Dropping out of college after a year can mean lost time, burdensome debt and an uncertain future for students.
Now there’s an estimate of what it costs taxpayers. And it runs in the billions.
States appropriated almost $6.2 billion for four-year colleges and universities between 2003 and 2008 to help pay for the education of students who did not return for year two, a report released Monday says.
In addition, the federal government spent $1.5 billion and states spent $1.4 billion on grants for students who didn’t start their sophomore years, according to “Finishing the First Lap: The Cost of First-Year Student Attrition in America’s Four-Year Colleges and Universities.”
The dollar figures, based on government data and gathered by the nonprofit American Institutes for Research, are meant to put an economic exclamation point on the argument that college completion rates need improvement.
But the findings also could give ammunition to critics who say too many students are attending four-year schools — and that pushing them to finish wastes even more taxpayer money.
The Obama administration, private foundations and others are driving a shift from focusing mostly on making college more accessible to getting more students through with a diploma or certificate.
Mark Schneider, a vice president at the American Institutes for Research and former commissioner of the Education Department’s National Center for Education Statistics, said the report’s goal is to spotlight the costs of losing students after year one, the most common exit door in college.
“We’re all about college completion right now, and I agree 100 percent with the college completion agenda and we need a better-educated adult population and workforce,” Schneider said.
The cost of educating students who drop out after one year account for between 2 to 8 percent of states’ total higher education appropriations, Schneider said. He said the report emphasizes state spending because states provide most higher education money and hold the most regulatory sway over institutions and can drive change.
Ohio, for example, has moved toward using course and degree completion rates in determining how much money goes to its public colleges and universities instead of solely using enrollment figures.
“We recognize an institution is not going to be perfect on graduation and completion rates,” said Eric Fingerhut, chancellor of the Ohio Board of Regents. “But at the same time, we know they can do better than they’re doing. And if you place the financial rewards around completion, then you will motivate that.”
The AIR report draws from Department of Education data, which Schneider concedes does not provide a full picture.
The figures track whether new full-time students at 1,521 public and private colleges and universities return for year two at the same institution. It doesn’t include part-timers, transfers or students who come back later and graduate.
The actual cost to taxpayers may run two to three times higher given those factors and others, including the societal cost of income lost during dropouts’ year in college, said Richard Vedder, an Ohio University economics professor. And tying state appropriations to student performance could just cause colleges to lower their standards, he said.
Robert Lerman, an American University economics professor who, like Vedder, questions promoting college for all, said the report fleshes out the reality of high dropout rates. But he said it could just as easily be used to argue that less-prepared, less-motivated students are better off not going to college.
“Getting them to go a second year might waste even more money,” Lerman said. “Who knows?”
Online: http://collegemeasures.org/
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Jakenaz
Posted on October 12, 2010 at 4:19pmWhy is the government involved in College Education? Are the Educators too stupid to provide a quality education to those who want to study and earn a degree?
Report Post »Arc
Posted on October 12, 2010 at 2:19amIf a college or university furnishes scholarships, why not provide them in the form of an individual account for each recipient (no monetary tansfers of funds). At the end of the year if the scholarship recipient declares an intent to return for the sophmore year again an account would be set up. Should they fail to return the following year, place the SCHOLARSHIP account in the hands of a collection agency and deny an application for “credit transfer” to another college or university.
Report Post »historypaper
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 1:59pmFake colleges cost taxpayers Billions and Billions. Everybody wants a free college degree. College is a money game not an education game.
Report Post »Contrarianthinker
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 11:20amAt UNC-Pembroke where I taught for 15 years, the average total cost to fill a seat was $5500. The student only paid about 20% of that. Many came to party. I would say there was maybe 15% who really sought to learn.
On the first day of class, I asked the students to raise their hands IF they had a scholarship. A few did raise their hands. I then explained that ALL of them had a scholarship paid for by the taxpayers in tha amount of about $4500. Given this, I EXPECTED them to put in a full 40+ hour week. The next class usually saw about half the students drop my course. A UNCP survey found that students felt that 10 hours study was sufficient to get good grades. Most took 15 Credit hours so we are talking about less than an hour/week studying for each course.
I was a Business Professor.
