[trcollinson]

The current annual cost for Harvard is US$50,420. So the other poster who said many are more than double is, well, off by a bit. So the "best" University (by their own marketing) is about 60% higher. The University of Utah where I live is about US$10,000 a year. The UC school system in California is at about US$14,000 a year. A good online school system like Western Governors University is about US$6000.

The problem is quite like the post above you said. It's loans. Students, with very little information or guidance are handed tens of thousands of US dollars a year to "pay for school". They can do any program, pay for any housing, pay for any food (my son in his first semester racked up a $7000 food bill, because cafe's took student food cards). Schools take advantage of the monstrous amount of debt students can get into.

There is no reason why a student needs to be tied down if they make smart decisions. The problem is the same today as when I was 18. 18 year old college students aren't always making smart decisions.