David McRaney : Journalist

David McRaney | Journalist

College costs affect degree

Nikki Criddle would rather be practicing guitar chords and saving her voice for recital finals, but instead she is learning the ins and outs of public relations.

Like many working-class students in Mississippi, Criddle, 27, weighed her options and decided the only way to make a life for herself and her 6-year-old daughter Madeline was to sign the loan documents and hit the books in search of a dependable career.

She is in pursuit of the American Dream, but knows even with a college education, her choice of dream is probably limited. The fine arts are best left to those who can afford to fail.

As the cost of college rises, the idealistic college students searching to define themselves through intellectual enlightenment are being replaced by students searching for viable vocations, ones that will ensure them the ability to chip away at a mountain of debt. Although college is still accessible today for many blue-collar folks and single parents like Criddle, the bottom rung of the ladder is quickly moving out of reach, a trend that is eroding some of the old notions of what college is supposed to be.

A recent Senate Report published in June titled "The College Cost Crunch" warned of such a trend, telling us "federal student aid has not kept pace with the rising cost of attending college." It went on to explain how parents and students are relying more than ever before on loans to finance higher education, and rising interest rates are making those loans more difficult to pay off.

"I'll owe about $40,000 when I graduate," said Criddle, who applied for loans before her first semester as a way to raise her child without having to work and go to school full time, an option she felt would keep her out of her child's life. Since then, she has accepted nearly $5,000 in aid each semester. Now a junior at the University of Southern Mississippi, she has already accumulated nearly $20,000 of debt.

"I take the most I can get - Pell Grant, subsidized and unsubsidized - because I'm trying to substitute an income," she added. "It wouldn't make sense for me to hire someone to watch my child while I worked because they would get most of what I made. The loans help me pay my bills and groceries and still be home with her."

Criddle, like many in her situation, understood the kind of debt she would be saddled with. Even at a relatively inexpensive institution like USM where a year's worth of tuition independent of room and board is $2,297 and books can run a student $500 or more, the cost of college can be overwhelming, especially after factoring in gas, food and rent. But, the alternative was less than appealing.

For her, higher education is a means to an end - financial independence. "I didn't want to work at Wal-Mart the rest of my life," said Criddle. An aspiring musician, she sang for a local band for a few months, but soon abandoned the idea for something she said was more likely to support her and her child. "The more I talked to people, I found the more sense it made to me - money, school, job. I just assume I am investing in my future, and I'll pay the money back."

That sort of thinking concerns people like USM Vice President of Student Affairs Joe Paul, who still believes college is more than just occupational training. Paul, who deals with the higher education of over 15,000 students, warns against the kind of reasoning leading many students to see college as "thirteenth grade."He hopes students would not enroll because they have been pushed to believe this is just the next place they are supposed to be. "I still try to counsel and compel students to find a passion," said Paul. "You are more likely to make a good living and build a good life if you find something you are passionate about rather than worrying about what it will pay. But, I also know as a parent that parents want their children to have a brighter future than what they had - security, safety - and that often equates to earning power."

Paul added he often meets students who, for example, would like to be theater majors, but their parents want them to be an accountant. He thinks the majority of students today do see college as a means to an end, but it doesn't mean they won't benefit from a well-rounded education in ways they may not realize initially.

"The Founding Fathers believed that an educated public was the cornerstone of democracy, and it couldn't work without it," said Paul. "This was a strong influence in the evolution of higher education in America. Going back even further, it was never about vocation at all. The whole idea of education was the discovery of life and the pursuit of truth. In the grand history of education, the idea of vocational training is a Johnny-come-lately."

Still, Paul agrees the cost of education in America is rising faster than inflation. Something he attributes to a shift in the thinking as to who benefits from college. Instead of looking at college as an engine that dutifully churns up the disadvantaged and improves the nation as a whole, people have begun seeing it as a personal pursuit profiting individuals above communities.

USM professor of economics William Gunther agrees. "A lot of folks see higher education benefiting the individual, and that person should be willing to pay for it." He added, "You want you go to college, you pay the tuition."

