Should College Tuition Be Based on Major
Professor Johnson
EC 111H
26 October 2012
The Problem with College Tuition
Every year, students wishing to attend college are faced with the steep price that comes with their prospective education. For many, the belief that it will play dividends in the long run is enough reason to pay the high price. However, college majors have a wide variance of starting median salaries, which leads to the question of whether or not tuition should be based on your field of study. Students knowing they will be making less than another student after graduating should not be required to pay the same tuition. College tuition is too high. Since the demand for an education and the supply of schools are both high, cost should be low. What we see, however, are colleges taking advantages of what people see as necessary in todays society, a college degree, and raising the prices in awareness people will pay it no matter what. Keeping the same system we have today will not fix the amount people are paying. Basing tuition off majors can change what universities are charging for the better. However, there is the question on what majors you raise. Many argue that the higher paying jobs should receive the increase, while others say the degrees in demand should stay the same or lower, while the other not as important majors deserve the raise.
While the concept of basing tuition off majors sounds simple enough, it brings about a number of problems. The first and perhaps biggest problem is that the majors with a higher tuition receive would more funding. This leads to better professors, more resources, and an overall better education. Engineering majors, for example, have the highest average starting salary according to TIME Magazine. If their tuition was increased because of the potential monetary benefit, than the university would have the obligation to focus more on that major than a social work major, who are paid the least on average. Not only could it impact the
EC 111H
26 October 2012
The Problem with College Tuition
Every year, students wishing to attend college are faced with the steep price that comes with their prospective education. For many, the belief that it will play dividends in the long run is enough reason to pay the high price. However, college majors have a wide variance of starting median salaries, which leads to the question of whether or not tuition should be based on your field of study. Students knowing they will be making less than another student after graduating should not be required to pay the same tuition. College tuition is too high. Since the demand for an education and the supply of schools are both high, cost should be low. What we see, however, are colleges taking advantages of what people see as necessary in todays society, a college degree, and raising the prices in awareness people will pay it no matter what. Keeping the same system we have today will not fix the amount people are paying. Basing tuition off majors can change what universities are charging for the better. However, there is the question on what majors you raise. Many argue that the higher paying jobs should receive the increase, while others say the degrees in demand should stay the same or lower, while the other not as important majors deserve the raise.
While the concept of basing tuition off majors sounds simple enough, it brings about a number of problems. The first and perhaps biggest problem is that the majors with a higher tuition receive would more funding. This leads to better professors, more resources, and an overall better education. Engineering majors, for example, have the highest average starting salary according to TIME Magazine. If their tuition was increased because of the potential monetary benefit, than the university would have the obligation to focus more on that major than a social work major, who are paid the least on average. Not only could it impact the