The underlying cause of the high cost of college is an inability to objectively demonstrate quality or the value added by a college. Currently, college rankings are determined by the amount of money they have and spend. Those with more presti

14. Why Does College Cost So Much? Putting It All Together

Apr 17th, 2024 19m 22s

The high cost of college prevents many from attending or causes others to go into debt at an early age and delay life plans. Why does college cost so much? Because there is no objective measure of quality, prestige is determined by how much m

13. If Purdue Can Do It, Why Can't U?

Apr 10th, 2024 9m 43s

Purdue University has frozen tuition for the last 13 years while improving its reputation. This has saved students $6,000 per year, reduced the amount of debt, and improved graduation rates. How did it do it and why don’t other universities d

12. The Interests of Colleges and Students Do Not Align

Apr 3rd, 2024 14m 19s

The priorities of boards of trustees, administrators , and faculty are often different from those of the students. Those students are paying into a system which directs funds into activities that do not align with their interests. They do not

11. Why Not Use the Endowment To Pay For Everything?

Mar 27th, 2024 21m 13s

Wealth inequality among universities enables the rich to get richer. The design of college endowments limits the extent to which they can be used to reduce tuition for everyone.Theme music credit: Sunshine by lemonmusicstudio via Pixabay

10. Do Campus Luxuries and Amenities Make College a Lot More Expensive?

Mar 20th, 2024 18m 1s

Climbing walls and lazy river pools are conspicuous and attract much attention but add relatively little to the cost of attendance. On the other hand, colleges have been raising the prices they charge for housing at a rate much higher than inf

9. The Rise of the Administrative State on Campus

Mar 13th, 2024 27m 45s

Federal regulations and reporting requirements of colleges have grown in recent years forcing them to hire non-instructional staff to comply. But this only accounts for a small part of the amount spent on administration.Colleges have expanded

8. How Much Are College Students Paying For Research?

Mar 6th, 2024 33m 4s

Institutional support of sponsored research has grown at twice the rate of inflation for over 60 years and is an overlooked cause of high tuition. The annual expense of unsponsored research is many thousands of dollars per student and may be a

7. Do Professors' Salaries and Baumol (Service) Cost Disease Explain Why College Costs So Much?

Feb 28th, 2024 16m 12s

Service fields such as higher education do not experience large improvements in efficiency so the cost of providing that service rises. The salaries of professors may contribute a minor amount to the rising cost of college; however, reduced te

6. How Much Do Intercollegiate Athletics Cost Students?

Feb 21st, 2024 23m 51s

All intercollegiate athletic programs lose money, except for a few at universities with successful football programs Students are charged up to several thousand dollars per year to make up the deficit. Compliance with Title IX also adds to th

5. What Role Do Rankings Play in the High Cost of College?

Feb 14th, 2024 24m 7s

Influential rankings are based on the wealth of an institution, not how much students learn. This incentivizes colleges to maximize income in order to remain competitive.Theme music credit: Sunshine by lemonstudiomusic via Pixabay

4. Do Loans, Grants, and Tax Breaks Really Make College More Affordable?

Feb 7th, 2024 23m 26s

Government grants, easy access to subsidized loans, and tax breaks have made more money available to students, but somehow, students are even more overwhelmed with the burden of paying for college.Theme music credit: Sunshine by lemonmusicstudi

3. Shifting Public Support of Colleges and Universities

Jan 31st, 2024 23m 40s

In this episode, we examine public colleges and universities and discuss:The high variability in higher education funding between states.How state appropriations dropped during the decade of the 2000s causing public colleges to make up for the

2. Individual Pricing of College Tuition Leads to Higher Charges

Jan 31st, 2024 35m 13s

In this episode, we discuss:Individual pricing, the most important factor contributing to the rise of tuition sticker price at private colleges and universities. The effect of economic surplus, market segmentation, and enrollment management in

1. The Problem of High College Tuition

Jan 31st, 2024 16m 49s

Once upon a time, Americans had access to affordable higher education and could pay for it by working while in college. This promoted social mobility. Over the last few decades, costs have risen dramatically causing current students to drown

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