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More students opting for first two years at community college

Michaelyn Hoeres is unsure what she wants to study in college. 

The Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18-year-old, who graduated from Freedom High School in June, worried about paying thousands of dollars per credit for general education requirements.

So, she’s spending her first two years of higher education not on a sprawling University campus, but instead at Northampton Community College.

“I knew I could knock out many of my gen ed requirements and save money while at a community college,” Hoeres said. “It puts less pressure on my parents.”

Michaelyn Hoeres posing for her senior pictures. By Kevin Volpe

Hoeres is among an estimated 9.8 million undergraduates enrolling in a community college for the 2017-2018 school year, according to Teachers College, Columbia University.

The total cost of a four-year degree can be drastically reduced by spending the first two years at a community college.

The average cost of one year of private, four-year University is $35,074, according to Best Value Schools. According to College Board assuming you complete two years of required classes at a community college, you will save $12,000 to $66,000 compared to the same education given at a state or private school.

No matter which college someone attends or what your ideal major is, the first two years generally are comprised general education classes. Many students won’t get into courses that fulfill their majors until junior year. 

Even with two years at community college, students who transfer their junior year to a more traditional campus earn a diploma with that school’s name on it.

Every first-year student is required to take core classes such as English 101, math, and science class in order to fulfill needed credits for graduation. There’s little difference in content between those classes from school to school, so some interviewed this week find it more economical to take them at community college.

The main reason behind attending a community college comes down to cost. Being able to earn a degree at the fraction of the price is a desirable want for many young individuals. 

Students are better financially prepared for the costs of a four year university should they plan on transferring.

Hoeres is looking forward to getting started. Even though she admits, she knows she’s missing out on some aspects of a four-year college.

“I am excited to be beginning a new part of my life but it does hurt watching most of my friends leave to go hours away to Universities,” Hoeres said.

 

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Report: High-performing but low-income students left out

College money

Jane Thomas’s daughter studies at Emory University where annual tuition nears $50,000.

Thomas identifies her income as “comfortable” but said this week her daughter will pay her own college debts.

“Whatever she didn’t pay off, she’ll have to work off, because we want her to have some responsibility,” Thomas said.

Thomas is one of millions of Americans facing rising tuition costs, especially at elite, private, and Ivy League universities. That means many low-income Americans are being forced out of an elite higher-education system that they can’t afford.

A study done by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that “the vast majority of very high-achieving students who are low-income do not apply to any selective college or university.”

According to the study, this trend occurs when high-achieving students search for colleges in the range of their income, rather than of their achievement.

But, colleges have been trying to incorporate students from all backgrounds and economic statuses.

In 2004, the eight Ivy League universities underwent a financial makeover when schools such as Harvard, Princeton, and Yale decided to provide free tuition to those families that made under $60,000 a year.

College money
Photo illustration: TaxCredits.net

But still, at five of the eight Ivy League’s there are more students from the top 1 percent of income ($630K+), than the bottom 60 percent (<$65K).

It seems that America might be one of the only countries putting students into crippling debt. Jane McTaggart from Brisbane, Australia recalled that when she went to college it was free.

Although annual tuition in Australia is now $20,000, students “don’t have to pay back their debts until they make a certain income,” McTaggart stated.

McTaggart also stated, “I find it quite disturbing that you have so much debt for young people.”

College costs in America are increasing as the average tuition for a private institution has racked up to $35,074 for four year schools.

These costs aren’t encouraging low-income students to choose elite universities and are another reason for less low-income, high-achieving students attending college.

Although Jane Thomas is able to pay for her daughter’s tuition at Emory University, she is still skeptical of the efforts being made by colleges to provide financial aid for low-income students.

She stated, “I don’t think they’re doing enough.”

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U.S. student debt tops $1.4 trillion

WASHINGTON, D.C.–American University students and Northwest District of Columbia residents said Wednesday that student loan debt which is above $1.4 trillion in the United States today is a serious issue facing those seeking higher education in America.

