nissangirl74 wrote:Anyway you go about it, there is no good way to dig oneself out of that much debt. It's a terrible burden to be placed on someone who is supposed to walking into the best years of their life. I can only imagine what someone who wants to be a doctor is facing as far as school loans. Why can't everyone just charge community college tuition prices?
I think the more important message is that people should choose not to get into so much debt in the first place. Especially without seeking a degree with a earning potential that is commensurate with the tuition. I certainly wouldn't even consider getting into that kind of debt for an engineering degree.
I'm sure medical students pay a lot of money, but their earning potential is much higher and I'd imagine they might receive some compensation for their required residencies as well.
As for community college prices, yeah, that would be awesome. But they are cheap because they are subsidized heavily. Not to mention, they generally don't need as much top tier staff as they are usually limited to lower division and maybe a few intermediate level courses. Universities need to also attract professors who can teach upper level coursework. And for top universities, I suspect they seek out professors that would help raise the school's stature in order to attract better students. Facilities at universities tend to be better funded as well. I don't feel its proportional to the additional costs, but certainly, I would expect universities to be more expensive.
