College Tuition Limiting Later Success

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Most students are not able to make these outrageous payments monthly, which leads to many more issues. “Of these outstanding loans, only 60 percent of borrowers in repayment were actually making their scheduled payments.” (Bergeron). The amount of money that colleges charge lead to higher payments which most people are not able to afford which is not giving them a fair chance. When the payments aren’t being made, the debt collection is just an added issue. “A 10-year loan can almost double because of debt collection charges of nearly 20 percent.” (Quirk). So not only are the student-loan payments high depending on where a student attends, but the missed payments can almost double the actual loan. Young adults who decided to attend college to better their chances in life, may actually be causing more difficulties for themselves. When it comes to finding a job to help pay for these loans, it’s tough. “Jobs for graduates is weak.” (Lemann 23). With today’s economy, there aren’t many jobs which is limiting the chances for college students to be successful after graduation even more. The government, colleges, and student-loans aren’t giving young adults much of a chance to boom.

Student-loans and the rise of college tuition does nothing but limit the opportunity of success for young adults. It has put a boundary on what people are able to do after they graduate from college, and has also affected the economy. Malcolm Gladwell talks about how wealthy families are at an advantage. “The first response is that disadvantage kids simply don’t have the same inherent ability to learn as children from more privileged backgrounds.” (256). Wealthy families are able to provide for their kids in early education, and high education. Poor families have no option to pay for their kids’ college costs without the help from loans. When it comes to the economy, student loans are holding back on the nation’s housing recovery as well. “Two million more adults ages 18-34 now live with their parents than before the Recession.” (Bergeron). With that number of adults not being able to afford a house or everyday expenses on their own due to student-loans is terrible. College education is supposed to help people for a better life, but it is now causing negative effects. Student-loan debt is keeping people form finding jobs according to Quirk. “He eventually owed $100,000 and couldn’t get a military contractor job because of his bad credit.” (Quirk). Unfortunately, the rise in college tuition has led to an epidemic of student-loan debt in the United States. It has affected a massive amount of Americans who are attending college to better their education, but the debt has not given them a fair chance to be successful in life.

Higher education should be free to those people who want to broaden their likelihoods of being successful. If college is such a necessity in today’s society, than the tuition rates should not be rising at an outrageous rate. It puts graduates at a disadvantage to become successful because they are already dealing with debt for trying to gain extra knowledge to help society. Colleges should not be using tuition as a profit because they are only hurting the country economically. The effect that tuition rates and student-loans has put on America is destructive. Young adults who attend college are not given the fair chance to be successful because their student-loans will be such a huge part of their monthly payments for at least 10 years that they cannot afford anything extra. Also, graduates are not being guaranteed any jobs which ends up worse because then they are deep in debt without a decent paying job.

Making higher education free would lead to many more advantages for the economy in the United States. College tuition being taken away by law would lead to a more educated and less poor society. It would also help regulate the economy since people’s money would not be tied up in student loans. This is an appropriate thing to do because right now American people are set up for a low chance of success due to the costs of education.

Works Citied

Bergeron, David, Elizabeth Baylor, and Joe Valenti. "Resetting the Trillion-Dollar Student-Loan Debt." Center for American Progress. N.p., 21 Nov. 2013. Web. 20 Apr. 2014. .

Bernasek, Anna. "It's A Plane. It's A Yacht. No, It's Your Tuition Bill." Newsweek Global 162.14 (2014): 1-3. Academic Search Complete. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.

Ekman, Richard. "Myths And Reality About U.S. Higher Education." Vital Speeches Of The Day 79.12 (2013): 392-396. Academic Search Complete. Web. 27 Apr. 2014.

Gladwell, Malcolm. "Marita's Bargain." Outliers: the story of success. New York: Little, Brown and Co., 2008. 250-269. Print.

Lemann, Nicholas. "Cost of College ." The New Yorker 28 May 2012: 23-24. Print.

Quirk, William J. "Federal Student-Loan Sharks." The American Scholar 82.4 (2013): 32+. Academic OneFile. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.

Suvor, Daniel R. "Rising tuition vs. access to legal education." Student Lawyer Apr. 2008: 2. Academic OneFile. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.