According to the conservative Manhattan Institute, free tuition would do little to increase college graduation rates since cost is not the main obstacle to a college degree.
“Low-income students in the U.S. already pay, on average, no net tuition to attend community colleges — yet barely a third graduate,” writes Max Eden, a senior fellow at Manhattan. “Half of students in the bottom income quintile pay no net tuition to attend public universities.”
Eden also points out that college attainment is higher in developed countries that charge tuition compared to those that don’t.
Not only would it not increase graduation rates, but it could hurt the higher education system. For example, Massachusetts offered free tuition to some students and research found that some students ended up in lower quality universities than they otherwise would have.
“When Massachusetts offered free public college to students graduating in the top 25 percent of their high school class, researchers found that students who would have enrolled in higher-quality, higher-cost private institutions enrolled in lower-quality, tuition-free public institutions, lowering overall completion rates,” Eden writes.
“When Massachusetts offered free public college to students graduating in the top 25 percent of their high school class, researchers found that students who would have enrolled in higher-quality, higher-cost private institutions enrolled in lower-quality, tuition-free public institutions, lowering overall completion rates,” Eden writes.
This could lead to qualified low-income students attending lower-quality colleges because of the free tuition, while high-quality private institutions would increasingly become schools for the wealthy.
Free college tuition would also leave universities fully dependent on taxpayer funding, which could put them in a bind during economic downturns. “If taxpayer generosity lags behind cost increases, colleges will be forced to either ration access or decrease the quality of their educational offerings,” Eden writes.
Instead, Eden has a better idea.
“A better approach would be to focus more on grant aid for low-income students, reform student loan repayment to lower the financial risk of attending college, provide students more information on the expected outcomes of attending college A or college B and give colleges an incentive to see their students succeed by giving them a financial stake in whether students are able to pay back their debt,” Eden says.
“Creating high-quality higher-education opportunities is far more important to students than making tuition free.”
Jason Russell is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
