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Education in America is cheap, the problem is people don't go to their local school, they see college as an experience where they travel halfway across the coun

by imesh 9y ago

Education in America is cheap, the problem is people don't go to their local school, they see college as an experience where they travel halfway across the country and stay in student housing.

jonathankoren 9y ago
Where do you get this impression, because it's simply not backed by any study, or even any anecdotal information? Quite the contrary, most people attend a college within 50 miles of their home[0]. [0] https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/02/03/when-students-enroll-college-geography-matters-more-policy-makers-think https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/02/03/when-students...
- imesh 9y ago
  No anecdotal information? My life? I went to the local college and graduated with less than 8k in debt and no scholarships. And that study doesn't really dispute my point, most may not, but a large percentage do, and those those who do are the ones without mountains of debt.
  - jonathankoren 9y ago
    Find a study, because "my biases are correct," isn't an argument.
pmiller2 9y ago
My "local school" when I was an undergrad now would cost me $30k/year to attend. Even assuming only 2 years (because the first 2 were spent at a community college, and all the credits magically transferred), that's over $60k. My parents never spent $60k on anything that didn't have a foundation and a roof.
limeblack 9y ago
How do you advise we fix this?
ma2rten 9y ago
No, education in America is expensive. If tuition was free or cheap, you could work part-time to pay living expenses and take more time to finish your degree as many students in Europe do.
- smsm42 9y ago
  Tuition != education. Tuition pays for far more than education, administrative costs are skyrocketing (look it up) and colleges spend like drunk sailors because competition on tuition costs is nearly non-existent (you'll take the loan anyway, so what does it matter the 10% difference in loan size?) and raising tuition won't result in significant application drop (since most applicants are either subsidized or take loans anyway).
- aaron-lebo 9y ago
  I went to two years of community college for under 2k. My parents invested in a state program when I was younger which promised to pay for 4 years of state schooling. Not sure exactly how much they put in, but had you withdrawn the amount to use it for private schooling it was like 10k, so I'm assuming not much more than that. Because community college was so cheap, I was able to use that other funding to pay for a graduate degree and part of my PhD program. It's not expensive, people just have goofy ideas about what being educated means.
  - HarryHirsch 9y ago
    We have students transfer in from the local community college. They struggle mightily, some even survive. With online labs in the physical sciences (instead of real glassware) it's an experience that I wouldn't wish on anyone. You can't call it education, the level is too low for that.
    - aaron-lebo 9y ago
      Didn't realize I was so unprepared for my schooling. Thank you for letting me know. Do you think they'll give me my money back?
cmurf 9y ago
That's not true, it's highly variable. Community colleges are much less expensive, that is true. But depending on the chosen career, a diploma from a community college means lower starting pay than a state university or a private college. Just the way it is. There are some worthwhile tricks, where you do 2 years at a community college, transfer credits to the state university, and finish a degree there and you get a diploma from the state university.
- learc83 9y ago
  It's not a trick. Most community don't offer 4 year degrees. When people are talking about community colleges they are generally talking about a place where you get an associates degree and then transfer.
reading-at-work 9y ago
That may have been true 30 years ago. These days kids who make the "responsible choice" to attend an in-state school can still pay upwards of 20-30K a year in tuition and fees (source: me and everyone I know at my large state school). And many colleges force students to stay in student housing until their sophomore or junior year.
matwood 9y ago
I don't think it's exactly cheap, but I agree with your point. US kids have this idea that college is about living away no someone else dime for 4 years. That's always going to be expensive. Instead, live at home and go to a local college. Admittedly not everyone lives close to an okay school, but many do. It's what I did, and with a 20-30 hour/week job I graduated with near zero debt.

by imesh 9y ago

Education in America is cheap, the problem is people don't go to their local school, they see college as an experience where they travel halfway across the country and stay in student housing.

jonathankoren 9y ago

Where do you get this impression, because it's simply not backed by any study, or even any anecdotal information? Quite the contrary, most people attend a college within 50 miles of their home[0]. [0] https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/02/03/when-students-enroll-college-geography-matters-more-policy-makers-think https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/02/03/when-students...

imesh 9y ago
No anecdotal information? My life? I went to the local college and graduated with less than 8k in debt and no scholarships. And that study doesn't really dispute my point, most may not, but a large percentage do, and those those who do are the ones without mountains of debt.
- jonathankoren 9y ago
  Find a study, because "my biases are correct," isn't an argument.

pmiller2 9y ago

My "local school" when I was an undergrad now would cost me $30k/year to attend. Even assuming only 2 years (because the first 2 were spent at a community college, and all the credits magically transferred), that's over $60k. My parents never spent $60k on anything that didn't have a foundation and a roof.

limeblack 9y ago

How do you advise we fix this?

ma2rten 9y ago

No, education in America is expensive. If tuition was free or cheap, you could work part-time to pay living expenses and take more time to finish your degree as many students in Europe do.

smsm42 9y ago
Tuition != education. Tuition pays for far more than education, administrative costs are skyrocketing (look it up) and colleges spend like drunk sailors because competition on tuition costs is nearly non-existent (you'll take the loan anyway, so what does it matter the 10% difference in loan size?) and raising tuition won't result in significant application drop (since most applicants are either subsidized or take loans anyway).
aaron-lebo 9y ago
I went to two years of community college for under 2k. My parents invested in a state program when I was younger which promised to pay for 4 years of state schooling. Not sure exactly how much they put in, but had you withdrawn the amount to use it for private schooling it was like 10k, so I'm assuming not much more than that. Because community college was so cheap, I was able to use that other funding to pay for a graduate degree and part of my PhD program. It's not expensive, people just have goofy ideas about what being educated means.
- HarryHirsch 9y ago
  We have students transfer in from the local community college. They struggle mightily, some even survive. With online labs in the physical sciences (instead of real glassware) it's an experience that I wouldn't wish on anyone. You can't call it education, the level is too low for that.
  - aaron-lebo 9y ago
    Didn't realize I was so unprepared for my schooling. Thank you for letting me know. Do you think they'll give me my money back?

cmurf 9y ago

That's not true, it's highly variable. Community colleges are much less expensive, that is true. But depending on the chosen career, a diploma from a community college means lower starting pay than a state university or a private college. Just the way it is. There are some worthwhile tricks, where you do 2 years at a community college, transfer credits to the state university, and finish a degree there and you get a diploma from the state university.

learc83 9y ago
It's not a trick. Most community don't offer 4 year degrees. When people are talking about community colleges they are generally talking about a place where you get an associates degree and then transfer.

reading-at-work 9y ago

That may have been true 30 years ago. These days kids who make the "responsible choice" to attend an in-state school can still pay upwards of 20-30K a year in tuition and fees (source: me and everyone I know at my large state school). And many colleges force students to stay in student housing until their sophomore or junior year.

matwood 9y ago

I don't think it's exactly cheap, but I agree with your point. US kids have this idea that college is about living away no someone else dime for 4 years. That's always going to be expensive. Instead, live at home and go to a local college. Admittedly not everyone lives close to an okay school, but many do. It's what I did, and with a 20-30 hour/week job I graduated with near zero debt.