Frausto,

Joshua Frausto
English 1010
Issue Exploration Essay
April 4, 2015
Issue Exploration Paper
A commonly asked question among students about to enter higher education and those
already in higher education is: is the cost of college worth the degree? The impact this question
has had on society and myself has led me to explore the topic further. I chose to use the essay,
Are Colleges Worth the Price of Admissions written by Andrew Hacker and Claudia Dreifus as
the base for my issue exploration paper. With a frightening rise in unemployment rates of 8.5
percent, (compared to 5.5 percent in 2007), and the underemployment rates of 16.8 percent,
(compared to 9.6 percent in 2007) (OHara, 1), it is safe to consider not paying the skyrocketing
costs of college tuition and joining the workforce right after high school. Throughout this essay I
will draw from my own experience paying for college as well as how this question has been
examined in current scholarly and news media articles.
It was a very simple decision for me to write on Hacker and Dreifus essay since the topic
effects me directly. As a non-traditional student who has been in and out of college for the past
10 years, I often find myself asking if the price of tuition will be worth the degree? When I first
decided that I would attend college I had just graduated from high school. I was working parttime as a busser at a restaurant so my monthly income was very low. Even though I was barely
making enough money to support myself, I did not qualify for much financial help when I
applied for financial aid. I was forced to ask my father for help as well as pay for my remaining
tuition out of pocket. After two years of attending college part-time I was faced with the
decision of dropping out of college due to the fact that I could no longer afford the rising tuition
costs.

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It took me nearly 8 years to decide that I would return to college and finish my degree.
At this point in my life my financial situation was much more stable which oddly allowed me to
qualify for higher amounts of student loans. My current employer also offers partial tuition
reimbursement, which is an added reason to return to college. Yet aside from these facts I still
ask myself if the added debt of college tuition will pay off for me in the end? I have many
coworkers with college degrees that make very little more than I do with just a high school
diploma. I was recently accepted to the University of Utah, which in turn means that my tuition
costs will nearly double per semester. I estimate that by the time I complete my bachelors degree
I will have paid nearly $40,000 in college tuition. That cost is still quite low when compared to
other students that attend more prestigious institutions. So are the rising costs of college tuition
worth the possibility of getting a job that will only pay $55,000 a year? I will examine some of
the facts from both sides of the spectrum and let you decide for yourself.
Many major universities are focusing much of their time and money into large sporting
events, such as football, and not enough focus on offering their students a proper education
(Hacker, Dreifus, 180). From my perspective, this could be a major reason on my decision as to
which college I would attend. I do not want to attend a university that isnt concerned about
hiring proper staff that will focus on expanding the minds of college students. Many universities
are constantly raising the cost of tuition, and not always hiring more student affairs professors, so
the quality of their staff/faculty seems to fall. In a 2013 study by the Pew Research Center, they
reported that a majority of Americans said that college wasnt worth it because it didnt
provide students with good value for the money they and their families spend (Weiner, 1). On
top of that a recent household survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Board pointed out that
37% of respondents said that the net financial benefit of their education was negative (Weiner,

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1). Its because of such experiences that many students have decided to forgo attending college
after high school.
A growing trend attributed to the increasing cost of college tuition among young adults
now is skipping higher education, or attending for a shorter amount of time all together and
venturing into their own business with only the personal knowledge that they have taught
themselves. There have been some successful college dropouts who have become billionaires
such as Facebooks Mark Zuckerberg, Microsofts Bill Gates and Apples Steve Jobs (Weiner,
1). There are also people like Peter Theil [cofounder of Paypal] who now is offering students
$100,000 to drop out [in order to pursue research or launch their own start-ups (OHara, 1).
Many times when young adults read success stories like these, or are offered money to begin
their own business without a college degree they will believe that they can easily achieve the
same type of success. As much as we all wish it could be that easy, it is not. Becoming such a
successful entrepreneur takes a lot and it is not something that is naturally instilled in all of us. I
believe that many of the skills needed to become a successful entrepreneur is something that
needs to be taught to the majority of us, and can be gained through a college or university degree.
Since the 1970s college tuition has risen by 1,120% (OHara, 2). Despite this, state
funding of universities has declined by about 40% and is one of the key drivers that has caused
schools, particularly public ones, to raise tuition to compensate for that decline in funding
(OHara, 2). College is considered to possibly be the largest financial purchase apart from a
home mortgage that someone will make in their lifetime (Hacker & Dreifus 179). When I hear
all of these statistics about the rising cost of college tuition it doesnt surprise me that many
people decide to forgo college. The increasing cost of higher education sends a message that it is
a privilege and not something that should be afforded to everyone despite their financial

