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What I wonder, is this: if college costs keep rising, will the number of people applying to colleges drop?
When middle class jobs don't require it.
There are indeed plumbing jobs and the like out there that pay middle class salaries and can be had with licensure or a 2 year degree only, but let's be honest there are not millions of those jobs out there. The BLS says we will need 50k more plumbers in 2024 than we have now. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/construction...eamfitters.htm
Let's assume theres a construction boom & it turns out to be 150 or 200k. There are 17 million college students; there's still a big remainder.
I recommend trying to minimize debt, but only to a point. I think the best option for most people is to go to the best in-state school they can get into. If you get into Harvard or Stanford and have to pay a huge amount, it's a decision to make, and likely depends on many things, such as your major and future plans.
Point of reference: I went to an average state school on a full ride and my first job was at a company that's probably more selective than Harvard. There were things I didn't like about school, but I dealt with them.
I recommend trying to minimize debt, but only to a point. I think the best option for most people is to go to the best in-state school they can get into. If you get into Harvard or Stanford and have to pay a huge amount, it's a decision to make, and likely depends on many things, such as your major and future plans.
Point of reference: I went to an average state school on a full ride and my first job was at a company that's probably more selective than Harvard. There were things I didn't like about school, but I dealt with them.
I'd agree with this, even regardless of major. If you go to Stanford and major in a liberal art, you will be among the elite liberal art graduates out there. Want to work for an art museum & majored in art? A Stanford degree will help get you into the good big city museums instead of Podunk Mississippi.
I'd include the top 15 schools on the US News ranking in that decision matrix.
Beyond that, try to get best bang for the buck. My strategy was to go to the best school I got accepted to that offered the best aid package with most grants/scholarships and fewest loans. This meant I did not go to the best or most enticing school which sent me an acceptance letter. For some people who didn't do well in high school this might mean community college but that's okay.
It worked out pretty well for me; I landed the job I wanted although not precisely the location I wanted.
I had some debt but it was manageable. Less than typical car debt today.
But what kind of money do people make working at a museum? If they're making $40k, taking on 6 figures worth of debt just isn't worth it. Which is why I say it depends on major and career choice.
But what kind of money do people make working at a museum? If they're making $40k, taking on 6 figures worth of debt just isn't worth it. Which is why I say it depends on major and career choice.
There are about 300 undergraduate majors offered by universities around the country and the vast majority result in starting salaries between 40k and 65k. The top 10% of majors make more, but by definition the top tenth can't be 100%.
That's a problem everyone faces.
There was a study done in 2012, I don't have the link on me right now, that showed only 39% of undergraduates take out any debt whatsoever... financial aid covers the bills for 61% of them. The 39% are probably weighed toward out of state, private university students, and families that unfortunately fall into that situation where they make too much for grants but not enough to easily cover the bills.
The real debt crisis involves graduate degrees. THAT'S where the 6 figure numbers come in.
Last edited by redguard57; 09-12-2017 at 09:59 PM..
That's not really a satisfying answer. I wouldn't even want to take on 5 figures of debt if I weren't going to graduate with a job better than $40k. Going to an elite private school might mean a huge amount of debt.
I disagree that the debt crisis isn't real in undergrad. Schools keep increasing tuition, and kids are graduating without real skills and having a very tough time finding jobs. You shouldn't go to grad school if you have to pay for it. I'm guessing you mostly mean law/med/business school.
That's not really a satisfying answer. I wouldn't even want to take on 5 figures of debt if I weren't going to graduate with a job better than $40k. Going to an elite private school might mean a huge amount of debt.
I disagree that the debt crisis isn't real in undergrad. Schools keep increasing tuition, and kids are graduating without real skills and having a very tough time finding jobs. You shouldn't go to grad school if you have to pay for it. I'm guessing you mostly mean law/med/business school.
40% of all undergraduates are at community colleges, where the average tuition is $3500/yr.
Another significant percentage are at state universities where tuition averages about $9000/yr.
A little less than 40% of undergraduates receive Pell grants which total up to $5500 per year. In that scenario your community college is paid and you're only on the hook for about 4k a year over two (maybe three) years of university. Another 30% get some other kind of financial assistance. Of course there are some other costs. Living, books, etc..
That's why only 40% of undergraduates take out loans.
I would prefer that public college be free at point of service, a much more rational way to handle it. But that's not the country we live in.
Schools are getting more and more expensive, but it is worth the extra tag. Are elite schools in specific really worth the high costs?
Unless my kid wanted to be an investment banker, corporate lawyer, or university professor ... I wouldn't spend a dime to send them to an expensive school.
Are you going to an elite school to learn arbitrage? Then it's worth it. Are you going to an elite school to become a social worker? Then you're out of your mind.
Likewise, are your parents farting $100 bills? Then go wherever they feel comfortable paying. But if you're having to pony up your own money, then no.
The biggest problem? Universities have utterly failed to control their costs. In the past seventeen years, the ratio of administrators per 100 students has risen something like 65%.
Heck, my wife and I constitute the top 5% for combined household income. But even we were loath to send our kids to private school. My daughter wanted to go to Tulane, with a tuition of more than $50,000. That's the equivalent of a BMW for four years.
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