Nelson Jacobson discusses his experience with student loans. By Vicky Tan

“Interest rates are rising and I’m scared that I’ll still be paying of loans when I’m 35,” said Leila Ackerman, 18, who will start at American University this Fall.

Ackerman worries about expenses beyond just tuition and housing. She said the hidden costs are also going to add up. Not only is tuition becoming more and more expensive, but new students must be able to afford food, textbooks and other necessities to living away from home.

“I’m one of the lucky ones, I can’t even imagine what having loans breathing down your back would feel like,” said Janice Barlow, 20, an American University student. “You really can’t do anything. Every thing you do, anywhere you go, you have to be thinking about money.”

According to the Student Loan Debt Report, national student loan debt collectively currently totals $1.41 trillion.

According to the report, around 70 percent of college students in the United States now owe some soft of debt for education. However, even with almost a whole generation drowning in student loan debt, there is no guarantee of employment after they graduate.

There was a general consensus among both residents and students that government is not doing enough to help financially struggling students. With interest rates slowly rising, the nation has not made education as high a priority as others, they said.

“Government should try to make education more affordable, everyone should have the opportunity to go to get a better education if they want to. Money should not be a limiting factor,” Ackerman said.

 

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Students stress over debt

AU Weber
Rebecca Weber, 27, an American University graduate student, reads at the campus Starbucks. Photo Credit Sami Pye.

Liz Hexler, 18, a rising sophomore at American University, shook her head as she contemplated the idea of transferring to a more affordable college.

“I already am getting a large scholarship, but it still is not feasible for me to be at American University for more than two years,” said Hexler, of Chicago.

She came with the hopes to succeed in the international relations program, but has been left angered by what she sees as excessive fees and tuition.

With college prices on the rise and more and more people applying, students are struggling to repay loans. Currently, U.S. graduates and students owe $1.2 trillion in student debt, according to debt.org.

Every second, $3,000 in student debt is acquired, and the average debt for the U.S. graduate student is $33,000, according to debt.org. In 2014, the average amount of debt at graduation rose 56 percent, from $18,550 to $28,950, according to the Institute for College Access and Success.

Joanna Sobieski, 24, a 2015 American University graduate, and Alex Mazzarisi, 22, who graduated the school in May, both supported the idea of going to community college for the first two years and then transferring to a more expensive.

“I worked three jobs, so I didn’t have the typical college experience,” Sobieski said.

Sobieski had to work numerous jobs to keep up with with all of the expenses that come with attending American, where the average annual cost is around $60,000, according to American University’s website.

After graduation, Sobieski worked abroad for a year with a very low-paying job, so she was able to postpone the loan, but now she is very stressed as to how she will repay the loan. In order to repay, she plans to work a 9-to-5 job and work retail or waitress on the side.

Rebecca Weber, 27, an American University graduate student, said when she finishes her master’s degree in international affairs, she’ll have more than $100,000 in loan debt.

“I’m not going to live where I want to live or be at the same level of comfort,” Weber said.

Others, like Mike Limarzi, 33, did not see student loans as a huge obstacle.

“They do impact, but not disastrously,” Limarzi said.

Limarzi graduated from Georgetown University, a private school in Washington, D.C., in 2004. While student debt wasn’t a struggle for him, he still pays his wife’s $500 monthly student loan.

“We have an amount to pay, and we try to pay over it each month so we finish fast,” Limarzi said. “We know how to budget.”

Sitting on a bench outside the American University library where she works, Tara Barnett, 28, explained what helped her the most with student debt after graduating from Reed College in 2009.  

“I had a lot of financial aid,” Barnett said. “Without it, I couldn’t have gone.”

For many, grants and loans are the major forms of federal financial aid for undergraduate students. According to the U.S. Department of Education, over 1.9 million students receive financial aid each year. For some, it’s the only way to afford college.

“My boyfriend goes to school in Denmark,” Mazzarisi said. “He didn’t come from a well-off family, but he is still able to go to one of the best colleges in his country because it is free. He also gets paid $800 to attend.

“The U.S. can maybe learn something from that,” she continued.