Are there simply too many colleges in the US?

Question

The US has thousands of colleges, but some of them are little more than moneymaking operations where up to 85% of students fail to graduate. Is that fair to students? Should these institutions exist?

Answer 1

Well most schools are non profit - so I don't think it is fair to say they are money making machines.  If they were then they would have a lot of incentive to graduate as many students as they could.  The problem with the US system, IMHO, is not the large number of colleges - it is the disparity between the standard taught at HS and the standard expected in college.  In many other countries they teach what would be first year university subjects in the US to 15 or even 14 year old's.  This provides a much better preparation for college.  The very best HS's in the US do just that by having students in ninth grade take for example AP World History and 10th or 11th grade students do AP Calculus.  However the standard at the average US HS, by international standards, is rather low.

Thanks

Bill

Answer 2

There was an article a while ago saying that, for some people, higher education is not worth the money. This may be true for people who maybe aren't motivated to further their education, or would be better suited to go straight into the workforce.

This isn't to say that there are too many colleges in the US, or that many of the colleges are being unfair to students. Lower graduation rates me also be related to poverty, learning disabilities, lack of motivation, or other personal difficulties of the student. Some institutions may not be performing, but it's also unfair to blame institutions for problems that students are also responsible for. After all, you're the only one who is truly in control of and responsible for your life.  

Answer 3

Berkeley is a top school that's not a money-making machine, but more than 50 percent of students don't graduate.  The failure to graduate is most often the students fault, not the colleges.  If the student wasn't prepared to enter college, even the worst school shouldn't give them a degree.

Answer 4

I don't see anything wrong with a college who doesn't graduate 85% of its students.  It isn't suppose to be easy.  If everyone had a college degree, no one would need it.