The prices thing doesn't work well here because 1) the government has intervened, and 2) it's based on debt - the price of which is also controlled by the gover

The prices thing doesn't work well here because 1) the government has intervened, and 2) it's based on debt - the price of which is also controlled by the government/central bank. It's a skin-in-the-game problem. If education was at least partially funded by equity, the investor in the person receiving the education, be it a private investor, company they'll work for, or even the university itself, would have taken on the risk for failure to produce any sort of ROI. I say partially, because I believe there is some merit in government subsidy for certain fields, but more of that should go towards reducing the cost of university facilities, on-campus accommodation, labs, libraries etc. rather than student finances.