When running for NC Governor in 2000, I proposed the following in terms of tuition:
The student pays the $1000 and then signs a note for $4500. If they dropped out, they were responsible to pay the full note in 10 Years. Then there was a sliding inverse scale for graduates. A 3.50 => had the note forgiven down to 2.00 +> to pay back 90% of the loan. Needless to say, I didn’t win the student vote. (grin) Many faculty thought that this would led to grade inflation. Rememebr most of the facvulty were Progressives.
Report Post »DMD
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 10:39amI thought College was a RIGHT!!!
Report Post »TexasJack
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 10:27amI guess what concerns me a lot is the idea that “using course and degree completion rates in determining how much money goes to its public colleges and universities instead of solely using enrollment figures.” as is done in Ohio may make it more about moving students thru rather than educationg them. I think we seen the effects of the social promotion on the local public school graduates.
Report Post »LARR
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 10:19amBetter solution…Do NOT allow any grants, scholarships, etc for any given quarter, semester. Require students go out and get a loan or pay up front. Make the grades, get reimbursed which allows you to go pay off the loan. Fail/drop out….you pay the loan back and the taxpayers are not out any funds…Wait…I guess taxpayers would be out of it all together….
Report Post »LLATPOH
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 10:32amI work at a business that provides education assistance in that manner. They’ll reimburse you for any course you take if you pass. If you fail, it’s your dime.
It’s a very good motivation.
But, it would just make too much sense to put a “sensible” solution such as yours into law. I mean, think of the children! :)
Report Post »wingedwolf
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 10:16amWhen I went to college, back when dinosaurs roamed the Earth, I & some friends were in the elevator talking about paying for school, stupid subject, but we were, & a female person chimed in with something that made us collectively want to kill her. I will quote what she said as best as I remember: “I doesn’t worry ’bout paying fo’ school, I just signs up & comes till I gets me a may-an then I quits.” (I asked what about all the money wasted) “I gits the cash from the welfare people, they doesn’t much care.” (I asked what happens when she breaks up with her “May-an”) “I just goes back to the welfare people & gits me another grant.” (I asked how many grants a person can get before the welfare people figure out that you don’t intend to finish school & deny you any more grants.) “I don‘ know nuthin’ ’bout that, I already has me fo’ (4) grants.” She got off the elevator & we all stood in completely stunned silence. We, who were all of us paying our own money to go to school at great difficulty & while keeping jobs, would have cheerfully dismembered her. It’s probably a good thing for her that she got her happy ass off the thing.
Report Post »LLATPOH
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 10:14amI paid my own way thru 1.5 years of college. I stopped going after I found that none of the “required” courses had anything to do with my degree. So I was paying a very high tuition for a BS in Computer Science and HAD to take courses like…
Gym
Healthy (which was basically a full-semester course on sex ed… in college.)
Sociology (which was an ethnic diversity class)
Art
And more!
After 1.5 years of that, and looking at much more down the road, I realized that college was a 75% waste of time with very little return on investment.
Recently, I’ve seen more and more “universities” popping up in our area. My wife checked one of them out… One place was offering 4-year degrees (after books) for such lofty positions like “Vetrinary Technician,“ and ”Cosmetic Technician” that can cost you $40,000 or more for a job that will only pay $25,000/yr.
The disturbing fact? People actually think that it’s still a good investment! I asked the advisor the obvious question… Why would people put themselves into so much debt for such a low payout? Her answer? “Well, people that choose these degrees don’t do it for the money.” So it’s the feel-good part that costs $40k? Puh-lease.
In conclusion – Lots of kids drop out of college, not because they’re unable to handle it, but because they see what a waste of time it really is. Seems to me they’re the smarter ones.
Report Post »theninthplanet
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 10:10amNot everyone is college material. Lots of college students are also chasing worthless degrees – think philosophy or anything liberal arts. Doesn’t help that Mommy and Daddy are bankrolling their education either, there’s no responsibility anymore.
I might be biased though, I’m paying my way through college right now, and I’m pursuing an engineering degree. Nothing difficult about that, eh?
Report Post »LLATPOH
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 10:21amYou hit it right on the head. No responsibility, worthless degrees.
Best of luck on your degree… No doubt one of the most difficult (but worthwhile) field to work in is Engineering, no matter what the type. That degree is one that actually makes sense and can be quite rewarding.
Report Post »Hugh Williams
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:50amIn addition, the federal government spent $1.5 billion and states spent $1.4 billion on grants for students who didn’t start their sophomore years,
Report Post »If the students did not return to school, they did not use the grant. If the grant was not use by the student that left collage, where was the grant money spent? What am I mssing?
