College: an institution where many young people aspire to attend a level of higher education preparatory to starting a career. Some might even consider attending college part of the typical American dream. However, this dream is difficult, even unattainable, for some students due to the cost of higher education. The cost of attending college varies depending on the type of school; However, average tuition costs are between ten thousand and thirty-five thousand dollars, and many colleges are even more expensive. The increasing price of college over the years has left many people wondering: Should tuition be free? This highly controversial topic is important to most people living in the United States. This decision would define the future of many high school students. College students, who, if a decision were made while they are still in college, would be directly affected. Additionally, student families as well as the general public would be affected by this issue – whether the change occurs or not – because they are – or could become – the ones paying for college. Although many think the idea of ​​free college sounds ideal, if tuition were free, an influx of students would cause advanced degrees to lose value, future generations would lack financial responsibility, trade schools and private schools would suffer financial burdens and impacts. the public would be negative, society would become less motivated and debt would remain a problem; at the national and state levels. Say no to plagiarism. Get a Custom Essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get an Original EssayFree tuition for students would allow more students to attend and graduate from college; however, this would result in major repercussions. More students going to college means more students earning degrees. Without tuition being a limiting factor, many more students can earn advanced degrees, such as a master's degree. This could potentially devalue these advanced degrees, making master's degrees as common as bachelor's degrees are today. Procon.org notes Rita McGrath, associate professor at Columbia Business School, saying, "Previously, having a bachelor's degree was rarer and therefore candidates with a degree could be more demanding and cost more to hire." Today, this is no longer the case.” Professor McGrath basically means that graduates with a bachelor's degree were once considered more sought-after in the workplace, but as more students go on to earn this degree, it has become more common. Many careers these days require at least a bachelor's degree, even at the entry level. If college were free, this trend would only get worse. Supporters of free tuition argue that if more students earn more degrees, society will become more educated and more innovative. In the article “Pros and Cons of Free Tuition,” the author notes how “this then creates a more educated workforce and a population with better critical thinking skills.” This could lead to more innovation in all areas of society.” She explains that if more people received higher education, society would become more productive and progressive. It could be argued that as competition foremployment is intensifying, job seekers will have to demonstrate more creativity and innovation to stand out. However, jobs could become scarcer as competition intensifies, creating the opposite effect. On the other hand, as there would be high competition for existing positions, there would also be more graduates unemployed or forced to take lower-level jobs, for example, an engineer working in retail. the obligation to pay tuition fees would come from a lack of financial burden. Because there would be no financial repercussions pushing students to work hard, students might not be as motivated, and "without that financial effort, we might see more laziness and lackadaisical behavior from our students." Students may even drop out of school, leading to laziness – not innovation – in society. It's a lesson often found in young children: those who are given everything without having to earn it one way or another develop a sense of entitlement. This attitude of “deserving” a free college education could very well result in adults who have no drive to succeed, either in school or in the workplace. Today, many students receive merit scholarships based on their grades and must maintain a certain GPA to continue receiving the scholarship. Free tuition would eliminate the need to work hard to maintain merit scholarships, resulting in unmotivated students with average grades, well below the quality of students most institutions produce today . This laziness would likely follow students throughout their college and careers, leading to an overall less productive society. Supporters of free tuition say tuition has the greatest financial impact on the nation and families with students in college. However, the biggest impact comes from school dropouts. Bob Luebke of the Civitas Institute writes that “a free tuition proposal would make more sense if there was high demand in certain fields and access to college was a significant issue. But that's not the case. If you look at the data, the biggest problem is that many students are not completing college. Only about 55 percent of students graduate six years after starting.” Dropping out of school has a greater financial impact on the country than school fees. Procon.org expands on this topic by writing how "students who started their bachelor's degrees in fall 2002 but did not graduate within six years accounted for $3.8 billion in lost earnings, $566 million dollars in lost federal income taxes and $164 million in lost state taxes. income taxes in one year. Some may argue that free tuition would prevent more students from dropping out due to financial hardship. In reality, free tuition would have a very minimal impact on dropout rates. Indeed, students are more likely to drop out due to other factors. Luebke goes on to point out that “the problem is not access but completion… For the most part, money is not the problem. These are usually factors such as family or transportation issues.” Since many dropouts are not caused by financial difficulties, free education would not make a significant difference in the dropout rate andwould therefore not have as positive an impact on national