Subprime Education: Review In “A Subprime Education”, Martin Smith and Marcela Gaviria, correspondent and producer respectively, present to us a documentary that calls for-profit colleges everywhere into question. Smith and Martin uncover the truth behind these for-profit colleges and what it means for the students who join them. Airing in September 2016, the documentary goes deep into the accusations of false promises, predatory style recruitment, and fraud for-profit colleges use to entrap their students. With the help of first-hand experiences, shocking statistics, and interviews with political leaders, the documentary sheds light on the evils for-profit colleges have hidden within them. This documentary opened my eyes to what for-profit …show more content…
With unemployment at such a high level, Americans around the country wanted to go back to school for a better life, seeing this for-profit took hired salesmen to persuade people to become students and created lavish advertisements in which the American people took control of their future by going to school. The for-profits encouraged students to take out loans, assuring them jobs making twenty dollars and hour and making it seem as though the loans could be paid off fast and easy. During this time, for-profit colleges had attained about 24 billion dollars in federal student loans, money the students were expected to pay back upon completion of the …show more content…
The two were homeless meth addicts looking to change their lives for the sake of their kids. They signed up for 30 thousand dollars of student loans, so they could enroll in the college. After about three semesters Hollie and Brian dropped out of the college, but the bills kept coming, drowning them in debt to this day. The stories of the people affected by for-profits is only enhanced by the use of background music and inclusion of media reports. Imagery is heavy when it comes to Hollie and French’s story. Scenes of their tent plays at the viewers emotions and makes us feel sorry for them. The snippet of Washington, D.C. sets a tone of seriousness as to how for-profits are affecting America so much the government has taken notice. The interviews conducted by Smith help give further information and viewpoints from both sides of the spectrum. All the scenes do a good job of making the viewer question for-profit colleges. Because of the attention these scam colleges have garnished, the school board has drawn their credibility and claims into question. The for-profits are now forced to back up their claims of promised jobs or have their federal funding taken away. The investigations have caused hundreds of these schools to shut down, leaving students in debt and with worthless
When the documentary begins you see four college seniors, Soma, Jess, Dontay and Cecilia, all students who work hard and are striving to get accepted to colleges of their choice while also juggling extracurricular activities, jobs, sports
In the essay, “College Consumerism Run Amok” authored by Kevin Carey describe how colleges are careless with their money. Throughout the essay, Kevin Carey explains why normal people think the average price of college tuition has risen across the United States. People believe college tuition is rising because students demand colleges to have “creature comforts”, such as luxury dorms, a fully operational gym, and a climbing wall. Also, that the creation for “creature comforts” in colleges has caused academic standards to decline. Yet, colleges market to students with these amenities instead of showing students comparable statistics: the quality of teaching, scholarships, and academic environment. Kevin Carey, in the end, sums up his idea with
College is marketed towards students as an essential part of building a successful future. The United States “sells college” to those who are willing to buy into the business (Lee 671). With the massive amounts of student debts acquired every year, and the rising costs of
Higher education has continued to evolve just as society has in its accessibility and purpose in surviving its students. In Mark Edmundson’s On the uses of a liberal education: 1. as lite entertainment for bored college students, he discusses how consumer culture has turned every aspect of higher education into a buyer’s market which students feed into. William Deresiewicz’s The Neoliberal Arts: How college sold its should to the market expands on this idea from the 90’s through a modern interpretation. Deresiewicz uses the term neoliberalism to discuss how universities are at fault for succumbing to societal influences of ideals based on monetary value. Deresiewicz’s definition of neoliberalism expands on Edmundson’s prior ideas of consumer
The advertisements are everywhere -- on local television stations it is Everest Institute, or Brown Mackie College. On South Florida highway billboards, it is the University of Phoenix. All are selling a quick, convenient college education, and the dream of a better life. In this economy, people are buying, and in the process the schools -- built to make a profit -- are thriving. What is less clear, though, is how much students actually benefit. For-profit colleges, many with night classes and entire degree programs available online, are built to fit seamlessly into the busy life of a working adult.
Community colleges and vocational tracks are not wrong about the high cost of traditional higher education. According to the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics, one year at a public, four-year institution costs upwards of $23,000 on average, while private institutions will cost nearly $10,000 more on average. Coupled with the fact that prices at public institutions rose 42 percent and private institutions rose 31 percent between 2001 and 2011, it’s not a shock that parents and students alike worry about paying for college. However, this won’t always be the case, as this rise in prices simply cannot continue the way it has. Eventually, people will be unable to pay the price that colleges charge. They will either settle for com...
