Name: The Thuy Trang Nguyen
Professor: Rebecca Weaver
Course: ENGL1102
Date: 4/21/2022
INTRODUCTION
The dream of college is more often than not too big for the low-income population due to the overall cost of college. However, as in society, higher education increases the chances for success by allowing one access to better job opportunities; the middle and low-income population strive to go to college and to afford it acquire loans, scholarships, and taking up part or full-time jobs to ensure they can raise enough for their upkeep and college fees. The financial toll that college takes on individuals has stirred up the discussion on the need to make college education accessible or reduce college fees to be affordable to low and middle-income individuals.
DISCUSSION
A free college education would reduce college’s financial toll on students and their families. Students’ financial lives are characterized by acquiring student loans while in college, which raises whether college is worth the effort. As highlighted by Jeff Grabeier, “When asked how they paid for their tuition, students were most likely to say either loans or scholarships and grants” (Grabeier). The government should address the difficulty people face paying for college and ensure that the opportunity for college is accessible for everyone despite their income and social class. Thanks to social stratification, the rich have more access to the most exemplary education programs. In contrast, the poor can only access the bare minimum, thus ensuring that the rich remain rich by acquiring the best jobs after the best education. In contrast, the poor maintain a cycle of missing opportunities for the cost. Making college accessible would provide a sense of equality as all one would need to acquire a college education is the academic achievement that qualifies them for college and will. This would ease the financial stress on students, that is Grabeier highlights in the statement, “Financial problems lead some students to make difficult choices, the survey found. Nearly three out of 10 students said they reduced their class load because of the money they owed, while 16 percent took a break from their college or university and 13 percent transferred to another institution” (Grabeier). Sara Goldrick mentions that the economics of college display a rise in college tuition, which is contrary to what society needs, as college tuition was already too expensive for the majority of the population. She highlights that one in ten students endure homelessness during college. A free college education would solve many of these problems students face as the little money they can raise would be directed to their upkeep and personal needs that would ensure the students can acquire a college education without the financial stress.
A free college education would ensure that young people can attain their dreams despite their socioeconomic backgrounds. Dreams are shattered too by the inability of young people to afford college tuition. To build a society that can motivate young people to be ambitious and chase their dreams, the government should ensure that college education is free. This is not to mean that free college would solve every financial problem students face, as small expenses such as housing and food can threaten students’ college careers. Financial stress presents itself in worry about general personal finances, catering for monthly payments, and debts from student loans and credit cards (Lim et al.)
Karen Weese highlights that “To a middle-income kid from a neighborhood with two cars in every garage, it may be incomprehensible that something costing less than a few burritos at Chipotle could derail a person’s college education. But for many young people across the country — growing up in homes where there’s little left after paying rent and utilities — the challenge is painfully familiar” The number one reason that low-income students drop out is financial. And often it’s a little thing, that a middle- or higher-income family wouldn’t even think twice about.” (Weese). These facts depict that raising the college tuition is a meager first step in attaining a college education as the other expenses are not as affordable for the low-income students. This is especially noted by Chris Metzler, who identifies that “A lot of people think if you give a kid a scholarship, now the kid’s set, they’ve got everything they need,” (Weese), which is an erroneous assumption as students require more than just paid tuition fee to survive in college.
Listening to the stories of low-income college students, one gathers that financial anxiety is predominant among them. With the tuition rates rising faster than inflation, financial stress and anxiety are not new to students. The money that low-income students save up to use while in college is rarely enough, and they end up depleting the capital before the semester’s completion. As students cannot increase their income or reduce expenses, they end up acquiring debt here and there. Financial anxiety causes the development of poor mental health in students and poor physical health as the amount of pressure they put on their bodies juggling academic work. Their part-time jobs take a toll on the students’ health. “schools cannot simply showcase smiling black and brown faces in their glossy brochures and students wearing shirts blaring “First Gen and Proud” in curated videos and then abdicate responsibility for the problems from home that a more diverse class may bring with them to campus. Does this entail going beyond providing tuition, room, and board? Yes. It requires colleges and universities to question what they take for granted, their students, and the institutions themselves.” (Jack) Schools should understand that when an individual comes from a low-income background, financial aid is not enough for them to succeed. This is especially highlighted by Anthony Jack in his description of his college struggles, like in the statement, “During one rough patch, I stayed home from school for a few days when we couldn’t afford all the supplies needed to carry out my science-fair experiment on bulb voltage and battery life. I developed my hypotheses, outlined my proposed methods without the materials, and had everything ready to go when we could afford the supplies” (Jack). Low-income college students should be provided with adequate access to all resources essential to their academic achievement. The primary factors such as housing and food are catered for as affording this is quite cumbersome for them to do independently.
Ultimately, a free college education would partially solve the problem of high college funds, as students would still have so much more to pay to ensure their smooth learning.
Work Cited
Abraham Jack, Anthony. “I Was A Low-Income College Student. Classes Weren’T The Hard Part.”. The New York Times, 2019, I Was a Low-Income College Student. Classes Weren’t the Hard Part. – The New York Times (nytimes.com) . Accessed 29 Mar. 2022.
Goldrick-Rab, Sara, “College is creating poverty” uploaded by TED, May 2019, https://www.ted.com/talks/sara_goldrick_rab_college_is_creating_poverty . Accessed 17 April 2022.
Grabeier, Jeff. “70 Percent Of College Students Stressed About Finances”. 70 Percent Of College Students Stressed About Finances, 2022, https://news.osu.edu/70-percent-of-college-students-stressed-about-finances/. Accessed 29 Mar. 2022.
Lim, HanNa et al. “Financial Stress, Self-Efficacy, And Financial Help-Seeking Behavior Of College Students”. Journal Of Financial Counseling And Planning, vol 25, no. 2, 2014, pp. 148-160., Accessed 29 Mar. 2022.
Weese, Karen. “When A Sudden, Small Expense Threatens An Entire College Career”. The Washington Post, 2022, https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/01/30/college-poverty-expense-cost-dropout/ . Accessed 29 Mar. 2022.