Why College Is So Expensive In America

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College in the United States is expensive. The cost of higher education just keeps going up. Tuition costs at both public and private universities have doubled since the late 80s, while accounting for inflation.

“I think that it’s so ingrained in your head that you have to go to college, that college is the next step after graduation,” said Jarret Freeman, a college graduate with roughly $50,000 in student debt. “I think in hindsight, I see that college is not for everyone.”

But a college education is becoming more and more necessary to succeed in today’s economy. Georgetown University estimates that by 2020, 65 percent of all jobs will require more than a high school degree.

Students graduate with an average of $37,172 in student loan debt. It all adds up to $1.5 trillion across the country.

Watch the video above to learn how higher education became big business, hear from former students facing mounting debt and explore why it’s so important to solve the student debt crisis.» Subscribe to CNBC: http://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBC

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Why College Is So Expensive In America

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47 COMMENTS

  2. What’s up Student Loan Gang! We are screwed! Accept it and find happiness in contributing all our earning to Uncle Sam. We are the greatest of American patriots by God!

  3. Because it's a scam. US higher education system is pay-to-degree.
    Here in Germany, university is almost free, only ~300€/year in fees. Germans have realized that education brings wealth, and putting up barriers to education is barriers to wealth.

  5. College graduates are ignorant of finances. Their parents are just as ignorant. My daughter will come home, get a job, and pay off her student loans in two years. She will be debt free at age 25. You cannot expect young people to live on their own and pay off student loans at the same time.

  8. A lot of how it “should be” talk here. Use reality to your advantage. You have every bit of knowledge you will ever need at your fingertips and have other options – join the military and get PAID to go to school and have school paid for you up to a bachelors, and beyond using programs like yellow ribbon – teach your children the consequences of action and ensure they talk to you, as the parent, and others as advisors before signing the bottom line.

  9. Jesus Christ. Here in my country the average tuition fee would be USD 5500 per year. Education is definitely not as good but there are plenty who get accepted into masters in the US and it eventually becomes cheaper for them.

  10. The real reason for the high tuition/room/board was not addressed. College is one the the biggest purchases an individual will ever make. This decision is being made by 17 yr olds. In the 50's-70's, your parents usually had to approve of your college and major. In our family we had a choice of science, business or engineering. The dorms were terrible, the food was terrible, there were no anemities. Now the 17 yr olds decide, they choose the ones with nice rooms, good food, good fitness centers, good student centers and major in liberal arts with no research into whether they can get a job when they graduate.

  12. I started college in 1967 graduated 1971. There was a maximum you could borrow per semester at registration. I borrowed that amount the first 3 years in attendance. I also had 3 part time jobs that I was able to schedule in my routine. I had an unusual skill set I learned after high school that gave me a leg up in that I could maintain and repair AMC bowling machines. I never spent the first cent of borrowed funds from student loans but instead saved it all at a Savings and Loan (remember S & L’s) a month after graduation while I was heading off to the military I took my savings and paid off the loan. As I had been getting more interest than the student loan rate I made a profit. Had I never graduated college I would have still been fine. I was immature and needed 4 years to grow up. Military helped in that aspect too. Some can do what I did others can’t. Whining about loans and one’s station in life never worked for anyone.

  13. I came out of Uni with so much debt that I refuse to make our children suffer & feeling defeated before even starting. We are paying every last penny of their education, breaking thr cycle to create generational wealth!!

  17. I mean universities are treated like businesses. They attract clients with fancy gyms, facilities and promises of fun social lives. I'd imagine a 1980s campus life was pretty bare bones in terms of administration and facilities. I have some loans, but I went to a state university and getting paid to pursue by graduate degree by assisting in research. It's no secret that the fields that pay are engineering and science, which don't require you to waste your money at an expensive private or out of state school

  19. The problem is UNIONS, they have inflated the cost astronomically. They pay out 1/2 a million for speakers talk at schools, and the salareies of some these Prof are astronomical not to mention their pensions.

    Solution – Why do we need 1000;s of collegs, when 1 will do and that can be distributed over the interent. Costs would plummet and only the very best teachers would teach. Help can be given through texting. More people could learn.

  20. I am glad that I did not attend a university and get a "worthless" degree!! I went to a junior college to get my CDL and I have done well over the years. I am glad that I did not listen to my peers, or teachers or my military superiors about wasting four years of my life and wasting tens of thousands of dollars. Now that I am in my late 50s I am doing well and I will be able to retire at 70!!

  23. Live like a college student for a few years and pay it off ASAP. Don’t wait for a bail out. Get roommates, live with mom and day, get a side gig. A few years of sacrifice will pay off big.

  25. college isn't for everyone…most people just need a trade school or take a break after high school…I graduated debt free but this report has to be updated…since COVID no one i know is looking to go to college after high school since most jobs don't require them anymore.

  28. When I first applied to college with a 27 ACT score, I received a 50% scholarship. I retook the test, scored a 34, and then received a full-ride scholarship. Most people can go to college for cheap if they work hard in high school and apply in-state

  38. My friend pays 1k for a semester at the local community college. Instead of traveling a time zone away to go to a university, you can pay off a year of your schooling after one summer of working at McDonald’s.

  42. Guaranteed student loans. It's a pass for predatory universities to raise their tuition costs, and guarantee they still get paid, off of the backs of poor people who can't afford it. It's Liberal policy to "equalize" everyone, ended up pushing everyone to being equally poor.

  43. There is no such thing as free college!
    They say if you get a college degree you will make $1 million more over a lifetime than someone with only a high school diploma. So these people who make less will have to help pay for college graduate bills. That is messed up.

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