Free College Tuition Will Bring Equality in Education

All students have a right to an education. In the United States, this “education” is solely at the primary and secondary levels, and at these levels, an education is more than easily accessible. However, higher level education, typically given at a college or university, is not as obtainable as it should be. Students, no matter the status of their family income, are burdened with the cost of paying colleges and universities for an education – this education being the means for them and their future families to achieve financially stability. Although financial aid is available, it is not always easily accessible and, alone, is not enough, pressuring students into years of paying off student loans. Establishing free college tuition for deserving students would increase the number of graduates ready to take on careers and would develop a growing and prosperous nation. Though it may seem financially impractical, it is not only possible, but important to establish free access to higher levels of education for deserving and knowledgeable students.

With accessibility to a higher level education being as demanding as it is now in the U.S., implementing free tuition for commendable students would motivate them to graduate and pursue their career faster. Not all students are willing to continue their education after high school. Fostered among the majority of these students is a sense of defeat – that because their parents aren’t able to foot the bill, they don’t get to go to college, making it extremely difficult to decide their future. These individuals are manipulated into believing that any scholarship, financial aid opportunity, or loan would help them go to any school of their choosing. In some favorable cases, this might have happened, but for the rest, whether it be that they were denied the financial assistance they needed or whether they couldn’t afford to be buried in loans, they see no reason for going to a school and, instead, see the financial instability and burden. Some individuals who see free tuition as devaluing the worth of a college degree argue that college wouldn’t be taken as seriously if it was free. In fact, they indicate that European studies have found that “students who pay more in tuition exert greater effort and are more likely to graduate on time”. However, because the plan proposed is to grant free tuition for only promising students who show that they are capable of successfully graduating, it eliminates the hesitation brought up that a free, higher level of education would not be taken seriously.

Free tuition motivates. It allows the individual to acknowledge the fact that they have been recognized for their hard work and potential to become even greater on their road to graduation and on their journey to begin their career. As financial assistance for a higher level education becomes increasingly difficult to obtain, the more imperative it is for free tuition to be granted, developing a growing and prosperous nation. Change is inevitable. In today’s day and age, changes in values and expectations drastically affect many individuals by shaping and deciding their future. More and more individuals are expected to have a postsecondary education, so that they are given the skills and abilities necessary to perform a job well. Costs restrain individuals from accessing a higher level of education, therefore disabling opportunities for these individuals to succeed and contribute to society. When speaking of costs, most individuals are quick to argue with certainty that free tuition will come at a stiff price. However, though it may seem like the bill for free tuition is impossible to foot, most don’t realize that the contributions to society made by individuals, monetarily, will offset the costs – if not, exceed it. Free tuition betters the economy, giving more jobs to more individuals, so that they will be prepared to meet the demands that are asked of them. Implementing free tuition for individuals who don’t have the financial access to do so is hard to do when all society thinks about is the financial sacrifice that would have to be taken; they don’t think about the numerous beneficial opportunities individuals would have; starting with the beginning of their career and continuing with their contribution to society, hence bettering the economy.

Free tuition expresses the reality that college is not just for the privileged anymore – that it is for everybody who earns it: not because they paid for it, but because they have the potential to use the education for social and economical mobility and growth. More and more individuals are being encouraged to take up a higher level of education, making it that much more important to provide access to these individuals. With free tuition, individuals, no matter race, religion, or income, are given the opportunities to start real progression for real change.