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Is College Worth It?
According to a new survey by Pew, more than half of Americans (57%) say the higher education is not providing a good return on investment. A large majority--75%--say college is not affordable for most people.
Another uneasy trend Pew mentions is that the price of a college education at both public and private institutions has roughly tripled since 1980 in inflation-adjusted dollars. A record number of students are borrowing to finance their educations, and the typical student who graduates from a four-year college with an outstanding loan starts out with an excessive balance of $23,000.
ACTA believes the purpose of college is to educate the citizenry and equip them with the skills to add value in our society.
Tuition is sky-rocketing, and students are not learning. In ACTA's What Will They Learn? study of over 760 schools, more than 450 of them received a "C" or worse in the strength of their core curricula. Less than 20% require a broad survey class in American History or US Government. Less than 5% require economics for their students to learn.
The average tuition & fees for an "F" school was $28,200. Students at these schools are not only stuck with an oversized bill, but also were short-handed a quality education.
What can be done? Trustees need to cut costs and to strengthen the core curriculum to ensure that all students are learning.
Posted by Jose Herrera on May 17, 2011 at May 17, 2011 11:00 AM
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