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The cost of attending college has been increasing substantially over the past years and is still on
the up rise. There are many factors that constitute to the high price of not only tuition but the
overall cost of attending an institution. Federal grants are being cut and as states keep losing
funding and prices keep rising at an extremely quick pace and students have to get loans to pay
for their education leaving them with debt that will follow them for years after they graduate.
There is quite a bit of research on whether college is really worth the costs associated with it and
if getting a degree will really pay off in the long run. Not everyone would agree and say that
college is worth the price we now have to pay because were stuck paying back the debt from
student loans acquired during the process of getting the degree to get the job that will help in the
end to get rid of that debt.
The main topic of this research is the high cost of an education and what causes the high costs.
The research breaks off into subtopics. Some of the research discusses how the cost of college
can affect a students decision when picking a school, the lack of societys knowledge about
rising college costs , whether or not college is worth the money that is invested, debt and how it
affects students, and how diverse and low income students can afford to attend a higher
education institution. All of these subtopics and the main topic tie back in to the subject of the
cost of attending college.
How Does the Cost of College Affect a Students Decision when Picking a School
College has become a necessity in order to build a career. Students take into account a lot of
factors when picking a school and cost has become a huge one. Some students have the false idea
that they can pay less and still receive the same education that would be offered at a higher
education institution. Students who come from low income families or who are required to pay

for their own education are forced to pick from lower end schools out of necessity which
arguably compromises their overall education. It is becoming more and more difficult to afford a
higher education institution.
Michael P. Lillis and Robert Guang Tian discuss this is their article, The Impact of Cost on
College Choice: Beyond the Means of the Economically Disadvataged Lillis and Tian
specifically expand on the effect the cost of not only tuition but everything associated with a
certain institution has on a student, especially students that dont have the resources and have to
find a way to pay for school on their own. Studies show that the increasing costs of attending
college have caused students to take out loans, go to less expensive institutions, or even not
attend college. Alexander W. Astin shares some of these same thoughts in his article "The
Changing American College Student: Thirty-Year Trends, 1966-1996.". Astin discusses how
students have to pick schools with lower tuition because they cant afford to pay for a higher
education institution. Astin also shares how the trends in college students have changed
drastically over the past 3 decades. And one of the largest trends is financial concern, tying back
to the main topic of the cost of attending college. Lillis, Tian, and Astin all share the same
thoughts on how college and the cost of it can affect students choices when picking an
institution.
Stanley O. Ikenberry and Terry W. Hartle elaborate a little bit on the same topic as well in, "Too
Little Knowledge Is a Dangerous Thing: What the Public Thinks and Knows about Paying for
College." but they also go into discussing how some families and students really arent aware of
the cost of college and may be under the impression that the cost doesnt really have an effect on
the education provided at the institution. Ikenberry and Hartle go into discussion about how
many people have the false sense that they can attend a college for less and still receive the same

quality of education that students who are paying for higher education schools receive. Going
back to authors Lillian and Tian, they state that higher education although more expensive may
differ from lower cost college. Higher education schools are able to provide more resources than
some school without as much money.
Is College Worth the Money Invested
At one point in time people could have gotten away with spending the money for a higher
education because there was less of an emphasis put on a college degree in order to obtain a
lifelong career. In todays society it is nearly impossible to make a livable wage without at least a
bachelors degree. Students are struggling because with the rising college costs they are forced to
forgo basic needs. Students are acquiring extreme amounts of debt in a short amount of time at
the chance of finding an occupation that will not only provide enough money to pay off the debt
but cover a higher standard of living as well.
Jaison R. Abel, and Richard Deitz discuss the benefits of having a higher level of degree in their
research in, "Do the Benefits of College Still Outweigh the Cost?. Abel and Dietz emphasize the
idea that college is worth the costs if you obtain at least a bachelors degree. The authors discuss
that the economic loss in which the years it takes to earn this degree is made up after college.
Author Peralta K. provides evidence of the same information Abel and Dietz share. In Peraltas
report, Benefits of College Still Outweigh the Cost Fed Study Says, Peralta shares information
on the benefits of college. Peralta does share as well that the cost of college is worth it validating
Abel and Dietz.
On another note Richard Ekman goes into the discussion of private, Ivy League, and state
education and the difference between them. Ekman shares that Ivy league schools and state

