It is no surprise that college tuition costs have been changing substantially, and there are numerous reasons to blame. Inside The Rise and Fall of College Tuition Inflation, Brent Bundick and Emily Pollard document the alterations of the costs over time and attempt to give an explanation for the long rise and sudden fall in college tuition inflation. They say that Changes in supply-side factors, such as rising wages in the education sector or declines in state appropriations for higher education, may cause colleges and universities to pass changes in their costs and revenues on to students in the form of higher tuition (Bundick & Pollard ). Furthermore, changes in demand factors, like a rise in available student loan programs, can additionally increase tuition by making it more desirable and thereby raising demand. The cost of college tuition increased exponentially quicker than the price of other goods and services between 980 and 2004 then slowed near 2005. After peaking near 0 percent in 2004, college tuition inflation has trended down over the last decade and averaged about 2 percent during 207 and 208 (Bunduck & Pollard 2).
When mentioning the costs of higher education, some politicians believe the answer is quite simple: make college free. Bryce Covert, a journalist and contributor at The Nation and op-e
d writer for The New York Times, wrote an article titled The Free College Try. In this article, he addresses how today, money from the government primarily flows to well-off students. After student loans, the largest chunk (more than half) of student aid is provided through the tax code. Covert explains that Instead of pouring money into higher education through the tax code, where the rich soak it up, or subsidizing school through loans and grants, the government could make public college free. (Covert 5). Included in his work is a bar chart that depicts that the households with the lowest quartile income receive the least amount of tax aid, whereas the households that have the highest quartile income receive the most amount. This raises the problem that the students who get the most tax aid need it the least. Covert proclaims that the U.S is financially capable of the move we [the government] have the money (Covert 5). The government spends billions of dollars on subsidizing higher education. To provide data for that statement, Covert presents that in 207, $76 billion was spent on public tuition and fees, and the federal spending on financial aid for college was $60 billion. He concludes with a statement that compares college to K-2 and how free education should not end subsequently after graduation from K-2.