Increasing Cost Of College Education
Increasing Cost Of College Education
The cost of graduate education in US has increased for the past few years. The increase in cost of education in US is higher than the rate of inflation. The cost of education has surpassed the inflate rate. The increase in cost of education has affected poor students as they are unable to access graduate education. The income for most families has reduced for past years and made it hard to access graduate education. Majority of the students depend on grants and loans from various institutions to complete their graduate studies.
The increase in cost of graduate education is attributed to several factors. That is inflation, high demand and price momentum among others. First, the increase in rate of inflation has led to increase in the cost of education in US. The inflation rate has increased by 115.06% according to Wadsworth (2012). Wadsworth (2012) claims the increase in the inflation rate has increased the cost of goods. The high inflation rate has doubled what Americans buy. The cost of goods has increased and will continue to increase. Similarly, the cost of university education has increased and will continue to increase. The cost of university education is also subject to inflationary pressure. Students would pay $21500 if the cost of education has increased at the same rate with the rate of inflation since 1986. The cost of education in 1986 was $10,000. However, the cost of education is $59,800 or 2 1/2 the inflation rate. The university education will continue to increase as the inflation increases. The education cost has elements that are sensitive to inflationary pressure than the household cost (Wadsworth, 2007).
Additionally, most schools haveincreased tuition fee because of the increase in overhead costs. The cost of fuel and labor has increased and hence increased tuition fee. Also, universities and colleges have increased tuition cost due to renovation and replacement. The institutions spend a lot of money renovating and replacing old buildings and thus charge high prices for education. The high demand for modern libraries, computer laboratories and investment in research has also contributed to the increase (Wadsworth, 2012). The college administration cost will increase by 69% in the next 15 years according to (Wadsworth, 2007). Therefore, the army will increase the cost of tuition from $15,000 to $17,000 to meet the increasing costs associated with education management.
Second, the demand for education in the country has led to increase in education cost. The demand for education is high, but the supply is low. The education does not conform to demand and supply principle, and this has affected the cost of education. Though the cost of education has increased, the supply has not increased. The education sector has not attracted players despite the high cost of education. Many players believe that investing in the education sector will mean providing quality education equivalent to the tuition paid. Hence, many players have not invested in the industry as they cannot meet student needs (Wang, 2009).
Third, the change in the federal Stafford loan led to increase in cost for education (Wadsworth, 2012). Colleges and universities welcomed the decision made by Uncle Sam in 1992. The increase in loan amounts provided by the students increased the tuition. The government continued to promote Stafford loan as a cheap program and encouraged students to access a huge amount of money easily. Universities and colleges continued to increase their tuition as students accessed huge loans. Currently, the student loan debt is $20,000. Students who pursue graduate studies end up with extra $30,000. Law and medical students record an accumulated debt of $91,700. The tuition will rise so long as the government allows students to access loans easily. Also, it will increase if students continue getting large loans easily (Wang, 2009).
Fourth, the provision of scholarships to needy students has increased the tuition. Scholarships have become common in many institutions. Universities provide scholarships to students through their education programs. The institutions have created programs that help poor students’ access quality education by providing financial assistance. Though the colleges have proved effective in aiding needy students get an education, they have had a negative impact. The scholarships have led to increase in college tuition as institutions raise money to fund needy students. Institutions get money from the tuition paid by students and hence have to increase the amount of fee students pay to get adequate funds. The army provides scholarships to many students, and this will increase tuition fee for graduate education. The army has to raise funds from the fee paid by other students to assist the need. Students have to look for alternative means of paying for education in order to lower the cost of education. Students can get grants from various institutions to pay their tuition fee instead of relying on scholarships and government loans (Ehrenberg, 2002).
Reference
Wadsworth (2007). The College Trap. STL Distribution
Wang P. (2009). Is College Still worth the Price?
http://money.cnn.com/2008/08/20/pf/college/college_price.moneymag/
Wadsworth, G.H.(2012). The skyrocketing college cost. Retrieved from http://inflationdata.com/Inflation/Inflation_Articles/Education_Inflation.asp ON 11/12/2012
Ehrenberg, R.G. (2002). Tuition Rising. Harvard university press
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