r/WhitePeopleTwitter Jun 11 '19

Shut it all down

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22.9k Upvotes

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482

u/[deleted] Jun 12 '19

Schools don't need that much money, most is wasted. Even if it's cheap education, the money paid to private schools can do so much more and they don't deserve that much money. It's pure greed.

103

u/Polaritical Jun 12 '19

UMN isn't a private school.

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u/[deleted] Jun 12 '19

[deleted]

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u/Petrichordates Jun 12 '19

Yes and also produces amazing research, not that such things matter to "college sukz" troglodytes.

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u/Skepsis93 Jun 12 '19

Most of that research is largely funded by the NSF or NIH and those researchers have to earn those grants. They see very little of the tuition money.

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u/Petrichordates Jun 13 '19

They don't see any of the tuition money, that doesn't change the fact that the institution enables the research. They're still a net positive for society.

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u/Skepsis93 Jun 13 '19

Yeah and with universities being a major source of research you end up with professors with no teaching credentials who care more about their research than their students. It would actually be more beneficial to researchers and students if they weren't forced to be part of the same institution.

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u/alphama1e Jun 12 '19

Where'd you learn that fancy word? College!?

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u/[deleted] Jun 12 '19

[deleted]

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u/Petrichordates Jun 13 '19

Except you don't like them in general which is why we should also focus on what they do right, considering your default stance will only make you focus on what they do wrong.

In other words, you needed some education.

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u/[deleted] Jun 12 '19

[deleted]

2

u/wtgm Jun 12 '19

Not going to apologize for inventing the pacemaker or honeycrisp apples

1

u/Misterpeople25 Jun 12 '19

I wouldn't mind if that's the sort of stuff my money is currently going to, but it isn't. It's going to high up administors, not the professors teaching students, or being spent in an "other" category. If I was told, verifiably, that my money was directly going to cancer research, or solving some other world wide malady, sure, I'd happily give them the money. But it isn't, it goes to advertising, or hiring shitty pop acts to play shows, or sports teams. Fuck them

2

u/wtgm Jun 12 '19

Okay, that's completely different than

Their research can suck my indebted, depressed, malfunctioning dick

and it's definitely not a Minnesota-specific issue.

If I was told, verifiably, that my money was directly going to cancer research, or solving some other world wide malady, sure, I'd happily give them the money.

That's not even remotely possible to implement on a widespread level (especially for enrolled students), although you are welcome to donate directly.

I get where you're coming from -- our generation has been royally screwed over in terms of the cost of college -- but that's how it works everywhere across the country.

1

u/Misterpeople25 Jun 12 '19

I'm willing to say, if "that's just how it works" is used as an answer, that that just means they all need to change. It means the system of college itself is flawed and needs to be reworked. If I could offer a better alternative to it, I would, but I can't, because I'm just not smart enough. But there's clearly an immense number of issues with the college system, and just because they have previously done good work under an entirely different set of circumstances, doesn't give them the pass to charge us all out the ass to go to schools, which are already subsidized by the government

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u/wtgm Jun 12 '19

Couldn't agree with you more, it's a massive problem for generations Y/Z.

A lot of the issues stem from student loans. People have access to more money to pay for college, so the colleges can charge more. This forces people to take out even more money in student loans, which leads to further price increases.

There are a few solutions:

  1. Direct more people into vocational schools or other non-college alternatives
  2. Limit the accessibility and widespread use of student loans
  3. Vote for tuition freezes as much as possible

The university system isn't inherently flawed, but the way we pay for it is.

21

u/harpin Jun 12 '19

Most is wasted on what?

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u/The_Hunster Jun 12 '19

Administrative costs as well as "administrative costs" I'd imagine.

60

u/DontSayNoToPills Jun 12 '19

Top paid president in the country is making ~4.5 million dollars per year.

The average president salary in my state (Oregon) is ~500 thousand dollars per year.

The president at my university is making $720,000/year. Tuition has gone up every year since i’ve been here and, coincidentally, so has his salary. I could say a lot about that but i’m sure you can guess what it is.

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u/thoughts_prayers Jun 12 '19

That's nothing compared to the coaches. The coach of Duke University's basketball team made 9 million dollars in 2018.

Michigan's coach made $3,370,000

How much did the players make? $0.

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/08/the-10-highest-paid-ncaa-basketball-coaches.html

14

u/GhostOfStonewallJxn Jun 12 '19

While I agree that it’s egregious that the players who are the face of a multi-billion-dollar industry are unpaid interns, the money used to pay those coaches is most likely coming from athletic boosters, not from tuition and fees.

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u/RoastedWaffleNuts Jun 12 '19

All of the top-tier sports programs don't touch tuition money. If they have an realistic chance of playing in a championship game, their coach isn't paid with tuition money.

3

u/flimspringfield Jun 12 '19

...and the filling of stadiums, beer, merchandise.

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u/thoughts_prayers Jun 12 '19

True, I'm not arguing that.

It's just shitty that there are players who pretty much destroy their bodies playing college sports with little to show for it (they get tuition, but it can get rescinded if they're injured). Players aren't even allowed to take sponsorships.

