The cost of a college education just seems to keep climbing higher and higher. Where students used to be able to get that two or four year degree without having to spend 15 years paying off that debt, that just is no longer the case. There are a bunch different contributing factors to the driving up of the cost of college education, and I shall list off a few.
Part of the increase in the cost of college education are third party payments. This is when someone other than the student (i.e. their parents, financial aid, scholarships, etc.) pays the tuition fees and other costs for the student to attend college. When students do not have to directly deal with what their cost for college education is, they do not develop an appreciation for just how expensive it is.
The exorbitant salaries of many Deans and other higher ups are driving up the cost of a college education. True, to attain the role of a dean (or other high ranking post) at a college is not a simple thing to accomplish. There are limited positions, and high requirements to get in. What is more, a dean has to deal with all the politics that is associated with the college, and if the public is dismayed at some practice that the college does, or some event that has transpired, it is the dean who must bear the burden of that. However, that does not mean that the dean should make such a tremendous amount of money that it affects the cost of a college education. And between the dean, associate dean, and other high ranking college officials, it does. If these top college executives want to make the sort of money that top executives in fortune 500 companies make, then they should go work for those companies.
College education costs rising can also be attributed to programs in place to help poor or disadvantaged students. This is a tricky area because while no one would want to see college student populations being solely comprised of middle and upper class students, there are students who are lower middle class who do not have much in the way of resources, but nevertheless end up paying increased tuition to support poorer students. With the cost of a college education what it is, we need to get these students some relief.
