Guess Which President Was The Smallest Spender Since Eisenhower...

[JVB]

Tuition rates keep rising because so much of college is subsidized by the federal government. It's easy to raise rates when you know the government is going to make sure you have an unlimited supply of students whether they can afford to go to college, or even need to go to college. If the subsidies went away, most colleges would be forced to compete on price for the fewer number of students and prices would come down.

[TKshreve]

Tuition rates have risen recently [[I haven't seen stats for the entire century, but I'd love to look at them) due in part to cuts in funding.

JVB
If the subsidies went away, most colleges would be forced to compete on price for the fewer number of students and prices would come down.

Good to see we're all on the same page. Bottom line...... tuition continues to climb at an accelerated rate, out pacing inflation and especially cost of living. On the same page, access to a quality paying job upon graduation has declined. Students are graduating with so much debt it would take decades to repay these loans, if not a lifetime.

I will add that the student loan debt is not the bubble, but the spiraling cost of education is in fact the next tsunami headed to our shores. It ends with a sharp decline in college bound youth.

Something is wrong with this equation. [[and it's not just Fina Art majors)

[rb336]

If the subsidies went away, most colleges would be forced to compete on price for the fewer number of students and prices would come down.

That's a laugh. They would merely take in more students from countries who pay their students way through college, complete with a stipend. Your answer would further dilute the pool of educated Americans while increasing the number of foreign engineers, scientists, etc. etc., thus further speeding the brain drain. Brilliant

[JVB]

That's a laugh. They would merely take in more students from countries who pay their students way through college, complete with a stipend. Your answer would further dilute the pool of educated Americans while increasing the number of foreign engineers, scientists, etc. etc., thus further speeding the brain drain. Brilliant

Explain to me then why the more people get college degrees, the less valuable those degrees become and the more they cost?

[ghettopalmetto]

Explain to me then why the more people get college degrees, the less valuable those degrees become and the more they cost?

Note to self: Your college degree keeps decreasing in value. Because JVB said so.

We get it, JVB. You took first semester microeconomics, and decided to apply the basic Supply/Demand Curve to every possible scenario on the face of the earth, no matter how ludicrous.

Does this also mean that the more you rant and rave, the less valuable your posts become?

[oladub]

So, gp, how about putting a more positive spin on your post by explaining why supply/demand does not apply to the value of specific degrees. Or explaining why handing out money to students in any curriculum, whether or not there are any jobs in that major, is a good idea.

[JVB]

Note to self: Your college degree keeps decreasing in value. Because JVB said so.

No, college degrees have become less and less valuable because there are tons of college graduates without a job and having a college degree no longer guarantees you a good career like it used to. That is just a fact.

Does this also mean that the more you rant and rave, the less valuable your posts become?

I have 21 posts. You have over 3,000. I think it's safe to say you've been doing a lot more ranting and raving than I have.

[rb336]

I have 21 posts. You have over 3,000. I think it's safe to say you've been doing a lot more ranting and raving than I have.

comparing the number of posts you've made in 14 days to how many someone has made in over 3 years is just absurd, especially when GP posts to other areas of the forum and so far, I've only seen your posts here

[JVB]

comparing the number of posts you've made in 14 days to how many someone has made in over 3 years is just absurd, especially when GP posts to other areas of the forum and so far, I've only seen your posts here

Even if you break it down by day, it's still a lot more than me and yes I have posted in other sections. But that's ok, I'm not trying to upset the applecart, just giving an opinion like everyone else on here. Maybe college degrees are just as valuable as ever and all of the statistics are wrong.

[TKshreve]

Even if you break it down by day, it's still a lot more than me and yes I have posted in other sections. But that's ok, I'm not trying to upset the applecart, just giving an opinion like everyone else on here. Maybe college degrees are just as valuable as ever and all of the statistics are wrong.

I have a college degree and personally I don't think it has as much influence as it once did years ago. I always say "a masters degree is the new Bachelors degree".

Additionally, the employment sector has been taped by technological advances, an illegal-undocumented workforce, women penetrating higher ranks in the workforce and my favorite - Outsourcing. These are huge variables affecting the supply of jobs. I would guess a population increase probably has some kind of play on it as well.

Logically speaking there are a lot of negative forces at work. An increasing cost of tuition. A decrease in the number of blue collar non-college educated jobs. Lower paying post graduate jobs. And it begs the question: Whose job is it to fix these problems: The government or the free market?

[rb336]

Even if you break it down by day, it's still a lot more than me and yes I have posted in other sections. But that's ok, I'm not trying to upset the applecart, just giving an opinion like everyone else on here. Maybe college degrees are just as valuable as ever and all of the statistics are wrong.

The stats still say a college degree increases lifetime earning potential by a significant margin.

[old guy]

I have a college degree and personally I don't think it has as much influence as it once did years ago. I always say "a masters degree is the new Bachelors degree".

Additionally, the employment sector has been taped by technological advances, an illegal-undocumented workforce, women penetrating higher ranks in the workforce and my favorite - Outsourcing. These are huge variables affecting the supply of jobs. I would guess a population increase probably has some kind of play on it as well.

Logically speaking there are a lot of negative forces at work. An increasing cost of tuition. A decrease in the number of blue collar non-college educated jobs. Lower paying post graduate jobs. And it begs the question: Whose job is it to fix these problems: The government or the free market?

In an episode of 60 minutes last Sunday, they did a story claiming that there were about 3 million manufacturing jobs in the US that were unfilled because of a lack of qualified people to fill them. I think the problem is that the workers need to be good with their hands and be qualified to work with computers. What complicates the matter is that many of the jobs had an entry level pay of about $12.00.
Only a few of the companies said they did on the job training, but most didn't because they claimed that it would take about 2 years for someone to get up to speed.
So for someone to spend years to learn one of these new trades, and pay for all the schooling, only to end up with a job that pays 12 bucks an hour, is kind of tough in my opinion.

I'm not taking a side here about government loans or student loans or anything else. I just think it's a tough spot for everyone, from the employer, to the person looking for a way to be employed. 3 million of them.

[JVB]

The stats still say a college degree increases lifetime earning potential by a significant margin.

Yeah I agree with that, and I think having a degree is better than not having a degree. But everything has a cost, and at some point the degree costs more than it's worth. Some people would argue we have passed that point for many degrees at most colleges. As a Wayne State grad, I'm happy with what I paid for my degree even though I don't even use it. However, many degrees are probably not worth the $70k-$100k or more that they cost especially when a lot of students are taking that on as debt to pay for it without any immediate job prospects.

My brother-in-law was not college material so he decided to pick up a trade and now as an electrician he earns more than just about everyone that graduated with me at Wayne State. College isn't always the answer.