Yet another problem that is linked to the days of easy credit. When I was in college I worked 40+ hours per week and was tired, but at least it was possible. I remember getting nervous when tuition went up to $500 per quarter, wondering how I could afford that increase. Today, the numbers are quickly moving beyond reach for many Americans. Even overseas students are opting for other countries instead of the US due to the high costs, not to mention the immigration issues. Universities haven't helped families or students by enriching the CEO-Presidents with million dollar salaries nor have they helped with shady loan programs. Easy credit is gone, so what's next?
Over all, the report found, published college tuition and fees increased 439 percent from 1982 to 2007, adjusted for inflation, while median family income rose 147 percent. Student borrowing has more than doubled in the last decade, and students from lower-income families, on average, get smaller grants from the colleges they attend than students from more affluent families.
“If we go on this way for another 25 years, we won’t have an affordable system of higher education,” said Patrick M. Callan, president of the center, a nonpartisan organization that promotes access to higher education.
“When we come out of the recession,” Mr. Callan added, “we’re really going to be in jeopardy, because the educational gap between our work force and the rest of the world will make it very hard to be competitive. Already, we’re one of the few countries where 25- to 34-year-olds are less educated than older workers.”
Although college enrollment has continued to rise in recent years, Mr. Callan said, it is not clear how long that can continue.
“The middle class has been financing it through debt,” he said. “The scenario has been that families that have a history of sending kids to college will do whatever if takes, even if that means a huge amount of debt.”
But low-income students, he said, will be less able to afford college. Already, he said, the strains are clear.
