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Lane Shaffer

Professor Lisa Rutherford

English 15.3

3 December 2018

Why College Tuition Should Be Free

One of the most common conversation topics of high school seniors and other young

adults applying to college is that of the incredibly expensive prices of college tuition. Even when

accounting for inflation, these prices have been steadily increasing at an alarming rate since the

creation of public colleges in America. Prices have become so high within the last few years that

students “owe an estimated $1.31-trillion for loans in 2017” (Fay). Free college is a perpetually

neglected topic that should have more emphasis in today’s politics due to the rising rates of high

school graduates who complete some form of higher education. A program instituting free

college tuition needs to be implemented because free college is: an extension of free high

school, beneficial to the economy, and an unfair burden on graduates.

The first reason that college should be provided, for free, to the American public is because free

college is just an extension of free high school. High school was not always free. In fact, it was

only made free when the government realized two things. First, they realized that high school is

necessary. In the early 1800’s people could get along just fine with only an elementary

understanding of how the world worked. However, as the American industrial revolution came to

a close, the economy needed more intellectual laborers, not just farmhands and factory workers.

The second reason high school was made free is because the government deemed it beneficial
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enough to warrant their intervention. They realized that educated people have the potential to

make more money, cast more intelligent votes, and allow society to run smoother in its entirety.

As Benjamin Franklin once said, “An investment in education pays the best” (“The Benefits”).

With the creation of Artificial Intelligence (AI), many menial jobs are being eliminated and,

consequently, the American economy demands a more educated workforce. In an interview with

the Washington Post, Senator Bernie Sanders states that since 1940, the high school graduation

rate has risen over 31%. Sanders says that simply graduating high school, “...is no longer

enough. A college degree is the new high school diploma.” This means that the job opportunities

and potential earnings for someone with a high school diploma fifty years ago, are the same for

someone with a college degree today. It would not have made sense to eliminate college tuition

fifty or sixty years ago because at that point, college was seen as an elitist institution and was not

entirely necessary to find a well-paying job. Today, there is a much stronger correlation between

amount of time spent in school, and annual salary; according to College Board, over a period of

forty years, a bachelor's degree holder will make 66% more than someone with a simple high

school diploma. The government is not doing enough to aid young people in their efforts to seek

education with the intention of bettering their lives as well as the economy.

A common misconception is that a free college tuition program would drastically harm the

American economy when in reality, such a program could stimulate the national economy. The

economy is stimulated when goods and services are bought and money is spent, not when money

is saved and debts are owed. According to Student Debt Relief, the average college graduate
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owes $37,172 in student debt. That is $37,172 that could be in the pockets of these graduates

which they would spend on cars, houses, and other durable goods, all of which would stimulate

the economy. Free college tuition would create more college graduates holding even higher

degrees. As a result of this, the potential for groundbreaking technological and medical

breakthroughs would be at an all time high. These potential breakthroughs, made by graduates,

would have the capability of stimulating the economy even more so than the extra money spent

by those graduates. Similar programs implemented in the past, by both this nation and various

others, have shown the world promising results.

Free college is not a new idea. In fact, America at one point established a free college program.

It was called the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944 or, more commonly, the G.I. Bill.

According to Our Documents, this act granted tuition-free education to all veterans returning

home from World War II. It proved advantageous for the American economy and “increased the

country’s talent pool”(Kurfiss). The G.I. Bill is referenced by many individuals as one of the

key reasons for such “high productivity and economic growth” in America during the period

following the war. A program of this sort would barely change the national budget. Deborah

Kurfiss also states on Student Debt Relief that America currently allocates 1.36% of its Gross

Domestic Product (GDP) on education whereas other countries with free college programs such

as Norway and Germany spend 1.96% and 1.35% respectively on education. This means that

with the right planning and administration, America could launch a program of this nature

without significantly changing the amount of money spent on education in respect to the amount
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spent on the rest of the budget. Although eliminating college tuition would require lots of time

and effort, it would clearly be beneficial to all citizens, not just those receiving the education.

