In the News: Is Higher Education Worth the Cost?

As I've floundered over how to help my husband support our family, a desire to complete my degree has crept up on me again. I'm only nine classes away from my Associate's Degree. Now, partially I want to complete the program just to say it's done. At this point in my life, however, I wonder how valuable it will be.

After meeting with a college adviser, I discovered those nine classes--at a community college--would cost over $13,000. Can I justify that expenditure when we are only six years shy of having a child in college? In eight years, we'll have two girls in college. Though it was highly encouraged based upon my 4.0 that I seek out scholarship opportunities, how much of that money is going to be awarded to an over 40 mother looking to finish off her degree?

The Saturday/Sunday, January 4-5, 2014 edition of The Wall Street Journal had an interesting article in its Review section titled, "Degrees of Value: Making College Pay Off." This article is an essay adopted from Glenn Harlan Reynolds' new book, The New School: How the Information Age Will Save American Education From Itself. Reynolds is a professor at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. A portion of that essay highlighted in the article states, "To remain viable, colleges and universities need to cut expenditures dramatically." Reynolds says that while there is no simple solution, changes are beginning to emerge.

Reynolds attacks the issue from both sides. He says that while schools must adjust to the new economic reality, wiser choices by families are an important piece of the puzzle. Carefully selecting a practical major or attending community college are suggestions mentioned in the essay. While Reynolds says some colleges and universities are offering hidden discounts in the form of increased financial aid, what's really needed is a major structural change, which goes back to the highlighted quote mentioned above.

Many schools are already using low-paid adjuncts to teach classes, but Reynolds says this could be extended to administrators so that these lower paid adjunct administrators managed routine functions. He also suggests budget transparency. Along with new instructional methods Reynolds discusses, perhaps this will help lower costs of higher education.

You can read the full article at http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303870704579298302637802002

WSJ Wednesday - Changes in Higher Education

I found a fascinating article in the Friday, January 25, 2013 edition of The Wall Street Journal. My one big regret is never getting my college degree. Though a book I read on the current job market said experience trumps college degrees any day (unless you're talking Ivy League), during my job search, I've discovered even clerical and administrative jobs have a college degree listed as a preference or requirement.

According to "College Degree, No Class Time Required" by Caroline Porter, the University of  Wisconsin is offering a Bachelor's to students who take online competency tests about what they know. Like the man featured in Porter's article, I have several credits toward my degree. But as my family and responsibilities grew, time to dedicate to my education dwindled. After more than 20 years in business, it wouldn't surprise me if I could pass some of these competency tests and make obtaining my degree easier, and perhaps, cheaper.

The University of Wisconsin plans to launch the program this fall. Prices haven't been set for their Flexible Option program, but university officials say it should be "significantly less expensive." The goal of the program is to strengthen the state's workforce; it's not to dumb down education and just make it easy to get your degree.

If a program like this came to Massachusetts, I would sign up right away. I'm tired of not having my degree. I don't want it holding me back. It would even be helpful to me in my writing, so there's really no reason not to do it, unless it was cost prohibitive, which doesn't seem to be the case.

What do you think of this idea? Would you try to earn your degree this way if it was available in your state?