Persuasive Essay On Drowning In Debt
Drowning in Debt
By the time you’re finished with the first four years of college, you’ll probably have around 30,000 dollars in debt. That’s only for a bachelor's degree. Students in medical school usually finish with 180,000 dollars in debt, while law school students have an average of 100,000 dollars of debt. Coupled with their undergraduate debt, and how they’re doing financially, the cost could be sky high in the end. College used to be much more affordable in the past, but by this point, the cost of college has tripled, and students are deciding to skip out on college because they think the cost isn’t worth the reward. The problem is that it is worth it. Only 69% of high school graduates decide to enroll in college. That means 31 students …show more content…
out of 100 decide to opt out. That may not seem like a big deal, but that’s 31 lives that are severely limited because they didn’t get a college diploma. Those lives could change if college tuition were lowered. Everyone could afford college, debt wouldn’t be a problem for your health, and the US could climb higher on the global rankings. Here’s why tuition should be lowered.
First and foremost, some people just can’t afford it. It’s as simple as that. They either have to resort to going to a college that doesn’t fit their needs, or no college at all, and it’s not fair to them. They might’ve worked hard to get into their school and gotten accepted, but they can’t go. One student “won't be able to return to his dream school in the fall” and instead went to a community college instead. “He didn't get kicked out,” his girlfriend says, “and he didn't do anything wrong. He simply just couldn't afford it anymore.” He was smart enough, just not wealthy enough. His dream school was his dream for a reason: it was probably good in the area he wanted to major in. Chances are, the community college wasn’t. If the tuition was lowered, he and many other students could go to the college they needed to for their major. In addition, they wouldn’t be feeling the effects of student loans.
The consequence of high debt ends in 71% of college students having debt. Debt has lots of negative effects on a person. According to Emory, there are more than 1,000 suicides on college campuses. Suicide is mostly caused by lots of stress. Imagine having to pay back a huge amount of money a little at a time because you can barely pay for yourself, let alone paying someone back. This is debt in a nutshell. It’s like an executioner’s axe hanging above your head, about to come down any moment and you can’t do anything about it because there’s nothing you can possibly do to make it go away. Not only has the tuition risen, but the starting wages for college graduates are 2.5% lower. How do they expect debt to be paid off when the starting wages are even lower then what they were before? Debt causes stress, fear, anger, depression, and suicide. The latter is the 10th leading cause of death in America, but lowering tuition lowers student debt. That could stop the negative effects it has on everyone, including suicide. Some might say the debt is worth it, that it pays off in the long run because they’re getting an education. But are they really getting their money’s worth?
The PSA World Wide Rankings rank countries for education in three subjects: math science, and reading.
Almost all Americans think that the USA’s education is one of the best in the world, but it isn’t in the global top ten for any subject. So, the debt isn’t even worth that good of an education anyway. Perhaps if more people go to college, the USA on educational global rankings will rise. People can't go to college though, not with tuition this high. Why should they go anyway, all it ends in is debt, debt, and more debt. The obvious answer is the lower the cost. Then more people can go to college, which means more people can get education. This will most likely raise America’s status to the top 10, like it used to be, and this would be what students want. This is win-win for everyone. Well...mostly a win-win.
Colleges need funding, and lowering tuition will not be a win for them. What will colleges do without all the money? Tuition is the source of money for many educational things, like lab equipment or books. Without the money, the education could become even worse. Yet, colleges can afford to spend buckets of money on sports, fields, and gyms for unneeded things that don’t benefit the educational value of a college. They can afford to cut a little bit of funding to lower tuition. It’s a small sacrifice for a greater
purpose.
There may be drawbacks, but that’s why college tuition is controversial. I believe that it should be lowered because the rewards outweigh the costs. More people can go to a better college, they won’t be weighed down by debt, and the USA’s education can get better. Although colleges lose some funding, it’ll be much more beneficial to lower the tuition. Just think about it.
Works Cited
Bidwell, Allie. “Average Student Loan Debt.” U.S. News & World Report, U.S. News & World Report, 13 Nov. 2014, www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/11/13/average-student-loan-debt-hits-30-000. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
“College Enrollment and Work Activity of 2015 High School Graduates.” U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 28 Apr. 2016, www.bls.gov/news.release/hsgec.nr0.htm. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
DiSpirito, Joanna. “Why We Need To Lower College Tuition.” Odyssey, 18 Apr. 2016, www.theodysseyonline.com/why-we-need-to-lower-college-tuition. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
Fay, Bill. “The Emotional Effects of Debt.” Debt.org, www.debt.org/advice/emotional-effects/. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
Jackson, Abby. “The Latest Ranking of Top Countries in Math, Reading, and Science.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 6 Dec. 2016, www.businessinsider.com/pisa-worldwide-ranking-of-math-science-reading-skills-2016-12. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
McNutt, Mark I. “Why Does College Cost So Much?” U.S. News & World Report, U.S. News & World Report, 22 Sept. 2014, www.usnews.com/news/college-of-tomorrow/articles/2014/09/22/why-college-costs-so-much-overspending-on-faculty-amenities. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
Sanchez, Claudio. “How The Cost Of College Went From Affordable To Sky-High.” NPR, NPR, 18 Mar. 2014, www.npr.org/2014/03/18/290868013/how-the-cost-of-college-went-from-affordable-to-sky-high. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
“Suicide Statistics.” Suicide Statistics, Emory, www.emorycaresforyou.emory.edu/resources/suicidestatistics.html. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
By the time you’re finished with the first four years of college, you’ll probably have around 30,000 dollars in debt. That’s only for a bachelor's degree. Students in medical school usually finish with 180,000 dollars in debt, while law school students have an average of 100,000 dollars of debt. Coupled with their undergraduate debt, and how they’re doing financially, the cost could be sky high in the end. College used to be much more affordable in the past, but by this point, the cost of college has tripled, and students are deciding to skip out on college because they think the cost isn’t worth the reward. The problem is that it is worth it. Only 69% of high school graduates decide to enroll in college. That means 31 students …show more content…
out of 100 decide to opt out. That may not seem like a big deal, but that’s 31 lives that are severely limited because they didn’t get a college diploma. Those lives could change if college tuition were lowered. Everyone could afford college, debt wouldn’t be a problem for your health, and the US could climb higher on the global rankings. Here’s why tuition should be lowered.
