Breaking point : the college affordability crisis and our next financial bubble / Kevin W. Connell.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Connell, Kevin, 1992- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

College costs--United States.

College costs.

United States--Economic conditions--21st century.

United States.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (165 pages) : illustrations

Place of Publication:

Lanham : Rowman & Littlefield, [2016]

Summary:

In recent decades, the crisis of college affordability has emerged as one of the defining challenges of our era. Since 1978, college tuition and fees have soared by 1,120 percent, growing at three times the rate of housing prices and four times the rate of the increase in the hourly wage. The inevitable consequence has resulted in a national student debt that surpassed $1.3 trillion in 2015, crushing the average household under $35,000 in student debt. Breaking Point explains flaws in the structure of higher education that have caused college prices to soar over our lifetime, including "prestige maximization," a perpetual "amenities war," and a predatory lending industry that has not only fostered but encouraged the explosion of college costs. To counter this trend, Kevin Connell proposes several bold solutions that are intended to induce colleges and lenders alike to redefine the structure, price, and ultimate purpose of higher education in America.

Contents:

Sowing the seeds of crisis

Tanked by rank

Penniless for perks

Lending roots : inception of greed

Sallie Mae : the rise of a lending empire

Rigged

Breaking backs to balance budgets

A stake in the game

The new American college & university.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

1-4758-2604-4