Last updated on Jun 11, 2015
By Angela Alfano
Staff Writer
The campus at LIU Post is filled with trees, bushes, and other vegetation that improves its outer appeal. The professors are some of the most accredited professionals in their field of study. This is all appealing to prospective students and even some of those who attend the university, but how is the inside of the campus? What goes into making Post so appealing?
The major source of income for the university is, of course, tuition. As of now, Post’s undergraduate tuition is at the steep price of approximately $33,000 per year for commuters. The cost rises by the thousands for those who dorm. According to the Admissions Office, tuition typically increases one to two percent every year. The cost of higher education is out of control and it is possible that years from now college degrees will become an unobtainable accomplishment.
Higher education comes with high costs, which could be understood in a capitalist society. If Post’s tuition increases one to two percent each year, Post’s 100th anniversary in 39 years will almost double the current tuition. It is hard to see how many people will be able to afford to come to such a well-known school on Long Island. Of course there are scholarship opportunities to be had. Some scholarships are worth a couple hundred dollars whereas others are a couple thousand. According to LIU’s website, the average amount given for individual scholarships is approximately $17,000.
This may not seem like a big deal for those who have their tuition paid by wealthy family members, but for those who have taken out loans by the thousands to get them through school, this is a huge deal. Most people who go to college are doing so to earn a degree in a specific field to go further in life. The cost of colleges, and especially universities, are making students who find education valuable to put off schooling. The student loan debt from Post can set people back years into their post- graduate lives because of nearly $100,000+ worth of debt.
“I am not naïve,” said junior Broadcasting major Kaitlin Veygel. “I know that I picked an expensive school to earn my degree at. I just didn’t think of how much more expensive it could get.”
Tuition does not even include the amount of money students spend annually on books. At the bookstore on campus, the books needed for courses can range from $9 to more than $180. A full time student taking 15 credits per semester can easily spend approximately $1,000 per year.
“I pay for school myself,” said Leah Fischman, a sophomore Criminal Justice major. “I also do not live at home, so I have rent to pay on top of tuition and books and occasionally food on campus when I have a long day.” For those who already live in the adult world, with bills to pay as well as tuition, universities are making it harder for people to further educate themselves and move up in life.
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