur to support their operations (Chingos, 2016). Consequently, tuition fee has become a political battleground with various political parties focusing their agendas on making higher education fees either free or cheaper especially for the less fortunate in the society. In fact, the future and prosperity of citizens in a country widely depends on access to affordable educational opportunities for all people across different social classes. However, financial disparities have been a primary hindrance among the deprived in the society in their efforts to access equal learning opportunities with their fortunate contemporaries. Therefore, this paper will be an analysis of the possible implication for having a cheaper or free higher education tuition system.

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The Prevailing Problem

University and college affordability remain a key challenge to education choice, access, and completion. Government grants have not been increasing with the rising operation cost in higher education institutions, shifting the burden of paying tuition fee onto students and their families. Initially, the American government was committed to education as a significant component of the growing economic mobility but this value has continued to vanish with time. As part of the commitment to equal education for all, America always used the instruments of government to provide sufficient funds to every citizen willing to undertake his or her studies seriously (Chingos, 2016). Consequently, Americans acquired essential skills and knowledge needed to engage in civic, economic, and artistic pursuit without overburdening them financially during and after the studies.

However, today free higher education has become a great political talking point and has been flawed by contemporary policies. The average tuition fee varies widely from middle-class income making learning an expensive venture. As a result, this has caused disparities with students from families in top income quartile attending adorable colleges and universities, which middle and low-class students cannot afford. On the other hand, the less fortunate in society relies on educational loans to accomplish their studies. In fact, the number of student's debt has doubled in the last four years making it a burden for students to concentrate in other areas of development.

Effects of High Tuition Fee in Colleges and Universities

The following are some of the implications of charging high tuition fees in colleges and universities. They also form part of significant repercussions of the government intends to lower its expenditure in higher education.

Lesser Opportunities for the Deprived Students

There has been an increasing number of political parties pledging to abolish or reduce tuition fees in recent years. However, they are not clear on who will be funding higher education especially with government reducing its grants to the initiative. From 2016, after the American government abolished some of the undergraduate grants, learning institutions retaliated by raising tuition fees, which have become a major hindrance for disadvantaged students to pursue higher education (Eden, 2016). In contemporary society having a degree have become a significant step towards achieving career goals. Nonetheless, with the current trends, it means that the less fortunate in the society who cannot afford to pay for increasing tuition fees will have limited opportunities as compared to their well-up peers.

The Student's Debt has Significantly Increased

In recent years, the majority of countries have been leaning toward a model in which a considerable share of education cost is incurred directly by students or their families as tuition fee or through loan mechanism. According to a report released by the Institute for College Access and Success (TICAS), about sixty-nine percent of college seniors graduate from private nonprofit and public colleges with loan debts. From the years 2004 to 2014, the overall debt amount rose by over fifty-six percent, which has adversely influenced the lives and decisions made by graduates during and after studies (Eden, 2016). For instance, students relying on loans for their studies overlooks low paying and public sector jobs and hopes to join high paying industries to enable them to settle their debts. Likewise, graduates with outstanding debts have a lower probability of marriage, which delay the time they should settle to raise a family. Most of these decisions are made based on their limited opportunities to settle their debts and establish a sustainable lifestyle. Therefore, an increase in student's loans has forced some graduates to delay their life cycle priorities such as buying a home, having children, or saving for retirement among other important preferences.

Deter People from Applying and Enrolling in Higher Education Institutions

The high tuition fee charged by colleges and universities are barriers to educational attainment. According to Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), the public college tuition has increased by about 274 percent but the average inflation to a median household income has only grown by 7 percent (Eden, 2016). As a result, Americans no longer believe that education beyond high school is affordable for every citizen in the United States. Some people do not like the idea of acquiring loans to repay in the future. Ultimately, this makes low-income students to view universities and colleges as unattainable. In fact, a considerable number of young people have been opting to go into careers that do not require them to be holders of a degree.

A Shift in Enrollment Patterns

The combination of flat financial resources and increasing net tuition fees has also shifted the enrollment trends from a four year to a two-year learning program, which happens to be cheaper. Although this might be a positive step rather than giving up on a degree, it requires determination and consumes more time before one attain a degree (Chingos, 2016). Moreover, traditional schools require one to have taken prerequisite courses before pursuing their career path. Unfortunately, the shift can turn to be costly in long-term. At times, the credits earned by the student in the two-year college program fail to transfer to a four-year college obliging them to retake the course in the institution they prefer to enroll. Unfortunately, the more the time one spends in the colleges and the university the more they invest in learning.

Critiques Against Lowering Higher Education Tuition Fees

According to some critics, free tuition should not be a priority, but the government and learning institutions should focus more on attaining and offering quality studies, which will only be achieved at a cost (Oyelana, 2017). Low-income citizens should, therefore, enroll in community colleges where the government has laid down programs to support learning without having to incur a high cost. In fact, this opportunity is widely abused with more than two-thirds of students dropping out of community colleges. Therefore, moving towards a tuition-free or cheaper education system for public colleges and universities would only be another burden placed on the shoulders of the taxpayers. In fact, due to the increasing budget expenditure and efforts by the government to reduce its expenses, there is a possibility that at one time the government might fail to keep pace with the increasing costs of colleges (Oyelana, 2017). In such a case, these institutions will be forced to limit the number of students they enroll in different programs, which might also restrict students with the ability to pay for their tuition fees without necessary depending on government support. Therefore, instead of having large numbers of students pursuing higher education the American government should emphasize quality education and promote learning in community colleges.

Conclusion

In conclusion, higher education fees are too high and there is a need for them to be cheaper if not free. Mainly, advanced learning has become a significant stand in building a career and being an active participant in the growth and development of the nation. As a result, the government and affected learning institutions should ensure that all social classes could access affordable, equal, and effective learning opportunities. However, efforts to minimize colleges and university fees are unlikely to succeed in future because of the tense and divided political ideologies on the issue. Based on the negativity associated with increased tuition fees and a government decision to cut-off education grants this issue should not be politicized. Instead, this should be the time to build on a progressive model in support of effective education programs to enrich American prosperity.

References

Chingos, M. M. (2016). Who would benefit most from free college? Evidence Speaks Reports, 1, 15.

Eden, M. (2016). Issues 2016: Will Free Tuition Increase the Number of College Graduates? Issue Brief. Manhattan Institute for Policy Research.

Oyelana, A. A. (2017). Effects of Increase in Tuition Fees in the Tertiary Institutions of Learning. International Journal of Educational Sciences, 17(1-3), 140-147.