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situation. President Barack Obama said, Higher education is not a luxury. Earning a postsecondary degree or credential is a prerequisite for 21st century jobs, and one that everyone
should be able to afford (Weiner, 1). So than why does it not feel that way? Why is the
average amount of debt that college graduates owe around $30,000? Couldnt the state and
federal government do more to help young adults attend a college or university? One thing we
can do to help higher education become more affordable is offer free community college to
anyone who has completed high school as President Obama has proposed in 2015. Other
countries in Europe have this type of option and it is working well for them (OHara, 1). If it is
too big of a step to offer free community college to everyone, the states and government should
help these higher education institutes with more funding. If that was to happen then maybe
tuition costs would go down significantly and be more affordable to everyone, or institutes could
offer more financial aid their students. In the end, there are a multitude of decisions that states
and the federal government could decide on to make higher education affordable to everyone,
they just need to come together and take the students voices and personal experience into
consideration, and make effective changes.
Despite the many reasons that young adults can find that would suggest that college is not
worth the financial investment, there are many more that would suggest that college is a
necessity in todays age. Currently the United States sits ninth in the world in percentage of
population with post-secondary education (Bennett, 85). Evidence shows that employees are
still vastly bias towards candidates with four-year degrees (OHara, 2). At my current employer,
without a college degree, I can make a fair amount of income to be considered middle class. But
if I was to decide that I wanted to move to a higher position I would be declined because I do not
yet have a four-year degree. Its largely because of this that I feel it necessary to complete my

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degree. I highly believe in the saying that you need to spend money to make money. That is why
despite the fact I will need to take a fairly large amount of student loans, I will eventually be able
to obtain a well paying job that will make it all worth the initial cost.
A study suggests that young adults with just a high school diploma earned 62% less of the
typical salary of college graduates (Yen, 1). When you do the math, if a college graduates salary
is $80,000, a high school graduate will earn $49,600. This difference accumulates to $30,400;
that is a significant amount of money. It has also been suggested that those who have a B.A. earn
over their lifetime $1 million more than those who only have a high school diploma (OHara, 1).
That is a substantial amount of money to earn compared to someone with only a high school
degree. Paul Taylor, Pew Research Centers executive vice president said, Young adults see
significant economic gains from getting a college degree regardless of the level of student debt
they have to take on (Yen, 1).
At the same time I do not feel that a four-year degree is the only option in order to obtain
a well paying job and earn a good wage. There are many tech and trade schools that can offer
many other options aside from the traditional four-year institutions. Skilled trades professions
like mechanics, welders, plumbers and aircraft manufacturing technicians are being neglected for
four-year degrees (Bennett 84). These options only require some college education, which can
be a much cheaper alternative for many young adults.
Even though I know I will have a fair amount of student debt when I graduate, it will
eventually pay off. I am aware that the payoff will not be instantaneous and will take much time
and effort on my part. Roughly 9 in 10 college graduates ages 25-32 said that their bachelors
degree had paid off or will pay off in the future according to Pew Research Center (Yen, 1).
However, money is not the only thing to consider when earning a college degree. Personal well

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being and stability are added benefits of a degree, Pew Research Center found the big payoff to
a college degree isnt so much the earnings but the ability to have and keep a job (Weiner, 2).
Having a stable job will lead to you being healthier and having a more stable life. These are all
many things that one must consider when deciding to attend college.
But despite all of the suggestions that college is too expensive and will never pay off, I
disagree. There may be many facts that state that the unemployment rate among college
graduates is high, and students arent receiving a proper education from their professors because
schools are more focused on sporting events. Still I firmly feel that a college education is a
fundamental part of our society in order for it to succeed as well as individuals to mature. I have
no doubt that I will have a fair amount of student debt when I graduate, but all of the knowledge
I will gain and all of the opportunities that will be afforded to me will be well worth the cost.