In recent years, there has been a tremendous increase in student enrollment in higher education after high school effecting the need for financial aid for all students. Education has become a growing part in America where more students want to better their lives with a college education. However, the cost of college tuition has increased and more students find themselves struggling to pay off the enormous tuition rates. In a recent study by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, student debt has reached $1 trillion in federal loan debt. Student loan debt has crippled the economy and students are struggling to pay off federal loans. In order to help students with the high tuition rates of college the government and universities offer
Today in America, “The average Class of 2016 graduate has $37,172 in student loan debt, up six percent from last year. $1.28 trillion in total U.S. student loan debt...44.2 million Americans with student loan debt”(U.S. Student Loan Hero, 1). We spend our lives working, learning, and trying to survive. In order to survive, we need to be educated. In order to be educated, we need money. To collect money, we need a good paying job. And in order to have a job, we need to be educated. It’s a large cycle that goes around in circles, and we can’t seem to find a steady way to help provide these things for everyone. While we all strive to make the best of every situation, money has become an issue, creating problems in many lives around the world. “According to the College Board, the average cost of tuition and fees for the 2016–2017 school year was $33,480 at private colleges, $9,650 for state residents at public colleges, and $24,930 for out-of-state residents attending public universities” (COLLEGEdata, 1). And it’s not easy to have a positive look on the American dream when our own president in spouting things like “Sadly, the American Dream is dead” (President Donald
In a letter to columnist Ann Landers, a college professor wrote about his views of the education system. He feels that universities have turned into businesses where teachers are just looking for money and students are just looking for a piece of paper with a title on it. He says that the students of today think they are automatically entitled to a degree because they pay tuition (Depressed Old Prof. 3-B). Adding to the profit motive for schools is the government which, for the p...
Employers consider a degree necessary for getting a job at their company. However, not many people can afford college. The solution is to take out loans, then college becomes affordable. These loans create a whole different issue, student loan debt. This can affect people their whole lifetime and has been happening for years upon years. But, in the more recent years America is starting to shed more light onto the issue and are becoming curious on why colleges charge twenty five thousand dollars, or more, for a year of education. Many different countries offer free college, but in America student loan debt keeps getting worse.
Since the 1980’s the cost of attending colleges have increased rapidly. Rising costs of for Medicare, highways and prisons have caused many states to reduce a percentage of their budget for higher education. Colleges and Universities currently face a very serious challenge:
High schools build their students up to go to college. They don’t expose the students to any other paths but getting a higher education. There are no high schools anymore that teach their students how to start their own business or invent their own product. They don’t educate their students on how to use the Internet to become more educated with things without going to college. In the 1970’s a college student could afford their college tuition without student loans or getting financial assistance their parents. They were able to pay by working a part time job year round or a job over the summer on their time off. The government destroyed this by providing easy students loans to anyone who applied. There weren’t any credit requirements for taking the loans out. According to a documentary called “Conspiracy Scam” on youtube, tuition for a four-year college costs $29,293. It also states that price went ...
Children of the twenty first century spend nearly 13 years in school, preparing for what is college, one of the only ways to achieve the so-called “American Dream”. College is the best way to start an advanced career and go further than one possibly could if college degrees were not available, allowing people to achieve their view of the American Dream; whether it be large houses, shiny cars, multiple kids, or financial comfort, college is the stepping stone to achieve the American Dream. But all great things come with a price, college dragging along debt. Students who attend college struggle to find ways to pay for it, leading to applying for student loans. These loans a great short term, paying for the schooling at the moment but eventually the money adds up
When people like Clifford examine education, it is not the worth and value they see, but the opportunity for profit. With nearly $5-billion provided from the federal government, for-profits are able to advertise 24/7 availability, along with quick and easy degrees. As stated in the article, “a quarter of all federal aid goes to for-profits, while they enroll only 10 percent of students” (216). Yet, the cost of tuition at for-profit institutions continues to be significantly higher than colleges and universities—leaving many graduates with a lifetime of debt—while maintaining they do not “have any responsibility whatsoever for how much students borrow and whether they can pay it back” (218). What Carey presents as a measure of success proves to show exactly what damages for-profits cause.
John Merrow. PBS Home Video 2007. DVD. Kelderman, Eric. “As State Funds Dry Up, Many Community Colleges Rely More On Tuition Than On Taxes To Get By.”