Should College Be Free?

Should college be free?

By:Angela Garcia

    Have you ever thought about going to college? If not, what is holding you back? For many, the biggest challenge is affordability and debt. Many people are graduating with hundreds, if not thousands of dollars of student debt. In the United States, a big debate has been formed. Many people think that college should be free while others think that college is something that should be paid out of pocket because it is optional. This should be important, especially for teenagers and young adults trying to get into colleges. There are strong arguments on both sides and it is important to think about both perspectives and decide what is best for the students of this country. 

One reason people believe college should be free is to give higher opportunities of education for everyone. Not just the wealthy. Everyone should have an opportunity to grow into the person they always wanted to be and not have that lingering fear of not having enough funds to cover next month's tuition fees. There are so many students who are more than qualified for college but they don’t even try to apply because they know their families can’t afford it. According to NASFAA, “ 85% of adults – who either stopped out or never enrolled in a higher education program – said an important reason why they weren’t currently enrolled is because of the cost of the degree or credential program. Further, 77% of these adults cited their need to work as an important reason why they weren’t currently enrolled in a program(NASFAA). This goes to show that cost is a huge factor on enrollment. There are many students who would love the opportunity to experience college but never got the chance because they needed to have a full time job to help support their families. Coming from a Hispanic household, we try to have each other's backs. If that means we stay home and sacrifice our futures, then that is what must be done. Free college would help those kids significantly to reach their goals. We need to give future generations a better chance to get what they deserve.

           Another reason people support the thought of free college is because it would help our economy in the long run ( Whitmore). If people had access to a better education it would make people more qualified in their jobs. Wouldn’t you want a well staffed hospital that has well rested nurses and doctors? If we had more people working at better jobs, then people would have the opportunity to spend more money which would boost businesses. Renee Whitmore says: “The potential benefits of implementing free college education in the United States include reducing the burden of student loan debt, enhancing social mobility, and supporting economic growth through an educated workforce. A more educated workforce might lead to higher levels of innovation, productivity, and overall economic growth.” (What counties have free college). After doing more research, a study from BYU said that it will increase the overall mental health of their students when they aren’t constantly worried about paying for school, they’re more likely to be focused and not as anxious (LeBron-Black). This means they’re more likely to succeed, that isn’t good for just that person. It’s good for our society.

However, others are against the free college idea. In a realistic point of view, nothing is truly free. There will always be someone or something that pays for it. If college becomes “free” our taxes are very likely to increase as well. Why would someone want to pay for something they don’t believe in? One article I read said that a free college would cost the government over $70 billion a year (Dynarki 3). If free college comes to exist, the cost of living might help as well. That means higher grocery prices, rent will go up and so will everything else. We also have to keep in mind the people that it won't benefit. Think about people your grandpa for example, why would he have to pay higher rates if it won’t benefit him? Why should he have to suffer that cost? Just think, that 70 billion could be used for other things like improving health care or increasing how much we pay our teachers. It sounds like a good idea, but it might cost too much for the people who are already struggling financially.

Free college could lead people to not appreciate their education. If people are given their education for free, it won’t matter as much because they’re not paying for it whereas when you do pay for it, you are making sure that you’re getting your money's worth of schooling. Think about back to when you were in high school, how many kids failed their classes because they didn’t care to pass? People didn’t care to show up but why do you think that is? In my opinion, people took high school for granted. For example I would skip my early classes because I didn’t bother to wake up on time. Whereas in college, I wake up early enough to make sure I get to class on time. It only benefits me to get to my classes and learn to the full extent.

Even though both sides disagree, they do share common factors. Both sides agree that currently, college systems are difficult to afford, and that change is needed right now. The people who support free college want tuition to be free entirely, while the others want changes that don’t harm the taxpayers. They are both concerned about the success of the students, They simply just disagree on the best way to move forward.

Each side of the argument has its strengths and it has its weaknesses. The strength of having a free college is it would clearly help students who would struggle financially. Statistics also show that mental health improves when a college is less expensive.(LeBron-Black). But a major weakness is how expensive a change like this would be to fund for our nation. On the other hand, the opposing side has a strong argument that really focused on the personal responsibility of a person and taxpayer fairness, but it was weaker to offer a real solution for lower income families on how they can manage an expensive tuition.

Both sides of the debate have strong arguments. The supporters say it would give many students an equal chance by getting what they’ve always hoped and dreamed for and to help grow the economy by creating a bigger workforce. On the other hand, people argue that free college would be too expensive for the people and could lead to some students taking it for granted. Maybe the best solution isn’t making college tuition completely free. I feel like we should make it more affordable. That way students can still feel responsible and value their education, but they won’t be as held back because they’ll have a little more support with their money. another thought is that the state should limit the amount a college can charge or offer more financial aid to students that are from low income families. If America really wants to see its students succeed, we need to strive for a better future and allow more people to have more opportunities.