According to Gunther, this new perception of college education being a selfish endeavor may be driving up the cost, and the rise in tuition can often be traced to voters who resent higher taxes. "Mississippi has a large portion of elderly and poor, and medical costs are an important issue," he said. "People are unwilling and unable to increase funding through taxes. So they ask, 'What can I cut?' Generally, it's higher education."

Many states are shifting support from higher education to high schools, Medicaid and other functions," said Gunther. "There is less state support, and the costs associated with universities aren't going down. Tuition and research grants become the only real sources for funding. Naturally, tuition goes up."

For individuals seeking out a better life, this is an argument best left to people who already have degrees. Unfortunately, as the costs go up, the choices for jobs seem to be narrowing. For people like Criddle who are looking down the barrel of over $40,000 of debt, careers like teaching or social work seem like a waste of time. At this point, seeking out a degree in her true love, music, would be downright foolish.

According to Gunther, this too is a common misconception. "An educated person, whether that be in philosophy or marketing, has more opportunity. I think companies are going go to look at individuals and look at their ability to be critical. Certainly, an accountant wants a degree in accounting. But, if they are looking at two employees, one with a degree in philosophy and one in marketing who are equal in every respect except their majors, I think the majors are irrelevant."

Gunther added, "College degrees are a certification that you area an intelligent human being who can meet deadlines, follow rules and such. Intelligent companies are trying to find intelligent people. Their majors are secondary."

Still, as Congress asserted in their report on college costs, rising tuition may throw a monkey wrench into the machinery creating intelligent, capable employees. According to their report, those with bachelor's degrees may be earning "62 percent more on average than those with only a high school diploma." Yet, "the cost of attending a public four-year college increased 32 percent between the 2000-2001 and 2004-2005 school years."

USM history professor Andrew P. Haley hopes states like Mississippi see the danger in cutting funding forcing colleges to raise tuition. "I believe we may be approaching a tipping point where the types of jobs a typical undergraduate degree can buy you may not be profitable enough to justify the financial sacrifices involved," said Haley.

In 1987, the Pell Grant covered 51 percent of the cost of tuition, fees, and room and board at a public four-year college. By 2005, that number had dropped to 35 percent, according to Congressional research.

The compensate, the percentage of undergraduates at four-year colleges taking out loans has risen to over 60 percent, and the average amount of federal student loan debt upon graduation has increased from approximately $7,650 to over $19,000 in just over a decade.

This, according to Haley, has the potential to create a ripple effect decreasing the chances of college graduates being able to afford a home, start a family or pursue certain careers.

"American progress is about increasing opportunity, and this is likely to continue to be the case. But, we may be looking a situation where the American Dream changes from one day owning a house, to one day renting an apartment."

American politicians are divided as to how to approach the problem, and many are wary about heading off the situation with federal funds.

Some, as the Kansas City Star reported, advocate direct government loans bypassing banks altogether among other strategies.

"We have a student loan program that works well for the banks and not for the students of middle-income families," said Massachusetts Democrat Sen. Edward Kennedy, "That is the challenge of our time."

But some, like Republican Sen. Rob Ostrander, believe the report released by Congress to be "a bogus document concocted by a partisan left-wing group. This so-called 'report' is probably good for drumming up contributions for this group, but not much else."

At a senate hearing in 2005, Associate Professor for the Study of Higher Education at Pennsylvania State University Dr. Donald E. Heller said, "Today's students both need and deserve support from the federal government to be able to attend college."

When the bill to reauthorize The Higher Education Act of 1965 was signed earlier this year, not much had changed, at least not in favor of students. Approximately 90,000 students lost access to Pell Grants, and another 1.5 million had their grants reduced by about $3,000 because of new restrictions.

In 2000, George W. Bush promised to raise Pell Grants for first-year students to $5,100. Today, it remains frozen at $4,050 for the fourth consecutive year.

Meanwhile, Criddle and others like her are pushing forward, even if that means trading one better future for another.

When asked if she would abandon public relations for a record deal she said, "Hell yeah; it wouldn't even take me five seconds."

"But, most people's dreams seem unrealistic the older they get. So, they find a second option."

Originally published in The Student Printz on October 17, 2007