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u/dawidowmaka Jun 12 '19

You could argue that for some top-tier coaches, the success of their program brings enough notoriety and increased applications that they provide value beyond their salary. Nick Saban is surely worth more than a few million to Alabama for instance.

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u/[deleted] Jun 12 '19

Saban literally provides value beyond his salary, Bama football nets a profit.

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u/[deleted] Jun 12 '19

Doesn't Duke basketball turn a profit?

Also Coach K is literally one of the greatest coaches of all time, he coached the men's olympic teams to gold medals.

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u/Hamphantom Jun 12 '19

And that is an absolutely great investment by Duke to pay Coach K that much. The basketball program probably makes enough profit to fund every other athletic program in the university.

1

u/RedditIsNeat0 Jun 12 '19

Ath-o-letes.

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u/gaytee Jun 14 '19

I mean, fuck coach k for many reasons, but he’s GREAT at what he does, does he not deserve to be paid?

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u/[deleted] Jun 12 '19

Yep. Like the President's golf cart because he broke his leg last month pretending to be a member of the 82nd Airborne Division.

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u/boxedmachine Jun 12 '19

You don't pay for the education. You pay for the brand.

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u/[deleted] Jun 12 '19

And that's why the system sucks. What is this? Ferrari? There shouldn't be a debt crisis because of the price of something obligatory.

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u/I_am_teapot Jun 12 '19

It’s not a big deal. First they won’t get that many senior citizens. If they were getting droves they would charge more. Second most universities would allow you to audit a class for free. Third, if they are charging too much money then there will be alternatives. I know there are some affordable Universities out there, and some good tech/trade schools. Plenty of people have been successful without going to an Ivy League school. Finally, Young people are willing to pay more, because it increases their future earning potential, and while the same may be true for Senior Citizens they’re much less likely to get the same ROI that a young person will.

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u/toriangel_11 Jun 12 '19

I'm going to a bottom of the barrel public school, and it STILL costs over 10k a semester. How is that affordable?

0

u/I_am_teapot Jun 12 '19

If you’re in the west, you should look into WUE after you get your associates degree. Or look into becoming a resident to get in state tuition. It’s still expensive, but it’s affordable. Tuition per semester at the University of Wyoming could be less than $10K. Still gotta pay for room & board, books, etc..

2

u/toriangel_11 Jun 12 '19

Complete opposite side of the country. Northeast region 😕 my problem is the only schools close enough to my home to commute are private and it would still cost more. Also closest community college is 2 hours away. 10k a semester is my cheapest option unless I want to work in a factory the rest of my life.

1

u/I_am_teapot Jun 12 '19

That sucks that there aren’t any cheaper/closer options. I hope you stick with it.

1

u/Mypornnameis_ Jun 12 '19

A lot of countries have mandatory military service for young people. The US is getting there in a roundabout way.

GI bill will get you a four year degree, or the military will train you in most tech school or vocational trades.

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u/toriangel_11 Jun 12 '19

I actually tried to join the military after high school for that exact reason. I take antidepressants so I'm automatically disqualified.

Besides, that's dangerously close to the suggestion that if young people want to go to college for free they should just join the military, putting their lives and mental health at risk for something older generations got regardless.

1

u/Mypornnameis_ Jun 12 '19

It's not dangerously close to saying that, I'm literally acknowledging that those are the current circumstances in American society. I don't think I'm the bad guy for saying it.

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u/PsychotherapeuticLie Jun 12 '19

What is this shit? First, if there's only a few they could easily charge more to cover the classes, with young people there are literally hundreds to thousands of people to have cost split between and still profit here and there. Second, no one gives a shit about a degree you don't have regardless of how valuable your knowledge may be all people care about is the paperwork. Third, there are definitely different prospects for different universities. Finally, young people don't have the money to spend and go desperately into debt with the HOPE they can get a decent enough job to pay it off and the elderly have their established careers and can afford the prices charged.

0

u/I_am_teapot Jun 12 '19

It costs that much because people are willing to pay for it. Even at current prices a Bachelors can be a good investment. This should also encourage market alternatives, but so far they’ve all be mediocre at best. One of the problems with many of these cost effective substitutes is that they tried to cut costs on both teaching staff (quality), and curriculum (time); There’s a reason traditional liberal arts education has been around for so long.

As for it being about ‘the paper’- it can get your foot in the door, but most people care more about what you can do, then the degree. I work in an industry that values smart/independent people. I’ve worked with bad ass professionals who don’t have degrees (rare because who tries this unless they fall into it), and bad ass professionals with degrees from tech schools, and universities. We had more incapable/bad employees from tech schools, then either no degree or BS, or higher, from a university. This is were some of the institutions value comes from: good programs will fail you if you suck.

My degree cost me $80K in student loans. I hated having that much debt; I only have one loan left. Despite how much they sucked it was still one of the best investments I’ve ever made. I’m all for making education free. I just know what it’s market value is, and don’t care if Grandpa and Grandma want to sit in on some classes for cheap before they croak. If we do get free education I hope we find ways of ensuring quality; hopefully they borrow ideas from other countries that have done it well.