More on the Great Degree Debate: Don’t Discount Debt
June 21, 2010 by Paul Richlovsky
John Glaser over at the Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP) wrote recently on its blog that salaries of bachelor’s degree-holders should be put in the context of the increasing debt burden graduates are asked to shoulder. If, as his Think-Progress-derived numbers show, tuition increases have risen at a rate three times those of family incomes, then salary benefits derived from the attainment of a bachelor’s degree are severely diluted by the ratio of debt required to obtain the degree. His follow-up post expounds further on how “the exceedingly high cost of higher education translates to much higher risk on such an investment.”
The question of risk
This focus on risk and the problem of student loan debt is often overlooked when academics, journalists and other writers debate the value of college degrees. (See this blog’s summary coverage here.) As a liberal-arts educated English degree-holder with a particular interest in (and basic grasp of) economics and personal finance, I can’t help but consider Richard Vedder’s “15% of postal carriers have degrees when they could have bought a house”-type arguments when I think critically about how valuable college degrees are.
Degree as cultural institution
When Glaser finally hits on the “strong cultural commitments to the notion of institutional degrees,” he is also on to something. Despite the college dropout-geniuses of the world (Bill Gates), American culture does revere the status of having had degrees conferred. This prizing of education can be traced back to our founding fathers, of whom Thomas Jefferson, founder of the University of Virginia, made the most lasting contributions. Considering that the early American Puritan settlers were the original advocates of children’s literacy (Bible study was a means to bring them closer to God), we can better understand why degrees are as American as Independence Day and apple pie.
Knowing the power of the perceived American cultural value on degrees allows us to more critically apply rational economic arguments that challenge their unquestioned supremacy.
[http://collegeaffordability.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-on-d
emand-for-higher-ed.html] wrote recently on its blog
[http://collegeaffordability.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-on-d
emand-for-higher-ed.html] that salaries of bachelor’s
degree-holders should be put in the context of the
increasing debt burden graduates are asked to shoulder.
If, as his Think-Progress-derived numbers show, tuition
increases have risen at a rate three times those of family
incomes, then that salary benefits derived from the
attainment of a bachelor’s degree are severely diluted by
the ratio of debt required to obtain the degree. His
follow-up post
[http://collegeaffordability.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-on-d
emand-for-higher-ed.html] expounds further on how “the
exceedingly high cost of higher education translates to
much higher risk on such an investment.”
This focus on risk and the problem of student loan debt is
often overlooked when academics [link Newshour Miller
Center], journalists [NYTimes diploma value] and other
writers [New Yorker] debate the value of college degrees.
As a liberal-arts educated English degree-holder with a
particular interest in (and basic grasp of) economics and
personal finance, I can’t help but consider Richard
Vedder’s “15% of postal carriers have degrees when they
could have bought a house”-type arguments when I think
critically about how valuable college degrees are.
When he finally hits on the “strong cultural commitments to
the notion of institutional degrees,” he is also on to
something. Despite the college dropout-geniuses of the
world (Bill Gates), American culture does revere the status
of having had degrees conferred. This prizing of education
can be traced back to our founding fathers, of whom Thomas
Jefferson, founder of the University of Virginia
[http://www.virginia.edu/Facts/], made the most lasting
contributions[http://www.yourdictionary.com/biography/thoma
s-jefferson]. Considering that the early American Puritan
settlers were the original advocates of children’s literacy
(Bible study was a means to bring them closer to God), we
can better understand why degrees are as American as
Independence Day and apple pie.
