[throwawaygh]

> Parents obviously want to minimize the amount they're paying out of pocket

This spherical cow is fully confirmed by the higher ed market /s.

[coffeecat]

I'm not sure I follow. Many students/families choose community college for the freshman and sophomore years to minimize cost. Many opt for state universities over out-of-state/private universities for the same reason.

[mannerheim]

Well, you see, we take the naïve dupes who borrow hundreds of thousands of dollars in non-dischargeable, uncapped student loans for an MFA in film at Columbia, and extrapolate that to the rest of the population.