Rising College Tuition

Remarkably, the average college tuition costs have risen over $11,000 since 1974, and continues to rise at an average of 12% per year (http://trends.collegeboard.org). Although this 12% may not seem like a high number, it is actually equivalent to around $2,300 added to the average tuition per year. While higher education is almost necessary to find well-paying employment, the cost of college tuition has not only continuously risen, but has also created controversy and question on why these costs keep going up. Over a relatively short amount of time, statistical studies have proved that rising higher education costs can be attributed to government budget cuts, rising staff costs, school amenities, and student aid needs. Although an unpopular opinion amongst most researchers today, in 2005, Bobby Fong and Michelle Adam had similar ideas;

John Schoen claims that “at many colleges, [amenities] are a significant cost…” along with the rising cost of Division I athletics. The addition of these facilities can create arising questions like one that John Schoen considered: “Many of these new positions appear to be providing student services, but whether they represent justifiable expenses or unnecessary 'bloat' is up for debate…” and creates controversy in light of the fact that students need tuition lowered rather than extravagant facilities. An interesting fact he mentioned was, “by 2013, states had cut higher education spending to $2,353 per student…” which is bizarre considering tuition costs average around $19,000, and that leaves a staggering amount left to be paid out of pocket. Although Schoen does not elaborate much on why he believes campus amenities create unnecessary hikes in tuition, he portrays a media-esque viewpoint in the fight to lower college tuition