Page 57 - Crisis in Higher Education

2

Underlying Problem: Higher

Education Costs Are Out of Control

When most radio and television pundits discuss the problems with
higher education, the dominant theme is student loan debt, which is
really a surrogate for the simple fact that it cost too much to get a uni-
versity degree. They may mention that tuition costs are rising faster than
inflation without much detail about how much faster or the reasons for
the increase. Others mention that government should do more, which
usually means providing additional funding, so higher education costs
less for students.
During the primary season for the 2016 presidential election,
Senator Bernie Sanders made political hay, especially among millen-
nials, when he suggested that public colleges and universities should
have zero tuition. Unfortunately, increasing federal and state fund-
ing does not answer the underlying questions: Are the costs of higher
education out of control? (Sections 2.1–2.6), and Is higher education a
good value? (Section 2.7). Providing more subsidies allows academic
leaders to continue the status quo and avoid facing difficult problems
such as how to reform higher education so it is more affordable, more
accessible, and higher quality. The following sections break down
the cost of higher education into its components and describe how
these costs have increased. Chapter 3 examines the underlying prob-
lems related to quality, access, completion time, graduation rate, and
job placement.

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