<p>$50,000 per year makes this a whole different ballgame than it has been before. A $220-230K price tag (with inflation built in) makes attendance at schools like ND into life changing events that can bust the retirement plans of even highly successful professional parents(who no longer receive defined benefit pensions and retirement health care) and/or create debt that will diminish a graduate's standard living to age 40.</p>
<p>Even schools like ND which borders on the "priceless" level are going to have to start bringing what they charge into line with the means of the bottom 99% of the population.</p>
<p>And the reality is that the financial aid meter only runs for about 50% of the class at a typical private college. The system is designed to squeeze every last penny out of every family right up to the 50%+ who pay the full freight.</p>