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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]As someone with a rising senior and just finished the frantic, competitive and absolutely bananas 2023 admissions process I see no point of any sort of bail out until the system is fixed. We bail people out now when all we have is wave after wave of people taking out huge loans? What’s the point?

I’m UMC and I constantly hear people talking about how their kids will need to share in the cost. I see people on here who say the same thing. This is not just a lower income issue for families, but MC and UMC people have kids who are and will be saddled with crushing debt. There is very little opportunities for state schools and people turn their nose up at the ones that are not top in state public rankings. As a Virginia resident I’m astounded by how many rejections JMU has sent out for incredibly qualified candidates. Very few families are full pay. We’ve done many college tours and these schools are all building amazing buildings that are architectural beauties, incredible dorms (some with roof top Vegas style party pools), resort like amenities. As a German who immigrated here decades ago and who has nieces and nephews back in Germany I can tell you that the American college experience is a flamboyant display of institutional wealth.  If people were so worried about crippling debt then why are so many still lining up to take so much on? We need a more robust community college system and we need a massive national mindset shift of how this entire admission process is viewed. You can’t have it all. And before you start screeching about Germany, not everyone in Germany has a god given right to nearly free college. Spaces are limited. Areas of study are narrow.  Your chances of going to college is largely determined in high school based on test scores and academic tracking. [/quote]

Preach. The gyms open for 18 hours a day, snack bars open until 2 am, bands coming to campus, etc. etc. Students are underwriting their own experiences and many of the things they are paying for are probably not benefitting them from a purely educational standpoint. Our admissions system is totally broken and our college systems are totally broken. I wouldn't count on it changing soon though. When I was applying to college in 2005 it seemed bananas and 18 years later it has only gotten worse. [/quote]

This.  It is ridiculous how fancy some of the college dorms are.  When I went to college I chose the cheapest on campus option freshman year (on campus living was required for freshman) and got off campus ASAP.  In some cities that would still be expensive.  I think gyms being open for long hours makes sense, but bringing bands to campus?  I sincerely hope tuition dollars aren't paying for that.  I sometimes suspect colleges are trying to attract students with "bells and whistles" which makes zero sense since that isn't the point of college.  I guess if people let their kids make decisions based on things like that maybe they deserve the loans?  OTOH it seems many/most/all colleges do this to some extent so then there are no good educational options for people who are more budget minded/have financial constraints.  So what do you do?  [b]Maybe parents can demand colleges share the amount of budget spent on faculty salaries, facilities, "experiences" like bands, and whatever else colleges spend tuition money on.[/b]  [/quote]

Demand all you want - as long as college admissions remains as competitive as it has been, the answer is going to be, "No.  If that troubles you, feel free not to apply here.  Next!"  [/quote]

I can't believe how foolish you all sound saying parents and students are demanding gyms so tuition must go up! These universities have mastered grifting off the student loan spigot. They buy up huge swaths of land (GW even owns a ton of DC land) and spend a little on a gym that is brought up at the tour but doesn't sway your desperate HS junior. The rest of the hundreds of millions go to administration buildings and faculty as well as benefits such as [b]faculty/administration free housing and forgiveable loans[/b]. Student debtors are just a symptom of a parasitic system that no one will fix because universities send some money back to politicians and even offer them faculty positions.[/quote]

What schools offer such benefits? This is nonsense.[/quote]

It's a negotiable benefit for high value faculty and administrators throughout higher education.[/quote]

Name a place.  [/quote]

NP. It’s common for grad students working in residence life & housing to get free housing.

As for faculty, at Stanford don’t a lot of faculty members own homes on-campus at a discount? Penn offers mortgage assistance if you live in the surrounding neighborhood.[/quote]

A dorm room for a grad student and minor mortgage assistance program is a far cry from the tony excessive benefits of "free housing for faculty" PP was claiming.  Stanford and Penn and a few other private universities offer some mortgage assistance for qualifying faculty who want to live near campus, but this is not a substantial benefit--and it's to offset the high cost of living area.  These are paltry perks compared to bonuses etc. that similarly qualified professionals receive outside academia.  Colleges are definitely not overspending on faculty salaries and perks.[/quote]

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