Americans Increasingly See College As Essential, But Less Accessible
More Americans think higher education is essential for economic success, but fewer think that college is accessible, according to a survey conducted by Public Agenda and the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education.
The survey, "Squeeze Play 2009: The Public's Views on College Costs Today," is the sixth survey conducted by the center. The surveys show a trend of more people believing that a growing number of qualified students do not have the opportunity to go to college. Additionally, more people don't believe that those who need help paying for college can get the loans or aid they need.
The previous survey was performed in 2007 when the economy was comparatively flourishing. The most recent survey shows changes in public attitude changes. This year's survey of 1009 people found that:
55 percent think college is necessary (up from 31 percent in 2000).
29 percent feel that qualified students have the opportunity to go to college (down from 45 percent in 2000).
67 percent think access to higher education for qualified students is a problem (the highest in the 15-year history of the survey).
40 percent disagreed with the statement that almost anyone who needs financial help to go to college can get the loans or aid they need (up from 30 percent who said the same thing in the 2007 survey).
86 percent said students have to borrow too much money to pay for college (up from 78 percent in 2007).
55 percent said they thought colleges are like most businesses and mainly care about the bottom line (up from 52 percent in 2007
35 percent said colleges mainly care about making sure students have a good educational experience (down from 43 percent in 2007).
53 percent said colleges could spend less and still maintain a high quality of education (down from 56 percent in 2000).
These stats suggest that more people recognize that college is necessary for economic survival, but more people simultaneously believe that today's college costs put higher education out of reach for too many who are qualified.
Posted 02/05/09 to www.NASFAA.org. Redistribution to non-NASFAA institutions is prohibited. Please submit Web Site questions or comments to Web@NASFAA.org.
