Is the cost of college still worth it?
BOSTON - For higher education, it now means higher and higher college tuition. Degrees can come with life changing debt. Some Ivy League schools just hit $90,000 per year. Yes, $360,000 for a degree. Gulp.
More people are wondering: Is college still worth it?
So, I asked that exact question to four different people - a plumber who believes in trade school, a young professional who's a fan of community college, a recent grad who wrote about college being a "scam" and a university president who thinks college is well worth it.
TRADE SCHOOL
The plumber is Sue Jacobs Marshalsea. Sue wears a pink shirt and drives around in a pink truck with her logo "Ms. Fix-it." Let's start with the plumber who's tickled pink by trade schools.
You'll usually find Sue crammed under a sink, working around the clock. There is a shortage of skilled plumbers, electricians, contractors, etc. But Sue points out, being a skilled worker is a profitable career choice.
The average salary for a plumber is $85,000 in Massachusetts, while the average trade school costs only $13,000. Sue says debt isn't a huge problem. "Oh no, you start tomorrow, you start making money tomorrow," she said.
Sue started a scholarship in her late husband's name. The Ron Marshalsea Trade Scholarship encourages students to go into a trade. Sue says college loans can be a drag for years.
"In the meantime, this plumber or electrician already has a pension, bought a house and are that much ahead," she said.
COMMUNITY COLLEGE
As of 2023, student loan debt in America totals more than $1.7 trillion. Since 1995 that number has increased by 774%.
But what's the return on that investment? It can really depend on the major you choose. According to a think tank called Third Way the three best fields for the quickest return on investment are nursing, engineering, and dentistry.
On the other end of the spectrum, arts, zoology, and religious studies are among toughest fields for quickly paying off loans.
Nicoletta Agostino got a business degree at Bentley University and works at a Newton investment firm. She has no debt at all and credits Mass Bay Community College. A two-year associate degree costs about $10,000 at Mass Bay. Nicoletta was a standout at Mass Bay. She earned scholarships and took advantage of a great transfer program and got more scholarships to get her bachelor at Bentley.
The MassTransfer program from the state allows students at community colleges with at least a 2.5 GPA to automatically be able to transfer to a state university. Some community colleges also have special transfer programs with private universities. Nicolleta was able to take advantage of Mass Bay's relationship with Bentley.
"I think there's a lot of stigma around community college. I even remember when I did it, people would say 'Oh you'll get into a real college' or 'Why are you doing that?'"
Nicolleta believes much of that stigma comes from parents who want to brag about where their kids go to college and want to have that college sticker on their rear windshield.
She joked, "That sticker costs $300,000!"
FOUR YEAR COLLEGE
I also spoke with Michael Alexander. He is the president of Lasell University in Newton. He says college is definitely worth it.
"Because even if you pay those high prices, you will get that back many times over from income and the tangible of what you will learn," he said.
Research from Georgetown University found a bachelor's degree is worth $2.8 million on average over a lifetime. But Alexander admits the prices are too high. So Lasell is chopping tuition by a third.
Alexander told me, "Tuition right now is just a sliver under 60 (thousand). Next year, we lowered it to $39,500."
"People are saying 'It's hard for us to find the money. We have to stretch so hard. We have to borrow so much money. Isn't there another way?' And I think we have to find another way."
Alexander has started a consortium of more than 100 colleges who are working together to figure out ways to bring down costs, like sharing courses, facilities, and security.
'COLLEGE IS A SCAM'
Finally, we spoke with a recent UMass-Amherst graduate who wrote an editorial for a student newspaper with an interesting headline: "College is a scam."
Max Schwartz says students are now learning only the big money-making majors are worth it. He says they're being forced into careers they don't love and picking schools that are more about name than actual excellence in the career of their dreams.
"You have the students who are going to into business administration and engineering who hate it," he said. "Then you are another brick in the wall. You are working at Google or Facebook and getting laid off with 12,000 other people and you were never passionate about it."
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