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Works Cited

Bennett, William J. Is College Worth It? Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 2013.
Print.
Graff, Gerald, Birkenstein, Cathy, and Durst, Russel. Are Colleges Worth the Price of
Admission? They Say/I Say Hacker, Andrew, and Dreifus, Claudia. New York City:
W. W. Norton & Company, 2012. 179-189. Print.
OHara, Carolyn. Is College Worth The Skyrocketing Costs? Learn Vest: Forbes (2014) :
n. pag. Web. 25 March 2015
Weiner, Joann. Do the Benefits of a College Education Outweigh the Cost? The Washington
Post: The Washington Post (2014) : n. pag. Web. 25 March 2015
Yen, Hope. Is College Worth the Cost? New Study Says Yes Community College Week:
Dateline Washington n. pag. Web. 25 March 2015

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Annotated Bibliography
Andrew Hacker. Claudia Dreifus. Are Colleges Worth the Price of Admission? New York:
W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2012. 179-189. Print.
In Andrew Hacker and Claudia Dreifus essay Are Colleges Worth the Price of Admission? they
explain how many colleges and universities are not doing their duty of providing students with
the proper education that they pay a high price for. They detail how many higher education
institutions are taking on to many roles and doing non of them well. During the essay they talk
about a handful of colleges and universities who have a much lower or no tuition costs, are
succeeding by being different. They explain different ways and options that many higher
education institutions can choose in order to lower their tuition so they can become more
affordable, and pay their faculty a better wage so they can provide a better education. In all,
Hacker and Dreifus attempt to explain to the reader that college should not be a luxury that only
some can afford, but a opportunity that should be affordable to everyone.

Carolyn OHara. Is College Worth The Skyrocketing Costs? Learn Vest. Forbes,
07 October 2014. Web. 25 March 2015.
Some young adults may ask themselves if there are other options other than attending an
expensive college or university. In Carolyn OHaras article, Is College Worth The Skyrocketing
Costs? she not only details how much the price of college tuition has risen since the 1070s, but
also what alternative options are available. In OHaras article she interviews Andrew Rossi, a
film producer and director who filmed the documentary Ivory Towers. It is an in-depth
investigation into whether or not a four-year college degree is still worth the cost?. OHara and
Rossi discuss the reasons college tuition has risen by 1,120% since the 1970s and what can be

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done to change it. The author also details other available options such as Massive Open Online
Courses (MOOC), which would be a much cheaper alternative for earning a college degree.
Since OHara has written many articles for Forbes I would trust that her research and interview
with Andrew Rossi would be helpful in research for my final.

Hope Yen. Is College Worth The Cost? Dateline Washington. Community College Week,
03 March 2014. Web. 25 March 2015.
In Hope Yens article, Is College Worth It? She explains the difference in annual income between
someone with and without a four-year college degree. She details how young adults with only a
high school diploma earn 62% less than the typical income of a college graduate. Yen talks
about how earning a college degree not only yields more earnings but that a high school diploma
is now worthless. She than details research performed by Pew Research Centers on the income
difference between those with a bachelors degree and those with only a high school diploma.
This article fits in line with my final on whether a college degree is worth the cost. Since Hope
Yen is a writer for the Associated Press as well as PBS I trust that she has done the proper
research before publishing her article.

Joann Weiner. Do The Benefits Of A College Education Outweigh The Cost? The Washington
Post. The Washington Post, 22 August 2014. Web. 25 March 2015
In Joann Weiners article, Do The Benefits Of A College Education Outweigh The Cost?, she
details the additional benefits of a college degree aside from the financial aspect. Weiner
determines the average out of pocket costs for a student after financial aid and grants are
considered. The author looks at the average out of pocket costs for two public schools and two

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10

private schools. She than explains that the best option to choose from shouldnt be determined
by the final out of pocket costs but by what each institution has to offer. IN addition to her
findings, Weiner explains how people with a college degree tend to live happier lives, live
healthier lives and have healthier children as opposed to those with only a high school diploma.
Since Weiner is not only a writer for The Washington Post but also an economics professor at
George Washington University I would trust that she has the experience necessary to write about
this subject.

William J. Bennett. Is College Worth It? Nashville, Tennessee. Thomas Nelson, Inc. 2013.
Book. 25 March 2015
In William J. Bennetts book Is College Worth It?, he examines what has lead to the large
increase in tuition costs as well as the over $1 trillion in student debt. Bennet details how
colleges and universities try to lure prospective students and how in turn it generally raises the
cost of tuition. He than attempts to answer the question is college worth it? He determines
that the answer lies in what one decides to do with their life in terms of work. He states that
almost every blue-collar job only requires someone to have a high school diploma. But
corporate jobs require someone with a minimum of a bachelors degree in order to qualify for the
position. Bennet than lays out twelve hypothetical scenarios and determines which would
require only a high school diploma and which would require a college degree. Since William J.
Bennett is a former United States Secretary of Education I trust that he would have a first hand
view on a subject such as this.