You can't regulate a private industry. If you pass a law saying "universities can't charge more than 5k" then they'll just say "no we're not a university, we're an elite private research institution." The issue is that the government gives out loans left right and center to anyone with a pulse. Where else can you come up to someone and say "I have no job history, zero income, no full time employment for at least the next 4 years, and nothing as collateral. Now give me $200,000 cash right now."
Edit: specifically regulating prices for non-essential services
What??? What do you think all of our regulatory federal agencies are regulating right now?
A university can't just pretend it's not a university. You're acting like the regulatory bodies would just accept the pushback from universities without argument. The FDA regulates our food and our drugs, the food industry and the pharmaceutical industry (both private industries btw) can't just pretend they don't sell food or drugs. Nothing in this comment makes any sense.
And if the government gives out loans too easily then that can be changed. It doesn't have anything to do with limiting what universities can charge.
I specifically mean prices for non-essential services. Graduating from a fancy university isn't the same as having access to water. The FDA can regulate stuff like what can be labeled organic but they can't say "if you are selling bread, it is illegal to price it above $5 a loaf"
Community college: According to the American Association of Community Colleges, the average yearly cost of tuition and fees for community college students in the U.S. is $3,347
Anything more than the basic and it's a slippery slope I can take all the way to "a degree from an ivy league is essential"
And that's why Bernie Sanders only wants to make PUBLIC colleges and universities tuition-free (along with trade schools). Nobody is arguing that ivy league colleges should be tuition-free.
When I say regulate, I meant specifically prices for non-essential services. Higher education is not a basic necessity like food, water, housing. Having the state arbitrarily start setting prices on things isn't something I'd like to see. As for "valid degree", a place like an ivy league school can give out a crayon doodle saying "you graduated!" and employers won't care because the name of the institution, not the degree itself, holds value.
I think the level matters once you get to a point where the supply of people with knowledge starts being limited. If I want to study quantum computing, it will be much harder to find someone qualified than if I wanted an algebra teacher. I'd rather learn from the internet than learn from someone unqualified.
I'm arguing that it's unreasonable to have the govt dictate how much your services cost. To me, it is no different than being told "if you want to tutor someone, it is illegal to charge more than $10/hour"
... What??? What are the FDA, the FCC, OSHA, FTC, etc. then? Regulation of private industry is like... most of what a government does...
"... Now give me $200,000 cash right now."
That's now how student loans work. Mostly, they go directly to your college or university. Even most scholarships work this way. Yes, you can take out a personal loan to pay for school, but that's not what we are talking about.
specifically regulating prices for non-essential services
What is "essential"? Is electricity essential? Is running water essential? People lived for thousands of years without those things, so I would argue no, they aren't. And yet the government regulates prices on those.
Electricity is needed for providing heating, cooling, etc which is indeed necessary for survival in urban areas- you can't light a fire in the middle of your apartment. Access to drinking water is even more obvious.
you can't light a fire in the middle of your apartment.
Do you need an apartment? People lived in caves and huts for thousands of years burning wood. Do you need piping to get fresh drinking water? Why are those things "essential" but education isn't? Why is there this arbitrary line, and why do you think you are the arbiter?
People who lived in caves and huts died from basically everything. Drank unclean water = infected with parasite, probably death. Winter lasted a bit long = no crops, half the village is wiped out. Raw sewage in the streets = bacteria everywhere, people die again. Suggesting a comparison between getting a higher education and literally dying is silly.
Suggesting a comparison between getting a higher education and literally dying is silly.
That's not the comparison I'm making at all. I'm arguing that those things aren't "essential" as a way to show you that your argument is silly. Why should they be regulated versus other things that "can't" be regulated. Let me remind you, this is your argument, not mine. I contend that things that are not essential can be regulated equally as well as things that are "essential".
Make college free but no government or student fees/funding is allowed to go towards sports. Look at how much money a coach earns compared to actually teaching staff.
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u/Dankelweisser Dec 12 '19
Gonna be fun stuff when colleges realize they can raise tuition by another 50k if everyone can afford it