I know that the schools on this list are all private institutions that do not receive funding from their states, which is why their tuition is significantly greater than most state schools, but the students do not complain about their high tuition as much as all the students going to state schools in California. With all the recent economic turmoil and budget cuts in California, there has been tuition increases at the University of California schools, as well as the California State University schools. There have been protests and rally's about these recent tuition increases, which reached around 10% at the beginning of summer.
Students need to realize that you can not put a price on your education. A college education offers you so much more in life experience than just the degree alone. In college you make professional connections that will help you to get a job later in life, and create invaluable friendships. Most of the lasting friends people make in life are during their years in college, and you can not put a price on them. If you were to ask any student at one of the colleges on the 50k list, they would tell you the same things I just wrote, which is why they do not mind paying a little extra for their tuition (not to mention, these are some of the highest ranked universities in the nation). Not all of the schools on the list are top tier schools though, yet students still have no problem paying the high prices to attend.
I know that it sucks to have to pay a little extra for tuition, but the fee increases do not outweigh the experience in college. In fact, there are fee increases every year anyways, just not as significant. I just with that instead of complaining about tuition, these students would just embrace the college experience and they will be able to see that it it worth the price. The experiences they have will last a lifetime.
I agree that you can't put a price on a college diploma, especially since the bachelors degree has become the new high school degree. But I must say, universities spend money on some pretty dumb shit (pardon my language). Sure the flowers that are changed each week and the new fountains that go up on a regular basis, and the random lectures that no one actually attends all make USC of a higher caliber than other college institutions, but how much of that is actually necessary to our learning experience. Could they not easily trim out a few hundred or even thousand dollars from our tuition and not have it affect anything really significant? Maybe not, maybe I just don't understand how it all works, but it sure seems like we pay for some awfully superfluous things.
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree that in the long run my college experience and degree is worth $50,000 a year, I often wonder, where does this money actually go to? And it is unfortunate that because of the economy even state schools have to raise their tuition to make ends meets. However, regardless of how much one is paying, they need to look at all the good things they will get out of it, instead of stressing about it while in college. We have plenty of time after college to worry about grown up things like debt.
ReplyDeleteI obviously agree that the high tuition was worth it to go to USC, but these tuition increases are horrific. In this economy, it's difficult for many families to keep up with the small increases, and tuition is becoming beyond their means. And schools like USC have also cut financial aid for needy families. I remember at the beginning of the year there was an uproar about financial aid decreases, as some students received tens of thousands of dollars less than they had the year before. It's unfair to make students pay the high tuition for the first couple years, and then transfer to complete their degree at a lesser school. And many students don't have a choice but to transfer, either because they're not offered student loans or they're at the limit for student loans.
ReplyDeleteTrue, an education is worth any price, especially since a high school diploma is no longer enough. But in a bad economy, prices are supposed to decrease, not increase. And what is USC really doing with this money? I would love to see a breakdown of where tuition goes, from professor salaries to flower planting and beautification costs. I heard that they even bought up a bunch of land in the area to try and improve it, which is a nice idea, but it's not worth a high tuition increase for me since I won't be around to see this area become safe.
The UCLA protesting just makes me confused. These kids are getting an education that's (cringe) on par with my own, yet paying tens of thousands a year less for it. The cost of educating a college student is extremely high, and even private institutions such as USC rely on donations and alumni support to continue to function.
ReplyDeleteUCLA protesters: I know we don't have a defining issue of our generation, but don't rally around something as indefensible as this. You can either keep your tuition the same, and decrease the quality of your education, or increase tuition and maintain the world class education you are getting for pennies on the dollar.