Knowing the power of the perceived American cultural value
on degrees allows us to more critically apply rational
economic arguments that challenge their unquestioned
supremacy.John Glaser over at the Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP) [http://collegeaffordability.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-on-d emand-for-higher-ed.html] wrote recently on its blog [http://collegeaffordability.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-on-d emand-for-higher-ed.html] that salaries of bachelor’s degree-holders should be put in the context of the increasing debt burden graduates are asked to shoulder. If, as his Think-Progress-derived numbers show, tuition increases have risen at a rate three times those of family incomes, then that salary benefits derived from the attainment of a bachelor’s degree are severely diluted by the ratio of debt required to obtain the degree. His follow-up post [http://collegeaffordability.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-on-d emand-for-higher-ed.html] expounds further on how “the exceedingly high cost of higher education translates to much higher risk on such an investment.” This focus on risk and the problem of student loan debt is often overlooked when academics [link Newshour Miller Center], journalists [NYTimes diploma value] and other writers [New Yorker] debate the value of college degrees. As a liberal-arts educated English degree-holder with a particular interest in (and basic grasp of) economics and personal finance, I can’t help but consider Richard Vedder’s “15% of postal carriers have degrees when they could have bought a house”-type arguments when I think critically about how valuable college degrees are. When he finally hits on the “strong cultural commitments to the notion of institutional degrees,” he is also on to something. Despite the college dropout-geniuses of the world (Bill Gates), American culture does revere the status of having had degrees conferred. This prizing of education can be traced back to our founding fathers, of whom Thomas Jefferson, founder of the University of Virginia [http://www.virginia.edu/Facts/], made the most lasting contributions[http://www.yourdictionary.com/biography/thoma s-jefferson]. Considering that the early American Puritan settlers were the original advocates of children’s literacy (Bible study was a means to bring them closer to God), we can better understand why degrees are as American as Independence Day and apple pie. Knowing the power of the perceived American cultural value on degrees allows us to more critically apply rational economic arguments that challenge their unquestioned supremacy.John Glaser over at the Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP) [http://collegeaffordability.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-on-d emand-for-higher-ed.html] wrote recently on its blog [http://collegeaffordability.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-on-d emand-for-higher-ed.html] that salaries of bachelor’s degree-holders should be put in the context of the increasing debt burden graduates are asked to shoulder. If, as his Think-Progress-derived numbers show, tuition increases have risen at a rate three times those of family incomes, then that salary benefits derived from the attainment of a bachelor’s degree are severely diluted by the ratio of debt required to obtain the degree. His follow-up post [http://collegeaffordability.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-on-d emand-for-higher-ed.html] expounds further on how “the exceedingly high cost of higher education translates to much higher risk on such an investment.” This focus on risk and the problem of student loan debt is often overlooked when academics [link Newshour Miller Center], journalists [NYTimes diploma value] and other writers [New Yorker] debate the value of college degrees. As a liberal-arts educated English degree-holder with a particular interest in (and basic grasp of) economics and personal finance, I can’t help but consider Richard Vedder’s “15% of postal carriers have degrees when they could have bought a house”-type arguments when I think critically about how valuable college degrees are. When he finally hits on the “strong cultural commitments to the notion of institutional degrees,” he is also on to something. Despite the college dropout-geniuses of the world (Bill Gates), American culture does revere the status of having had degrees conferred. This prizing of education can be traced back to our founding fathers, of whom Thomas Jefferson, founder of the University of Virginia [http://www.virginia.edu/Facts/], made the most lasting contributions[http://www.yourdictionary.com/biography/thoma s-jefferson]. Considering that the early American Puritan settlers were the original advocates of children’s literacy (Bible study was a means to bring them closer to God), we can better understand why degrees are as American as Independence Day and apple pie. Knowing the power of the perceived American cultural value on degrees allows us to more critically apply rational economic arguments that challenge their unquestioned supremacy.John Glaser over at the Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP) [http://collegeaffordability.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-on-d emand-for-higher-ed.html] wrote recently on its blog [http://collegeaffordability.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-on-d emand-for-higher-ed.html] that salaries of bachelor’s degree-holders should be put in the context of the increasing debt burden graduates are asked to shoulder. If, as his Think-Progress-derived numbers show, tuition increases have risen at a rate three times those of family incomes, then that salary benefits derived from the attainment of a bachelor’s degree are severely diluted by the ratio of debt required to obtain the degree. His follow-up post [http://collegeaffordability.blogspot.com/2010/06/more-on-d emand-for-higher-ed.html] expounds further on how “the exceedingly high cost of higher education translates to much higher risk on such an investment.” This focus on risk and the problem of student loan debt is often overlooked when academics [link Newshour Miller Center], journalists [NYTimes diploma value] and other writers [New Yorker] debate the value of college degrees. As a liberal-arts educated English degree-holder with a particular interest in (and basic grasp of) economics and personal finance, I can’t help but consider Richard Vedder’s “15% of postal carriers have degrees when they could have bought a house”-type arguments when I think critically about how valuable college degrees are. When he finally hits on the “strong cultural commitments to the notion of institutional degrees,” he is also on to something. Despite the college dropout-geniuses of the world (Bill Gates), American culture does revere the status of having had degrees conferred. This prizing of education can be traced back to our founding fathers, of whom Thomas Jefferson, founder of the University of Virginia [http://www.virginia.edu/Facts/], made the most lasting contributions[http://www.yourdictionary.com/biography/thoma s-jefferson]. Considering that the early American Puritan settlers were the original advocates of children’s literacy (Bible study was a means to bring them closer to God), we can better understand why degrees are as American as Independence Day and apple pie. Knowing the power of the perceived American cultural value on degrees allows us to more critically apply rational economic arguments that challenge their unquestioned supremacy.
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