Thevoice
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:38amThis whole college thing has turned into a high dollar profit center for those running the place. When easy credit became available to go the college..The pay for professors went higher and higher. Now with “GOVERNMENT” backed loans the sky’s the limit on the costs and the complaining continues for more and more money for this socialists style public secondary education.. Again the failure will be the ideology (That America has swallowed hook line and sinker) that something sound can be built on sandy debt .You don’t need a university degree to understand that.
Report Post »Billy Greenacre
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:36amThis is where the government has screwed up royally. And, guess what, it was on purpose. Anyone on this board know who William Ayers is and what it is he does nowadays?
Report Post »Ford Prefect
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:34amSo the 25% that drop out of high school should be forced to stay in college.
Report Post »Gunner4theLord
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:32amWhat a joke college has become. For many it is just another system to “work”. I have a co-worker who’s boyfriend signs up for college each semester, gets his free money and then never show up.
Report Post »norcalart
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:31amThis country needs more technical schools to train auto mechanics, appliance repairmen etc. Many young people are needed to fill hands on jobs that will provide income for young families. Also a tech school education will not leave the graduate with long term school loan to pay off.
Report Post »computerdweller
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:24amColleges since the 60′s have over filled freshman classes knowing they did not have room for that many sophomores. They do it to get the money and get the best students possible for the rest of the college years. The want their alumni to have the best students possible because thats how they are judged. Now that the government is paying for it, their upset at the cost of doing this.
Report Post »Poverty with a view
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:21amPrivate For-profit education is an answer. What students don’t pay back is made up in the ways of corporate taxes. In the end, it doesn’t cost the tax payer a dime to educate students privately and for a profit. Imagine, an educational system operating by the laws of supply and demand – Adam Smith would be proud!
Report Post »Poverty with a view
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:45amAnother positive about private for-profit schools – Students are not subject to the marxist left’s ideologies – they learn about business from business prfessionals, they learn about IT from IT professionals, they learn about Education from Education professionals – they ARE NOT taught to think like little socialists like our broken non-profit schools do. That is why the left (Dick Durbin, Tom Harkin, and Obama) and the media are out to destroy for profit universities.
Report Post »Steve E
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:19amSo let me get the right. We need more graduates, We already push kids through K-12 without basic skills like reading and math, now they want to make sure more people finish college. By any means possible. That sure will help. I mean having a piece of paper will undoubtedly make a person a better employee
Report Post »Only1King
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:17amIf you don’t pay for it it has no value to you.
Report Post »LARR
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:23amAmen – I had three sons graduate from georgia tech. All had the scholarship paid by the stupid tax (lottery)…they maintained a B average so the state paid for all tuition (and believe me, a B average at tech (college of engineering) can’t be compared to a B average at Chatahoochie Vocational). They had internships during the summer so they paid for their fall room and board..I paid for their spring room and board…They paid in labor and hours on hours of study… end result?
State – $25,000
Sons – $12,500
Me – $12,500
They left school with engineering degrees and no debt….
Report Post »CoFX
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:44amAgreed, Only. They should give scholarships and grants with strings attached. If you don’t graduate within a certain number of years, these free funds are to be repaid – add them into the student loans and make sure the funds are repaid if they drop out.
Many of these kids are not prepared for a four-year college when they come out of a subpar public school system, but want to go to the big schools right away for 4+ years of the “college experience”. If kids get taxpayer money to persue a degree, if they drop out, it should be their responsibility to repay the taxpayer’s investment.
Report Post »amerbur
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:14amI now have one college graduate fully indoctrinated into the left wing agenda,one Senior who is nearing full indoctrination and finally, one dumb parent with debt.
Report Post »AGracie
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 10:29amCould you tell me how the indoctrination occurs? My conservative brother and sister-in-law have a very liberal daughter in journalism school. Another conservative friend has a liberal son majoring in political science. The stories are endless. So the schools‘ teachings takes precedence of the students’ minds over home and family life?
Report Post »drbage
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 12:15pmRemember Al Gore gave a glimpse into how this is done when he told a group of middle school students that the students know things which their parents don’t and we have had many examples where the indoctrination institutes tell the students that they should not listen to their parents. Also, part of the problem stems from the fact that the schools we pay for and have for years been dumbing down the curriculum to satisfy the Feds, but they forgot to tell the universities what they were doing.
