The Cost of College, Student Debt, and Career Priorities

Within the last 20 years, college tuition has doubled, according to Sarah Wood from US News. This causes many students to have to consider price as a big factor of attending college. Most students would love to attend college but it isn’t possible unless they are prepared to incur debt. According to a Third Way/Global Strategy poll: “29% of students said the cost was a barrier and aren’t considering college as an option even though they’d like to pursue a four-year degree.” 

Most students who take a loan out for school struggle to pay it back which delays the process of building their lives. The average undergraduate student owes $25,000 in debt loans. Additionally, tuition costs prevent many students from pursuing a college degree. About 75% of people say that a bachelor's degree is very important, but only ⅔ people can afford it. “...I also see a lot of students who are already planning on taking out massive amounts of loans, without any real concept of what that means for their futures. It's not wise to take out a mass amount of loans if you're going into a career that won't be able to pay them off.” Stated East’s college advisor, Caitlin Mendenhall.

What does the tuition price go towards?

Tuition helps pay college professors salaries, administrative costs, maintenance to sustain the campus, technology the university needs, student activity fees, library access, and athletics. These are just the cost of tuition and students will be required to pay other fees such as housing/meals, transportation, personal expenses, and supplies. The average in-state price for a public four-year college is approximately $27,000 to $30,000 per year, including tuition, fees, room and board, books, transportation, and other expenses. The average total annual cost for an out-of-state student at a public four-year college is approximately $49,080, while the average for private four-year colleges is about $62,990. These prices are ridiculously high causing a huge percentage of students to not consider college as an option.

In Colorado there are a few affordable colleges such as Colorado Mountain College which is only $4,400 for tuition per year. This would be a great option for students who want to attend college but cannot afford it. But do students even want to attend college? 

There are three primary factors on why students are deciding not to attend college which are include:

• Concerns about costs

• Questions about the value of a postsecondary education

• Worries about disrupting their lives to attend college

About 61% of young adults decide not to further their education beyond high school. We already know cost is a big factor but what are some other reasons people tend to not lean towards college. There are so many alternate careers that don’t require college and many people would rather jump straight into making money rather than spending time paying off student debt. While some students just don’t feel prepared for college and the amount of work they’ll have to take care of. Starting a business would be a great way to start making a living. “Starting a business can be a great way to make a living, but I would still suggest students take some sort of business or entrepreneurship classes so they are prepared for everything that might come their way,” Caitlin Mendenhall.

There are so many alternate paths to college such as trade school, starting a business, and taking a gap year. High school students don’t have to worry about going into debt as there are several options post high school.