Table of contentsEthical dimensionLegal dimensionFinancial dimensionConclusionWorks citedEthical dimensionDue to a lack of state and government funding in higher education, Colleges in the United States are naturally increasing tuition fees to compensate for declining financial support. However, rising tuition costs put many students in a difficult situation, in which they must choose between taking on debt to obtain a college degree or struggling to find a job without a degree, because "by 2020, 65% of [jobs] will require postsecondary education and training beyond high school,” in contrast to only “36% of [jobs] that will not require education beyond high school” (Carnevale et al., 2013 ). A college degree not only increases the chances of finding a job, but also an employee's short- and long-term earning potential. Graduates who have earned a bachelor's degree "typically earn 66 percent more than those with only a high school diploma" and "over their lifetime...". . . [they] will earn about $1 million more than someone who did not attend college (“Affordability and College Completion”). Given the benefits of attending college, students enroll in colleges in hopes of improving their socioeconomic status, even though they would have to resort to student loans to pay for tuition. The U.S. government can play a major role in solving the student debt problem, but it has chosen to prioritize the military budget without considering the long-term harmful effects of students taking on debt to finance their education. academics. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original EssayFor most young people, a degree is the way to get their dream job. Unfortunately, earning a degree is difficult due to cost, which explains "why nearly half of the students who start college in this country [do not] finish within six years" ("College Affordability and Completion "). Students who take out loans and drop out due to financial problems will remain in debt, but now with the added difficulty of finding a sufficiently paying job without a four-year degree. The common range that students borrow is $20,000 to $40,000, which the U.S. Department of Education says would typically take 20 years to repay; the minimum debt range of $0 to $7,500 would take 10 years to repay and debt of $60,000 or more would take 30 years (“the standard repayment plan”). As a result, even some graduating students also take on debt that they will carry for at least a decade, impacting their ability to purchase a home, since they cannot afford it with high interest rates . Student loans have set many back for the future and put their plans on hold. With affordable tuition, earning a degree would not be limited to only those from higher-income households, more people would become more educated, and the country would prosper. Since it typically takes the average borrower 20 years to repay their student loans, many students have to put their lives on hold to be able to repay their debts. According to the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, many students' major life milestones, such as purchasing acar, owning a home, getting married” are often postponed due to student debt (“Student Debt Burden,” 2006). Student loans may have helped students pay their tuition costs in the short term, but they impose a long-term financial burden on many college graduates. In a Forbes article, former student Sean Vaillancourt shares his personal experience of "waiting to have children and buy a house because our combined student debt is more than a mortgage on a house" (Hembree, 2018). Increasing government funding for colleges and universities could reduce pressure on students to delay important life milestones due to debt, and lower the cost of attending university. and increased access to higher education. Another consequence of student debt is that they must forgo riskier career choices that could have brought them more fulfillment and greater potential for career advancement in the long term. Instead, individuals may choose to join “a more stable company instead of a startup with greater growth opportunities” to ensure they can repay their student loans (Caldwell). Additionally, student loan payments also make it more difficult for graduates to transition to careers. Borrowers may have to pass up opportunities involving relocation due to financial concerns, as moving costs may be involved or loss of wages between changing jobs. Young adults should be able to take risks in life, which would help them gain more experience and pursue a career they truly enjoy. For students who carry the burden of large student loan payments, increasing government funding to make tuition more affordable can help them pursue higher education and give them more freedom to take risks to get the job of their dreams. Legal Dimension In the United States, one of the most important factors that some students must consider when deciding whether to attend college is that when they leave an institution of higher education , a significant student loan will accompany them. Unlike any other type of loan, a federal loan will never go away. Colleges and universities are financially supported by the federal and state governments, whose contributions have the greatest effect on the price of tuition. To illustrate, “[t]he New England Policy Center evaluated state budget cuts in the New England region and found that, when other factors are held constant, each dollar of reduction in state funding The state resulted in a net increase of 17 cents in tuition and fees at public institutions. four-year institutions. The effect is even greater for community colleges that rely more on state funding: for every dollar lost in state funding, community colleges reduce their institutional spending by 56 cents, according to the study” (Zhao, 2019, cited in Mendelson, 2020). ). Although this study was conducted in the New England region, the results show a correlation between government cuts in higher education funding and rising tuition costs, a trend that has become more prevalent throughout the country. The effects of decreased funding on colleges and universities include increased tuition prices andreduction in the number of students wishing to pursue higher education. To combat this problem, the government must invest in higher education to make America's public colleges and universities affordable and world-class. As tuition costs rise across the country, financial aid is no longer able to cover tuition and other college expenses as it once did. It is essential that the government reallocates the nation's budget to make college affordable and accessible again. In the United States, before the federal or state government makes a legal reorganization of its budget, a formal procedure must take place, during which the president proposes a new budget plan for the coming year which must be approved by Congress. This is also known as a budget resolution; Once this step of the process is complete, the budget plan will become part of the official budget and will be ready for implementation in the coming year. Financial Dimension Tuition fees have increased faster than inflation, forcing students to spend twice their income to afford a college education. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Price Index, "current prices in 2020 are 329.50% higher than prices since 1977" ("Inflation Rate"). The underlying cause why students are being overcharged is that state and government funding to colleges has decreased significantly. In “1980, states provided 46 percent of operational support to public colleges and universities. By 2005, this amount had fallen to 27 percent” (Facts about Higher Education Financing). Now that states and government only provide about a quarter of the funding, students are expected to make up for that through tuition. Colleges are funded by several sources, such as tuition, grants, state, and endowments, so how they receive their budget is not the issue. On the other hand, students face two major problems: the cost is increasing and they are forced to pay more. A plausible solution to the problem of universities charging students too much would be for the state and federal government to invest more in higher education, which would lower student tuition costs. As the responsibility for financial support from universities shifts to students, some students struggle to pay for their education. tuition without the help of student loans. However, relying on student loans to finance a college education creates the problem of student debt, which has impacted many students' major life choices after college. In fact, "44.7 million" Americans have student debt, making it "the second largest share of household debt [of $1.68 trillion in 2020] after mortgages, [largest ] than credit card debt” (Bustamante, 2020; Looney et al., 2020). Data from the 2016 Survey of Consumer Finances compared the percentage of households with unpaid student loans over the years, noting that in 2016, "40% owe more than $25,000 and 21% owe more than $50,000,” which is higher than in 2007, before the Great War. Recession, when “32% of borrowers had debt over $25,000, and only 13% of borrowers had debt over $50,000” (Frost, 2019). If the current situation is not corrected, these figures will continue to increase in an upward trend. Each year, the federal government has an annual budget to devote to national spending. According to..