Report Post »heebster
Posted on October 13, 2010 at 9:30pmIndoctrinated? This implies you either don’t trust your children to make their own decisions, or you believe they are too stupid to think on their own, and are easily swayed to believe everything a ‘liberal’ college tells them. Maybe after being fed base-line conservative ideas, they went off to college and realized there was actually many diverse opinions that exist, all equally acceptable.
Report Post »DrammyCoke
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:05amMaybe the DOE should concentrate on educating our kids instead of appeasing the teachers union.
Report Post »LARR
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:03amPerhaps part of the solution is accepting that everyone is NOT necessarily college material? But the answer will probably be….relaxing the standards so more can, at least on paper, complete their degree.
Report Post »caitlynsdad
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:03amBig Government Headline: College Dropouts Cost Taxpayers Billions
Limited Government Headline # 1: College Dropouts Cost Parents Thousands
Report Post »Limited Government Headline # 2: College Dropouts Learn to Spend Their Money Wisely in Future
Limited Government Headline # 3: College Students Who Pay Their Own Way Learn to Study Hard
CulChulain
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:25amAwesome headlines!! Very funny. Thanks.
Report Post »Madisonian
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:35amLike the old adage if you tax an activity you get less of it, if you subsidize an activity you get more. If the government would get out of the business of education and stop pushing that agenda, we’d be better off. Look at how many successful entrepreneurs out there either didn‘t go or didn’t complete college. It’s 4 more years of indoctrination and lumping the entitlement mentality on the young, only this time with more drinking and less parental oversight.
Report Post »caitlynsdad
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:59am@Madisonian
In addition, it creates the elitist mentality among liberals that those who have not gone to college are intellectually inferior to those who have. I happen to have an M.A. degree, but it is precisely because I spent so many years in an academic enviornment that I can tell you that college professors can be some of the stupidest people you’ve ever met; whereas, I’ve met self-educated people who are much brighter.
I once had a professor in a course I took on John Milton who spent about the first week of class teaching, not Milton but British history because he felt that it was necessary background to understanding the poems of John Milton. In talking about this with the professor in his office, he noted that a course in British history used to be required for graduate students in English, but it was no longer required and so he felt it important to give that background. I guess he felt the need to apologize for what might have seemed pointless to the other students, but I reassured him of its helpfulness to me, and noted that he had motivated me to go and learn more of it on my own. And that’s when he told me that, of course, you can learn things like that on your own, and it’s a false belief that a lot of people seem to have that in order to learn about something you need to take a course in it. That professor was very wise.
Report Post »heebster
Posted on October 13, 2010 at 9:27pmYeah, who needs college anyway? I’m okay with all the better paying, more advanced jobs going across the sea. Even though college education is still the best way to make any real money, I’d prefer to watch my country go down the toilet. Let’s leave higher education only to the wealthiest in this country!
Report Post »sWampy
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:03amWe need to figure out that 30-50% of the population just aren’t cut out to be a college grad, and stop pressuring everyone to go. This a masters degree is worth less than a bs was 20 years ago, a doctorate is now worth less than a bs was 30 years ago.
Report Post »RONALDREAGAN1980
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:38amMany of the first year entry level courses are what we call “flunk out classes”, designed to weed out people who perhaps aren’t going to be able to cut it later on. They are notorious for having a massive text, 10-12 additional books with papers due on each on, exams focusing on minutiea rather than basic concepts, and professors laying heavy psychological pressure on their students with the implication that they aren’t good enough. In other words, one course with more work than can be done well in one semester if taken by itself, and your average student may have 2-4 such flunk out courses in their first semester. This is one of the way colleges and universities build “prestige” after the admittance process. So this particular news story should not shock anyone.
Report Post »untameable-kate
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:42amSWAMPY I was just thinking the same thing. Maybe if kids had to work thier way through school like I did they would have greater appreciation for the education they get. You‘re right that college isn’t for everyone, I’m not saving for my kid he wants to go into the military, I sure won’t push him into college. If he changes his mind about school he can work his way through thereby gaining respect for his education.
Report Post »CrystalClear
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:52amThis story should not shock anyone because free money programs are almost always abused and the money wasted. Easy come, easy go.
If the first year is designed to weed out those who cannot make it in the long run, maybe the first year’s expenses should be reduced. At least there would be less waste.
