Explain Why College Should Not Be Free Essay

Motivation is something humans struggle with daily. Some days, a person’s biggest battle can be finding the solution to their lack of motivation. But time and time again it is found that people are more willing to accomplish tasks, and feel motivated to do so, when there is a reward or punishment based on the task. The concept of motivation is an especially large element to the discussion of college tuition, and whether higher education should be free or not, since there would be a large effect on students' motivation in school. Many people think that college should be free, and while this is ideal, it is not realistic. Not only will students have less motivation to work hard, but it will also be more financial strain for families in the future

This allows families to pay in amounts that make them comfortable, and choose schools that fit their budgets. Countering this argument, many people still believe that college being free is more of a benefit for people’s financial situations, and the cost can be fully covered with grants from various organizations. There is some practicality in this statement, as demonstrated by the article, “Is free college a good idea? Increasingly, evidence says yes.” written by Douglas Harris, professor and chair member on the board of economics at Tulane University. In this article, Harris uses a study he conducted to share that students given a $12,000 grant mostly chose to cover only part of a 4 year program rather than all of a 2 year program (Harris 4). The evidence provided displays that even when students are given the opportunity to get a free higher education, students still often choose to pay as part of a 4-year program. Most grants given are only enough to cover a 2-year program, so while this may benefit some students, for many it is not the right fit for