September is officially upon us, and so is the need to shell out thousands of dollars for tuition.
As I wrote my eCheck online and paid the University of Kansas probably all of what I earned working this summer for just one semester of tuition, a lingering thought popped back into my head: Why is college, and more specifically, why are student loans, so damn expensive?
When most of my peers were choosing their colleges, cost was one of the major factors. College is the expected next step after high school, but what happens when someone can't afford it? It absolutely sucks that some of the brightest students can't continue their education simply because of the cost.
According to Institute for College Access and Success, the average student graduates with nearly $30,000 in student debt. There are many loans available, however, not all are created equal. The most popular loan is the federal Stafford Loan; offered on both subsidized (the Federal Government pays the interest while the student is in college) and un-subsidized (interest begins to accrue as soon as the loan is taken out) levels. The second type of loan are most popular because they are not based on financial need and can be taken out by anyone. Not every student will qualify, but for those with a much larger financial need, a Perkins Loan is the next most common option. These loans receive a lower interest rate and the interest is paid while the student is in school.
I honestly knew nothing about student loans until they became prevalent in my life and the lives of others. The cost of education keeps gradually rising, while the cost of living does not. Student loans are given to cover the price of a college education, but many graduates work for years and years to pay it off.
Undergraduate tuition at Kansas is nearly $10,000 for instate residents and $25,000 for nonresidents. Tuition alone is expensive enough excluding room and board and simply the cost of living. Plus, if you want to go to any kind of graduate school, that's a whole other ballgame.
It's normal for a college student to be "broke" and only survive on Ramen Noodles and Mac n' Cheese. But, nowadays, the cost of an education can haunt someone until they have children of their own, and I just don't think that's fair. Don't get me wrong, college is a wonderful thing; the cost is just such a negative. Families are often stuck between a need for post-secondary education and a lack of resources, causing them to seek larger student loans. It's a vicious cycle but unfortunately is something we have to live with for now.