Perhaps offering more two year vocational training courses at the junior college level would be more effective and efficient for those who cannot attend a four year university. Senior high school students could receive more vocational training also.
Report Post »independentvoteril
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 9:52amcould be the students weren’t LEARNING anything anyway with the agenda the schools are using..Yes most kids are PUSHED into college for a few reasons there are FEW jobs that are manual labor for those that DON’T like BOOK learning.. they were sent to CHINA.. Than you have the mandated classes that DO NOT prepare you for a job but you have to pay for and take to get a degree.. When a credited class is LOGIC something that should be learned at home from childhood is now a college course something is WRONG.. I went back to school in the 90′s the mandated classes along with the FAR LEFT teachers it was an experience best forgotten. Everyone should experience what is going on in our schools first hand than you would understand what the problem is with the dropout rate..It seems many of our universities and colleges are nothing more than a place to push agenda’s at least in 90% of the cases.. Scary..
Report Post »MSRIGHT
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 10:27amLet‘s not forget that the SAT scores were lowered within the last 10 years so it would appear that the kids getting into college are actually smarter than their counterparts from the early 60’s. So it is not surprising that kids are not making it all the way through college. If they have professors like Obama and Ayers teaching them. Do you really think that they are that smart? The college process is already like the government with tons of beaurocratic steps just to get in. They require way too much personal financial information to obtain entrance. Even if you are paying for it out of pocket you still have to complete the fincancial information forms to be considered for acceptance. There is not enough being done to control the money that is spent on grants and the kids are not attending class. The kids not attending should be kicked out and made to repay the money.
Report Post »RONALDREAGAN1980
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 10:39amCrystalclear- you are right on about junior colleges, vocational training, etc. Both of my sons are attending a local community college, and the goal there seems to be on education and preparation, not weeding out. They can transfer to a major university after they have proved themselves with a couple of years at the community college. The cost there is a fraction, and i mean less than half, of even a state-supported 4 year university. Perhaps this is a route that should be encouraged with those accepting government-sponsored scholarships and grants. Not everyone needs to go to Harvard, Columbia, or Yale.
Report Post »jds7171
Posted on October 11, 2010 at 12:37pmKids dropping out from college is just a symptom of the real problem. You have kids that barely passed high school, I mean barely pass, then they get pressured to go to college. They go to college, but they still have the same mentality as they do in highschool. I had kids in my class -I am a studen‘t so I don’t confuse you guys-that they skip half of the semester, fail the final, and then complain that they didn’t pass. To stop this from happening you need to start at the begining. Parents need to start parenting and make their kids go to school when they are younger, and stop babying.
Report Post »Watch that new tony Danza show-teach. It shows you how much the schools lower the bar for students.
Taquoshi
Posted on October 12, 2010 at 8:55amSome of those “weed out” courses are there for a good reason, like organic chemistry and A&P for nursing and medical school.
Our son is currently in a community college, and had to take English 101 because he was two points short on the entrance test. His professors kept asking him why he was in their classes because he obviously didn’t need them. A lot of the students are woefully unprepared for college.
One of the problems in our area is that the State has decided that professional child care workers must have a four year degree, which they announced two years ago and the goal date was 2010. That’s forcing a lot of people back into the educational system that were doing their jobs just fine until someone decided they needed that piece of paper. Yes, there are health and safety concerns in caring for young children and discipline issues, but people need four years of training to do this?
Report Post »unionrockstar
Posted on October 12, 2010 at 5:53pmswampy;
Report Post »That’s the core of the problem.
Why does everyone need a College Education?
They wouldn‘t have the opportunity to drop out if they weren’t forced to go in the first place.
What happened to the days when every vocation was considered important?
Why is it so important that no child is left behind? Maybe they should never have been trying to keep up in the first place. Then we wonder why we have 15,000,000 illegal immagrants. We have placed an expectation on our young people that they are not successful unless they first go to school for 20 years and then let someone else do the dirty jobs. If we continue to preach this expectation to our young people then it makes perfect sense that sooner or latter the someone else’s will have to be imported. We will have a whole Country full of educated unemployeed youngsters who all expect an office job. Has anybody ever considered the fact that some people just do not have a desire for higher education? What’s wrong with that? It takes all kinds of different pieces to put a puzzle together. All of them are important; small and large. We just may be putting to much pressure on our kids.