As the fall of senior year rolls around the constant flood of priorities begin to transform your life, take over your time, and weigh on your conscience. This time in high school seems overwhelming to say the least. But students remain hopeful because in a few months they will know where they are going to school, and all of their stress will magically vanish, transforming into intense optimism for the future. Wrong. Although applications, personal essays, and standardized testing is no longer an issue, something more important will terrorize your every thought. The decision. Which ultimately weighs on the price of your education. Is your dream school worth years of debt or are student loans the only option?
As an uninformed, naive sophomore I assumed I would get a full ride to my dream school, or my parents would pay for it all. But the rude awakening that I might have to take out student loans was my first bitter taste of adulthood. The sad thing is that this huge step in my life, as exciting as it may be, will cost me, perhaps the equivalent of a small home. A step in my life that I will be paying off for years to come. Student loans are evidently a burden that I am not sure if I’m ready to take on.
Students are willing to pay thousands of dollars just to complete dozens of applications, but once they get into their schools the decision process begins. Will you go to your dream school that is $70,000 and risk being in debt for years to come? Or will you go to the in state college, knowing you will leave without any loans? It may seem dramatic to some when I say that you will need to choose between pursuing your education at your idealistic school or at one where you will be unhappy. Unfortunately, that may be the truth.
I have experienced the extreme dilemma of college pricing first hand. Universities mask their willingness to help you financially with little merit money and scholarships, using the same excuse that bigger institutions cannot offer you significant help at this time. Being from Newtown it is a simple fact that I will not be offered the same financial help as an inner city student with a less fortunate upbringing. Nevertheless, I am expecting something, something more than a few thousand when looking to attend a school which totals $65,000 a year.
FAFSA and the CSS Profile are both tools used by colleges to determine how much money they can give you in the form of financial aid. You complete a long questionnaire in which you share your family's income and hometown. I was skeptical to put down those two details because I knew that when examined alongside the rest of the country, I was fortunate. However, regardless of what my parents make in comparison to others, they are not able to whip out their checkbook with no worries, yet I receive little to no financial assistance, leaving me with no option but to take out student loans.
This is a crucial time in our lives, a time where we have to consider our options and start thinking about our future. In a few years we will be out of school, in the real world, and will be faced with the daunting task of obtaining a job. Some argue that where you attend college does not matter, but the main point is that it does matter if you attend college. How can it be expected of people to attend college when the price is so extreme, and if they cannot attend higher level education will that compensate their future and employment opportunities?
The harsh reality is that people every day want to pursue their passions, but cannot, because they cannot afford college. It is not fair that a boy living in Hartford who has dreamed of being a doctor all his life cannot reach his goal, primarily because of the price of schooling. Instead of anything being done about this problem, it is brushed off and seen as an unchangeable issue. Yet, here are many things we can do in order for each child to have the chance of college and a bright future.
Instead of ignoring the problem we need to spread awareness. Everyone needs to be aware the true price of school, and ultimately the price of not going to school. Either way you lose. You will end up in debt for years to come, or you will be denied employment options for not attending a university, how is any of that just?
Image Courtesy of The Student Loan Report