The final reason that college tuition should be eliminated is because it places an unfair burden on

students and their families. Students who are accepted into the most prestigious, and usually

most expensive, universities are typically the brightest students who worked the hardest in high

school. As previously stated, these students are then graduating college with approximately

$37,172 worth of debt, ​which many of them can’t pay off.​ “By 2023, nearly 40 percent of

borrowers are expected to default on their student loans” (Nova). This means that by their mid to

late 20’s, hundreds of thousands of graduates will be on the road to bankruptcy, or at least a

ravaged credit score. This current system is setting young Americans up for failure and

something needs to be done.

America should not be rewarding its young, hardworking college graduates with this lifelong

burden. Graduates spend years, sometimes even lifetimes, paying back their college loans.

“Research has shown the average bachelor's degree holder takes 21 years to pay off his or her

loans” (Bidwell). Even in high paying fields, the debt is constantly lurking over the graduates’

heads. A doctor in her mid forties told this writer that she and her husband collectively have over

$400,000 worth of student debt yet to be paid. She said that they feel oppressed by their debt and

will most likely be paying it until the day they die (Shaffer). The debt college graduates are

forced to live with is intolerable and needs to come to an end.

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Many people disagree and think college tuition is fine as it is and make arguments against this

standpoint. Some believe that students who receive an education free of tuition will not value the

education as much as they would if they were paying for it themselves. While if entirely true,

this would be a valid point, there are still many expenses to be paid in a college education other

than tuition. Students must still pay for books, transportation, room and board, clothes, food, and

entertainment, all of which contribute to students still valuing their education. Another problem

many people have with this argument is that they believe a free college program would benefit

the wealthy over the needy. Matthew Chingos, a Harvard graduate who is the director of the

Education Policy Program for a Think-Tank based out of D.C. completed a study and determined

that the distribution of funds in an America with free college would indeed benefit the wealthy

over the needy (1-4). But it all comes down to the individual’s definition of value and benefits.

Even if on paper the wealthy are benefiting more, if low-income families need the money and are

getting slightly less than the wealthy who don’t need it, who really gets more out of it?

Obviously those who need it.

For decades, students have been overlooked and their problems neglected. The prices of college

tuition have spiraled so far out of control that a majority of college students now graduate with a

significant amount of student debt. Free college would solve this problem, answer many

questions, and benefit millions. A free college tuition program should be implemented because

free college is a natural extension of free high school, and the extra money put into the pockets

of young Americans combined with the revenue generated through technological and medical

breakthroughs would significantly benefit the economy. In addition to this, rewarding young,
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motivated Americans with potentially lifelong debt is counterintuitive to America’s goal of

creating a more educated and financially stable generation. The time for change is now. The

government and its legislature have evolved over time for countless other issues; the argument

for free college tuition needs to be one of those issues.

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Works Cited

Bidwell, Allie. “Student Loan Expectations: Myth vs. Reality.” ​U.S. News & World Report,​ U.S.

News & World Report, 7 Oct. 2014, www.usnews.com/news/.

Chingos, Matthew M. Who Would Benefit Most from Free College? 15th ed., vol. 1, Brooklings,

2016, pp. 1–4, Who Would Benefit Most from Free College?

Fay, Bill. “How to Manage Your Student Loan Debt | Solutions & Tips.” Debt.org, 2017,

www.debt.org/students/debt/.

Kurfiss, Deborah. “Should College Be Free? We Answer The Burning Question.” Student Debt

Relief |Student Loan Forgiveness, 4 Sept. 2018, Retrieved from

www.studentdebtrelief.us/news/should-college-be-free/.

“Lifetime Earnings by Education Level.” Trends in Higher Education - The College Board, The

College Board, 2018,

trends.collegeboard.org/education-pays/figures-tables/lifetime-earnings-education-level.

Nova, Annie. “More than 1 Million People Default on Their Student Loans Each Year.” CNBC,

CNBC, 13 Aug. 2018,

www.cnbc.com/2018/08/13/twenty-two-percent-of-student-loan-borrowers-fall-into-defa

ult.html.

Sanders, Bernie. “Make College Free for All.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 22 Oct.

2015, www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/bernie-sanders-america-needs-free-college/

“Servicemen's Readjustment Act (1944).” Our Documents - Interstate Commerce Act (1887),

Our Documents, www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=false&doc=76.

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Shaffer, Lane B. “Student Debt.” 28 Nov. 2018.

“The Benefits of Higher Education.” HASTAC, 8 Dec. 2016,

www.hastac.org/blogs/jackkunis/2016/12/08/benefits-higher-education.