I’m just trying to understand why college cost is a parent issue when 18+ year olds are voting adults with HIPPA rights and criminal liabilities.
Also why people are against cost reduction for all or a post education payback set up to make it fair to all students, regardless of what their parents can or cannot pay or agree or not agree to?
There are many reasons private colleges offer needs-based financial aid.
One of the simplest is just that there are many stakeholders in a private college, including the faculty and donors, and many of those stakeholders want the college to be able to attract desirable students, some of whom cannot afford to pay full price. This is one of many examples of how these are complicated markets because the colleges are not just producers and the students not just consumers. The students also bring value to the college, and the colleges don’t want to miss out on otherwise attainable high-value students just because they do not have a lot of money (for now–some might make it big and give big later).
Another is just that they are, in part, charitable organizations. But those charitable goals are mixed up with all sorts of institutional goals which may conflict in the short term (although I suspect at least these days, most of these colleges would argue that they can do the most social good in the long run following their model).
And speaking of which–finally, these are usually very sophisticated entities with very long term strategic plans, where maintaining a good public reputation is part of their strategic planning.
All of these and more can help explain why private colleges would volunteer need-based financial aid.
College cost is determined by parental income in the US and that is always the way it has been. If you based it on student income alone, all students would qualify for a full ride at all schools and that wouldn’t be a sustainable model at the majority of institutions. Nothing is “fair” when it comes to college admissions - it isn’t “fair” that poor students often attend sub-par schools, often have heavy family responsibilities and can’t afford the myriad number of activities available to middle class+ kids. The fact that not every great student can afford Harvard is the least of my worries - in my view it is more important to make sure that every qualified kid can afford our public institutions.
There are loans for colleges too, but not everyone can or should take enough to pay for an $80k/yr college, just like not everyone can get a loan for a Tesla or a McMansion on the beach.
Everyone CAN go to a college. Everyone cannot go to an Ivy or Notre Dame or Michigan. I don’t think there is a state that doesn’t have a college that is affordable for its residents. It may not be the flagship (but often is) or the college the student wants to go to, but the opportunity is there.
We have open enrollment for high school (and other public schools) here, but that doesn’t mean every single student in the district gets to go to THAT high school, never mind students outside the district. The ‘best’ and ‘most popular’ high schools have priority admissions and once the class is full, it’s full. The private schools, of course, have tuition and if the parents can’t pay the kids can’t go there. We guarantee every child a free public education but if the student wants to go to a private school, the family has to pay - just like with college.
There are so many opportunities for students to continue their education for a low cost or even free. If the student opts to pay for a more expensive school, that’s a personal choice. There are programs like PSLF. There are employers who help with tuition.
Everything that you said in this post makes sense, but it is missing some context.
I didn’t see private college named by the OP, so not sure how the Harvard comment applies to a general question.
Here’s an illustration, as I am also interested in this question.
COA of public in state college, where I live, is 1/3 pretax AMI for a family of 3. For 2xAMI, the COA is 20% of pre-tax income. Even 2x AMI would require a significant cost of living adjustment, such as selling a primary home or moving from 3 to 2 bedrooms, to be able to cashflow.
I don’t consider that a problem to dismiss, but that’s JMO.
The private elite schools are nonprofit organizations, not charitable institutions. (It might be more accurate to describe them as highly profitable, wealth generating private businesses that are tax exempt - but that’s a separate discussion).
I agree with your other two points, that they provide need based aid to attract talented kids who might not otherwise be able to attend, and to help with their public image.
I note another interesting fact–public college students are a multiple of private college students, but public HS students are an even larger multiple of private HS students.
So pretty much necessarily, a lot of parents are planning/hoping they can use public high schools but then swap to private colleges. Or at least targeting publics that still expect substantial payments even from in-state students.
And I think this helps explain the dynamic where some feel like it is fundamentally unfair the cost of their target colleges might be burdensome. In theory they should have investigated and understood all along the financial implications of their plan, but it is fairly clear that many arrive at this relatively late point and are then shocked at the costs associated with switching from public to private/high-cost public.