schools differ in cost but the education is very much similar if not the same but the price
differential comes its own perks because the name of the school can greatly affect job
opportunities in the future. Many employers may base the applicant off of the college name
rather than the education received. For example, a Harvard law degree holds more value than a
state school degree because the name has the ability to determine the quality of an education,
factual or not. Ekman also shares that quite a large portion of Ivy League students come from
low income households, which is surprising. Due to the ridiculous cost of Ivy League schools
some students are able to afford this higher education without tremendous amounts of debt from
early commitment programs such as financial aid which is provided by both the government and
state. Ekman shares his thoughts and touches on a few other topics than Abel and Dietz as well
as Peralta but all these authors share the same subtopic of, is college worth the money invested.

Debt and How it Affects Students

Students are unable to afford to pay for the costs associated with attending college without
racking up debt that has the potential to follow them throughout their life. Students who attempt
to pay their way through college can find themselves in debt due to the basic costs of living
because they are unable to balance school, and a steady job that pays high enough to pay for
things such as housing, food, and transportation. Others take out loans and sail smoothly through
college but are abruptly hit with thousands of dollars in not only school loans but interest. These
loans can take upwards of twenty years to pay off. The best opportunity to succeed in education
is for students to apply for scholarships or grants and only use student loans as a last resort.
There are so many scholarship available for so many different reasons, tying back into how

students of diversity or low income households can afford college, there are scholarships
specifically for certain races.
Tracy king and Ellynne Bannon.are the authors of the article, "At What Cost? The Price That
Working Students Pay for a College Education.". They discuss how most students have to work
a full time job to be able to afford school and because of that they suffer with their grades and
attendance. Due to the high demands work places on a full time student it can be a waste of time
and money because the student is not accomplishing the grades necessary to validate their
investment. Students arent allowed as much time to devote to their education as they would be if
they werent having to work.
The cost of college has made it harder and harder for students to afford an education but at this
point an education is almost necessary to succeed later in life. College is expensive and can
cause tremendous amount of debt that students may possibly be left to deal with for most of their
life. Universities have made it very difficult for anyone to attend their institution but research has
shown that obtaining a degree does pay off later in life if you get a bachelors degree, you are
also more likely to succeed with a bachelors degree than with an associates degree. All of the
authors that have provided evidence to these claims all have the main topic of the cost of
attending college, which doesnt only include tuition but many other expenses like living, food,
and transportation. Some of the authors discuss the same subtopics as well like Lillis, Tian, and
Astin who all agree that college costs do affect students and their decisions when picking which
school to attend. Overall financial concerns in student has increased over the past 3 decades.

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Ekman, Richard. "Myths and Reality about U.S. Higher Education." Vital Speeches of
the Day 79.12 (2013): 392-96. 1 Dec. 2013. Academic Search Premiere. Web. 18
Feb. 2015.

Abel, Jaison R., and Richard Deitz. "Do the Benefits of College Still Outweigh the
Cost?" Current Issues in Economics and Finance 20.3 (2014): 1-12. 1 Mar. 2014.
Academic Search Premiere. Web. 18 Feb. 2015.
Peralta K. (2014) Benefits of College Still Outweigh the Cost Fed Study Says. US
News and World Report. Feb. 19, 2015.
Ikenberry, Stanley O., and Terry W. Hartle. "Too Little Knowledge Is a Dangerous
Thing: What the Public Thinks and Knows about Paying for College." American
Council on Education, 1998.
Astin, Alexander W. "The Changing American College Student: Thirty-Year Trends,
1966-1996." The Review of Higher Education. Vol. 21.2: Association for the Study of
Higher Education, 1998. 115-35.
Lillis, Michael P., and Robert Guang Tian. "The Impact of Cost on College Choice:
Beyond the Means of the Economically Disadvataged." Journal of College Admission.
2008. 4-14.