The Issue of Retention and the Cost of Education in Colleges and Universities in U.S.A - Essay Example

Due: Research Paper, Statistics Introduction U.S.A universities and college fees have caused a lot ofmixed reaction nowadays. Parents with college or university going students in today have to dig deep into their pockets in order to meet the rising higher education fees. In recent studies conducted in various universities in U.S.A, the average cost of pursuing a higher education in the public universities is more than $27,000 per year. This is excluding the top end universities such as Cornell and Columbia.

The top end universities in the year 2010 to 2011 total fees budget including accommodation, food and books totaled to $55,862 and $56,253. In addition the government owned universities and colleges are cheaper than the private owned. The average fees required for tuition in the private universities in a year is $20,000. In a 4 year term, that would total to $80,000. While in the private institutions is more than $40,000 per year. The wide fee difference between the two sector universities has resulted to increased undergraduate intake in the public universities.

The government run colleges and universities have enrolled 70% of the total undergraduate intake a year, with the colleges enrolling half of the country’s full time undergraduates. But not all the public colleges charge minimal amount, colleges such California, fee rate is the same as top end private universities. The rate of graduation in public colleges and universities has fluctuated from 70% to 60% in the past ten years. This is due to the low availability of resources in the public universities as compared to public.

The graduation rate in the private universities and the top universities has increased from to 50% to 80% this due to the high level of education offered as well as the selective nature of the private universities however, the number of graduates in public universities and colleges is still high when compared to the private owned. The difference in the fees rate charged in the two sectors means that some education accessories are only available in the high end universities and vice versa. In today, only time will tell whether the two education sectors will reach a point and charge tuition fee regardless of access and quality.

Works CitedN.p. “Student information, How much does it cost,” 11 May. 2014. Web. 29 Feb. 2012. ‹http://topunivesrities.com/›.N.p. “Trends in College Pricing.” College Board. 11 May 2014. Web 2013