So according to the IRS:
The exempt purposes set forth in section 501(c)(3) are charitable, religious, educational, scientific, literary, testing for public safety, fostering national or international amateur sports competition, and preventing cruelty to children or animals. The term charitable is used in its generally accepted legal sense and includes relief of the poor, the distressed, or the underprivileged; advancement of religion; advancement of education or science; erecting or maintaining public buildings, monuments, or works; lessening the burdens of government; lessening neighborhood tensions; eliminating prejudice and discrimination; defending human and civil rights secured by law; and combating community deterioration and juvenile delinquency.
Most private colleges are 501(c)(3) organizations. To the extent they do things like solicit donations for the purpose of funding tuition grants to the underprivileged, for example, that is a charitable purpose.
I agree not all their institutional goals might fit neatly into the definition of a charitable purpose, but at least some do.
Substantively, I just think this is in fact one of the common motives for need-based financial aid. Some donors and other college stakeholders think that such aid is a worthy form of charity.
Education has low productivity gains over time. People are also resistant to many of the changes. Online classes? Higher student:teacher ratio? Nope.
I’m gathering that the OP’s issue is not that there is a college for everyone… but that everyone cannot afford every college.
Is that correct?
Perhaps they can clarify, but my impression was that there are a lot of students they feel cannot afford to attend the college of their choice due to price.
I believe that’s what they are saying, they can clarify.
My oldest couldn’t afford every college they might have liked. They had to make a decision that was affordable. They landed at a great state flagship so it’s not like they are missing out.
If the state flagship wasn’t affordable he would have probably chosen a CC with a transfer after two years to reduce costs.
If it was tighter then there would have been work requirements and perhaps loans but the school choices would be ones that were the most affordable.
The fact is not every student is going to be able to afford whatever school they like. Life isn’t fair. Some are privileged and some have to work harder. There are options that make different options for higher education attainable for most.
I personally worked a full time job while going to CC full time at night to afford to get a degree. It was the hardest and most rewarding two years of my life. I earned that degree and it has paid off handsomely. If a student is flexible there are ways to go to college affordably.
And that the OP thought ‘WE’ (meaning the government?) should do something about that.
Not the OP, but I understood “We” as being those who are responsible for determining COA of colleges and universities, public and private, in the US.
I doubt that the OP is unaware of the existence of federal aid programs (the government).
There were a few comments made by the OP that suggested they felt it was unfair that every student can’t afford every college that might interest them. I responded that for super high performing kids many affordable opportunities were likely to present themselves even if that wasn’t an Ivy League or similar school. To me that issue is completely separate from the affordability of our public institutions. Public colleges should be much more affordable - although I’m not sure what to do to make them so.
I don’t think you can completely separate public universities from the privates, because they do compete with each other for many of the same students. Just like in the healthcare sector, every institution, private or public, wants more-or-less the same expensive equipment, the same counseling service, the same study-abroad program, the same…, driving up the cost in the process for everyone.
How affordable state universities are does depend on state policy with respect to cost and financial aid. The results of different policies can be seen in the differences in average student loan debt of graduates in various states: Project on Student Debt - The Institute for College Access & Success
I believe the least expensive public college in my state is close to $15,000 a year, some middle class families can’t afford that without FA (plus they’d have to commute). There is a mom on our state flagship’s Facebook page trying to figure out how her daughter is going to commute (it’s over 2 hours each way with several switches). There are folks living paycheck to paycheck not living the high life and not eligible for FA.
I see a similar situation, too, where I live.
For these individuals, it’s a reflection of the fact that the way that federal aid is awarded seems to be based on systems of compensation and asset accumulation that haven’t been reflective of reality for the past twenty or so years. Things like retirement savings being considered available for college re:FAFSA while pensions have been reduced or eliminated.
The people I know who are most in this situation are people with more than one student in college at a time this year, but it will shift the next time the FAFSA calculation is modified- so, next year.
The amount you contribute to a tax deferred retirement account is added back in as income on the FAFSA. But retirement savings are not included. IOW, the amounts IN your real retirement accounts are not included. Now…if you have your retirement money in a regular account and not an actual retirement account, that is your decision, but then that money is considered an asset.