All the talk about community colleges this electoral season is a logical response to the skyrocketing cost of higher education. Hillary Clinton has come out in favor of tuition-free community college, while Donald Trump has broadly referred to the “crush” of student debt during his presidential bid, saying, “You look at the way college costs are rising and there’s no reason for it.”
Families and students are finding it harder to afford the tuition bill, leading many to wonder if college is even worth the cost. According to College Board, from 1980 through 2016, the average tuition price of a private non-profit four-year institution has up gone up 210% from $10,438 to $32,405. Public four-year institutions have experienced a 305% increase from $2,320 to $9,410, and the price of public two-year institutions rose 204% from $1,128 to $3,435.
The Sell
A national poll of 30,000 college alumni by the Gallup-Purdue Index in 2014 found that more than half of graduates agreed that their education was beneficial, and 65% of students who graduated in 2014 were employed full time. However, recent graduates who had taken out student loans were less likely to agree that their degrees were worth the price. Respondents said that having debt delayed goals, such as going back to school for further education or buy a home or car.
“Affordability is a key issue,” says Larry Hlavenka, a managing director at Bergen Community College (BCC) in New Jersey, one of the 982 public community colleges in the U.S. “Students are looking for a high-quality education at a low tuition cost.”
That’s the community college selling point. A study by College Board found that in 2014, 42% of all undergraduate students, and 25% of full time undergraduate students attended community college. Nearly half of students who had completed a degree at a four-year college in 2013-14 had attended a community college in the past 10 years.
The savings are real. The average tuition cost of a public two-year in-state college for a full-time commuter student is $3,435 a year, while the same bill at a public four-year college not including room and board is $23,893 and $32,405 for its private counterpart. Do the math: If a full-time student were to spend two years at a community college and then completed his or her BA or BS degree at a residential private school, the savings would add up to 38% ($66,512) on tuition, fees, room and board.
The Hitch
But here’s an important question: With all that savings, why is community college enrollment falling and student loan default on the rise?
During the four-year period of 2010-14, total enrollment in public two-year colleges declined from 7.9 to 7.2 million, and full-time enrollment decreased from 3.3 million to 2.7 million, according to the College Board.
“Students should not be discouraged be the decline of enrollment,” says Jennifer Ma, policy research scientist at College Board. “As a result of the economic recession [from 2007-2009], many non-traditional students [over the age of 24], went back to school to learn additional skills. Since the economy recovered many of these non-traditional students went back to the labor force.”
It’s no surprise that once the Great Recession receded, many students transitioned from skill-building to jobs. But community colleges target another important demographic: Students who don’t have resources available for residential four-year schools and often treat tuition as an out of pocket expense.
This year, full-time students in the public two-year sector received an estimated average of about $4,210 in total government grant aid and education tax benefits, which was enough to cover the average fee price of $3,435. But add in housing, food, room, and board, the average net cost is $7,230.
While students who attend community college are less likely to take out loans and more likely to borrow less – about 60% of students who received their associates degree graduated without debt -- data from the
“There are three main reasons why these students default on loans,” says Jan Miller a student loan expert and consultant at Miller Student Loan Consulting. “One, they are either not credit worthy as students who attend four-year institutions, Two, their financial aid representative doesn’t properly educate them, or the third reason, which makes up 80% of the cases, is pure negligence – students not paying attention.”
The Experiment
On March 14, the Obama administration launched the Dual Enrollment Pell Experiment in hopes of expanding college access to more students. The program will allow an estimated 10,000 high school students to access approximately $20 million in Federal Pell Grants to take dual enrollment courses provided by colleges and high schools in 23 states.
“Affordable tuition plus Pell Grant Programs is the magic combination,” says Matt Cardin, an academic advisor at Ranger College, one of the oldest public two-year colleges in the state of Texas. “There has been an upward curve of rising student enrollment… or taking one or more courses of affordable tuition.”
In 2011, Ranger was one of the top five fastest growing community colleges in the U.S., according to Community College Week. From 2009-14 attendance rose more than 100% from 1,000 to 2,011 students. Ranger offers dual-credit college classes to 24 high schools, and is one of 44 institutions across the nation to be part of the $80 -million-dollar federal program.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, participation in dual programs can lead to better grades in high school, and an increase in college enrollment, especially from low income students that come from a low income background.
As the costs of colleges continue to rise, it is important to consider all viable options and make decisions that students believe will allow them to succeed. Education should not be looked at as a burden, but instead as an investment.