finances as many initially thought. but trade schools would also suffer if tuition were free. A business profession requires twelve to twenty-four months of focused schooling, alongside or followed by on-the-job training, but not a college degree. Trades such as plumber, electrician and mechanic are all needed in society and are in high demand. While free tuition would allow more students to go to college, it would also keep more students away from trade schools, increasing demand for these important jobs. Procon.org acknowledges a study done on business occupations, or "middle-skill jobs," which writes: "According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 'middle-skill' jobs will account for 45 percent of projected job openings through 2014, but as in 2012, only 25% of the workforce had the skills needed to fill these jobs.” Declining student interest in business occupations is creating a skills gap in the workforce between mid- and high-skill jobs. Free tuition would only widen this gap and lead to an even greater decline in the number of middle-skilled workers – workers that society needs to function. As the need for these occupations increases, prices for these services will likely increase over time due to low supply but high demand for these necessary services. Essentially, free tuition would do more harm than help to the general public, as it would attract students from needed jobs and cause other prices to spike. Additionally, if students who otherwise might have attended a trade school went to college, those students would likely be overqualified for their future jobs. In addition to trade schools suffering from free tuition, private schools would also be negatively affected. Currently, public and private schools can compete for the same student, as students typically select the school they want to study at and then plan to fund the tuition. Private schools are often smaller, which allows for a more personal learning environment. This is ideal for students looking to avoid large classes and crowds. However, if public colleges offered free tuition, students otherwise attracted to the private institution might be drawn to the public school to save money. Vince Norton writes about the likely impact of this situation, writing that "first-year enrollment will drop by 10%...the impact of a 10% drop in student enrollment at an average private university that would normally enroll 500 new freshmen with an annual tuition income of $50,000” would take place. have a financial impact of $2.5 million. And that’s without even taking into account the discounts that will have to be made to remain attractive to the 450 first-year students.” This means that after four years, there would be ten million dollars less in revenue. Not only would free tuition at public colleges hurt private schools financially, it would also limit and harm students. As noted earlier, private colleges are often good options for those who want to learn in a smaller, more personalized environment. If these schools began to be removed as options for students, those who otherwise could have gone would be forced to attend a schoolpublic where they would be less comfortable and less efficient. For most students, going to college means student loans. However, there are positive aspects of student loans that, if removed, would have negative effects on society. Student loans often represent relatively large sums of money. Having to manage such large amounts of money teaches students how to budget and be financially responsible. In the article “Pros and Cons of Free Tuition,” the author points out that “college loans are often the first major financial transaction people deal with. Paying them back on time proves that you know how to budget your money, skills that people use again and again.” In other words, managing student loans financially prepares students to budget for other important items such as homes and cars in the future. Some would argue that without having to pay college tuition, one might be able to purchase a home or car sooner and/or more frequently due to the absence of prior debt. An article from ProCon.org supports this idea, writing that “20% of millennials are homeowners, and most millennials say their student debt has delayed homeownership by an average of seven years… Less than 50% of women and 30% of men passed the exam. the stages of the “transition to adulthood” at the age of 30 (finishing school, leaving the parental home, being financially independent, getting married and having children); in 1960, 77% of women and 65% of men had reached these stages by age 30.” Essentially, before college costs were as high as they are now, young adults were able to purchase major items and move through traditional adult milestones. But due to the financial burden of college tuition, fewer adults are able to accomplish these tasks. However, not having acquired financial responsibility for student loans, debt would likely result. Eliminating tuition fees may give the impression that students and their families would save a lot of money. However, university studies still need to be financed in one way or another. Many propose that the primary source of funding for colleges should come from taxes, which would increase significantly. This is unfair to the general public. Not everyone chooses to go to college; Yet everyone would pay for college anyway. Additionally, “the public will pay for free tuition while future college dropouts will resort to student loans.” Then, when students who attend “free” college default on their student loans, the taxpayer will once again shoulder the burden.” Essentially, instead of an individual paying for the financial impact they created, American taxpayers would. Individuals would not have a financial burden to bear, which would only encourage more laziness and dropping out of school. Other proposed options for financing college include cutting military funding and creating longer waiting lists to get into schools. Some might believe that lowering college tuition is necessary because it would allow more low-income students to attend college and earn a college degree. A CollegeRaptor article supports this position by addressing the fact that "some students drop out because they do not have the ability to pay their tuition fees.".