First and foremost, some people just can’t afford it. It’s as simple as that. They either have to resort to going to a college that doesn’t fit their needs, or no college at all, and it’s not fair to them. They might’ve worked hard to get into their school and gotten accepted, but they can’t go. One student “won't be able to return to his dream school in the fall” and instead went to a community college instead. “He didn't get kicked out,” his girlfriend says, “and he didn't do anything wrong. He simply just couldn't afford it anymore.” He was smart enough, just not wealthy enough. His dream school was his dream for a reason: it was probably good in the area he wanted to major in. Chances are, the community college wasn’t. If the tuition was lowered, he and many other students could go to the college they needed to for their major. In addition, they wouldn’t be feeling the effects of student loans.
The consequence of high debt ends in 71% of college students having debt. Debt has lots of negative effects on a person. According to Emory, there are more than 1,000 suicides on college campuses. Suicide is mostly caused by lots of stress. Imagine having to pay back a huge amount of money a little at a time because you can barely pay for yourself, let alone paying someone back. This is debt in a nutshell. It’s like an executioner’s axe hanging above your head, about to come down any moment and you can’t do anything about it because there’s nothing you can possibly do to make it go away. Not only has the tuition risen, but the starting wages for college graduates are 2.5% lower. How do they expect debt to be paid off when the starting wages are even lower then what they were before? Debt causes stress, fear, anger, depression, and suicide. The latter is the 10th leading cause of death in America, but lowering tuition lowers student debt. That could stop the negative effects it has on everyone, including suicide. Some might say the debt is worth it, that it pays off in the long run because they’re getting an education. But are they really getting their money’s worth?
The PSA World Wide Rankings rank countries for education in three subjects: math science, and reading.
Almost all Americans think that the USA’s education is one of the best in the world, but it isn’t in the global top ten for any subject. So, the debt isn’t even worth that good of an education anyway. Perhaps if more people go to college, the USA on educational global rankings will rise. People can't go to college though, not with tuition this high. Why should they go anyway, all it ends in is debt, debt, and more debt. The obvious answer is the lower the cost. Then more people can go to college, which means more people can get education. This will most likely raise America’s status to the top 10, like it used to be, and this would be what students want. This is win-win for everyone. Well...mostly a win-win.
Colleges need funding, and lowering tuition will not be a win for them. What will colleges do without all the money? Tuition is the source of money for many educational things, like lab equipment or books. Without the money, the education could become even worse. Yet, colleges can afford to spend buckets of money on sports, fields, and gyms for unneeded things that don’t benefit the educational value of a college. They can afford to cut a little bit of funding to lower tuition. It’s a small sacrifice for a greater
purpose.
There may be drawbacks, but that’s why college tuition is controversial. I believe that it should be lowered because the rewards outweigh the costs. More people can go to a better college, they won’t be weighed down by debt, and the USA’s education can get better. Although colleges lose some funding, it’ll be much more beneficial to lower the tuition. Just think about it.
Works Cited
Bidwell, Allie. “Average Student Loan Debt.” U.S. News & World Report, U.S. News & World Report, 13 Nov. 2014, www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/11/13/average-student-loan-debt-hits-30-000. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
“College Enrollment and Work Activity of 2015 High School Graduates.” U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 28 Apr. 2016, www.bls.gov/news.release/hsgec.nr0.htm. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
DiSpirito, Joanna. “Why We Need To Lower College Tuition.” Odyssey, 18 Apr. 2016, www.theodysseyonline.com/why-we-need-to-lower-college-tuition. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
Fay, Bill. “The Emotional Effects of Debt.” Debt.org, www.debt.org/advice/emotional-effects/. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
Jackson, Abby. “The Latest Ranking of Top Countries in Math, Reading, and Science.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 6 Dec. 2016, www.businessinsider.com/pisa-worldwide-ranking-of-math-science-reading-skills-2016-12. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
McNutt, Mark I. “Why Does College Cost So Much?” U.S. News & World Report, U.S. News & World Report, 22 Sept. 2014, www.usnews.com/news/college-of-tomorrow/articles/2014/09/22/why-college-costs-so-much-overspending-on-faculty-amenities. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
Sanchez, Claudio. “How The Cost Of College Went From Affordable To Sky-High.” NPR, NPR, 18 Mar. 2014, www.npr.org/2014/03/18/290868013/how-the-cost-of-college-went-from-affordable-to-sky-high. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.
“Suicide Statistics.” Suicide Statistics, Emory, www.emorycaresforyou.emory.edu/resources/suicidestatistics.html. Accessed 20 Apr. 2017.