Dear Next President,

     The expensive prices of college and graduate school are growing higher and higher each year. Enough people can not afford to go as it is, but with the rising prices it could become almost impossible for some. If the cost of college was reduced, students would be able to go to the college of their choice and would not have to worry about devastatingly high loans and debts. Lowering the price of college tuition will enable more students to afford school and reduce their loans.

     I feel that the high cost of college can be unfair to many students who work hard to get into the school that they want but end up not being able to pay. Some students even choose not to go to their first choice college because of the ever growing tuition and the lack of financial aid. According to the American business magazine Forbes, “57% of students, the highest percent on record, chose not to attend their first choice school. Among those not attending their first choice college, 62% said they could not afford to attend it…” These percentages show the struggle that many people have with paying the high tuition because it is “the highest percent on record” of students unable to attend their first choice schools. This is unacceptable and needs to be addressed by lowering the tuition or giving students more financial aid. Many of these 57% of students unable to attend their first choice school, worked as hard as they could in high school just to get into college and being unable to pay is not right. They need to be assured that their hard work will be paid off and that getting into college will be their only problem, not having to pay tuition.

     Another issue I feel is not fair is the high student loans. With schools expensive tuition, many students ask for loans to help them pay for the college. These loans add up in the end, taking many years to repay, and if a stable career or job is not found it is even more difficult to pay them off. Evidence of this is shown in an article on the US News and World Report. It states that, “Over the last decade, student loan debt has grown at twice the rate of inflation...the per-student debt figure has surpassed the $30,000 mark”. Paying off thousands of dollars can take over 20 years and with the debts growing “at twice the rate of inflation,” it makes the task even scarier. The problem of student debt needs to be addressed with lowering the tuition of college and providing financial aid to all students. I know that with a reduced cost and extra help more students will be able to attend college and succeed in finding a job.

     Next president, I know this is a problem that is made aware to you but actually doing something to fix it would help thousands of students in America. Reducing the cost of tuition and providing financial aid to those who need it would greatly affect the country. It would provide the US with smarter students who could create a better economy and a better nation.

Sincerely,

Mary

10th Grade