In the past ten years, college tuition rates have been rising nearly eight times that of the US inflation rate, or consumer price index.

After hearing this, you may wonder what this means for future college students. Will the prices continue to rise relentlessly, or is the education “bubble” destined to eventually burst? This is a question that many educators and even politicians wonder about, and are trying to control.

When a college education first came into existence, the intent was that if you graduated with a degree, you would in the long run make more money than if you went straight to work after high school. In an article in TIME Magazine, some experts say that many people graduate with over $100,000 in student loans, and they do not indeed get their money’s worth of college.

Of course, deciding whether or not to attend college is more than just knowing how much money you will make and whether it will be worth it. It also has to deal with a person’s desire to learn, desire to have a certain career, and, of course, the desiere to get the “college experience.”

In America, only 29 percent of adults attain a college degree. According to history teacher Matthew Schultz and college adviser Beth Abler, the costs of college continue to rise for two main reasons. 

“First off, schools are receiving fewer contributions from the country and state governments,” said the college adviser. “Second, the costs of maintaining a college continue to rise. You must take into account the rising costs of professor salaries, building and maintenance costs, food costs and even utility costs.”

 “Colleges do not want to raise their costs. Keeping tuition steady is very beneficial to students, and some colleges even offer programs where you can pay your first year tuition in full and be guaranteed no increases in tuition in years to come,” she added.

As Mr. Schultz often says, “The world needs ditch diggers too.”

Not only are there not enough degree-requiring jobs available for everyone, but it is estimated that nearly 85% of the world’s jobs are industrial and do not require any higher education.

At Notre Dame, multiple advanced courses are offered to students for a head start on their college education. Along with the International Baccalaureate Program, there is a series of College Credit courses available to students. With these courses, students can potentially get as much as 30 college credits in the bank.

However, “Students that earn a lot of college credit do not necessarily graduate from college in just three years,” explained  Mr. Schultz. “Instead, they are often times just able to attain a double major or double minor in only four years. This is still very beneficial, as it gives the student more opportunities when looking for a job.”

With the current state budget problems here in Wisconsin, public colleges, as well as all other public schools, may potentially be affected.

“In our public school system, it may just be that teachers will not do the ‘extra things’ for students like stay after the required hours or write letters of recommendation. All together, I don’t think the new bill will have a great impact on our states’ actual schooling,” said Mr. Schultz.

Some students like junior Andrew Zimmermann worry about the rapidly rising costs of college tuition.   “I think it’s crazy that colleges used to cost around $4,000 a year, and now it is not uncommon for private colleges to cost over $50,000 for one year.”