President Obama wants to give Americans two free years of community college, in part to
help boost the economy.
Critics argue that the country is already in a huge amount of debt
and can’t afford such a program.
They also question the effect that this plan will have on
the economy.
So, what value does this program really offer and how important is it to make
education free?
According to the White House, higher education is the best way to climb the socio-economic
ladder.
They see education as a way for low income students to break into the middle class and
they see growing the middle class as a way to fix our economy.
A White House report states,
“The benefits of postsecondary education are well documented and have major implications
for economic growth, equality and social mobility.”
A fact that many studies on both sides of
the aisle corroborate, including reports by the left leaning Economic Policy Institute,
the centrist
Brookings Institute, and the more conservative Heritage Foundation.
However, it’s important to note that the education-economy relationship has been extensively
studied for decades, and no consensus has yet been reached.
Studies in the early 2000s assert
that factors other than increased education, may be more beneficial to economic growth,
factors
like improved personal health and inherited riches.
So there is some cause for more study.
Supposing the White House is right and the U.S. economy will benefit from having more
college grads -- Why make higher education free?
Well, Obama wants to lower our nations
average student debt, so that college grads have more spending power, which will naturally
put more money directly into the economy.
And there is some evidence that a free or low cost
college system could work.
Thriving countries like Germany, Finland, Norway, and Sweden,
have already adopted similar systems that offer free or low cost higher education.
In those
places, GDP is high and unemployment rates are low.
So, if the U.S. wanted a model to base a
new system off of, there are available options.
On the other hand, the world’s most expensive universities in America and the UK dominate
the top ten spots on world university rankings.
So, there’s something to be said for both the free
educational system and a costly private one.
Even without Obama’s proposed legislation, it’s worthwhile in the long-run, to get
a college
degree.
Higher levels of education correspond to improved health, a longer lifespan, higher
rates of pay, and lower rates of unemployment.
Children of the highly educated also experience
benefits of greater health, cognitive abilities, academic achievement, and lower chances of
poverty as an adult.
To learn more about the state of higher education in the US, watch this video about “What
Happens If You Don’t Pay Off Your Student Loan Debt”.
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