College is a new adventure, it’s a place to define ourselves and discover our passions, meet new people and get a valuable education. So thirty-thousand dollars here, ten-thousand dollars there, oh, another nine-hundred dollars for books? No problem. We’re young adults, we should have all the money in the world at this point in our life…not. But maybe our parents do…most likely not with the economy like this. So let's look at loans, take out forty-thousand dollars a year for four years. That’s, what, one-hundred-sixty thousand dollars? Woah.
So think about it, unless you’re parents are made of money we’re all starting our young lives off in debt. Alright, fine, most people do these days anyways. People understand that a higher education is worth the money and the debt. However, we are going to a private school, it’s about twice as expensive, yet we have to pay to print or copy papers in the library, something most of us do on an almost daily basis. This isn’t included in our tuition? The school seriously can’t afford to pay for that? I understand that printing is expensive, and there are great renovations being done to our school, like a new café in the library, but how about helping pay for the necessities? How about laundry? Is that too expensive as well? Why do we have to pay extra for that? This isn’t included in our room and board or our tuition? You would think a private school that brings in so much money every year and is so expensive would at least allow us to print and copy papers for free. If not, where the hell is our 40,000 dollars a year going?
I come from a typical middle-class family in northern
Do you remember that work study that you got in your financial aid package? We all got it. Unfortunately, there’s not two-thousand jobs on campus for all of us. As freshmen the majority of us can’t have cars on campus, good luck getting a job off campus then. That makes even babysitting difficult; but why do the upperclassmen get offered on-campus jobs first? They are, after all, allowed to have cars on campus. There’s a limited number of places on this campus that will hire freshmen. The student center won’t even hire. Finding a job here is so competitive. But like I said, it’s also the upper classmen that can find jobs off campus since they have the cars. So good luck to us, say buh-bye to that work study for the year.
So, you go to the den probably for at least one meal a day, most of us do. You want to order a grilled chicken sandwich? That’s going to be 6 dollars. Would you like to add tomatoes and onions? That’s an extra dollar. Oh and then you’re going to want fries and a fountain soda with that. Two more dollars, please. Hello, we pay 10,000 or more dollars a year for room and board, this isn’t included? Since The Den is so ridiculously expensive, can we at least get more variety and better-tasting, healthier options at the cafeteria?
There’s not even 3,000 students on this campus, there’s not enough money to pay for all of us? I don’t think so, our money’s being put somewhere else. And by the time these fun, fours years have gone by, most of us are in almost 200,000 dollars of debt. We’ll be paying that off until we’re about forty. And for those of us going to graduate school, probably until we’re fifty. What are you going to do? Let’s speak up and do something instead of waiting around for change.
I would agree that the process of going to college is very expensive. However, I would disagree that Merrimack College is trying to swindle us out of money. I agree that the prices here are inflated, as they are at every college. In relation to other colleges Merrimack is quite affordable. The $41,070 that we pay every year (not including scholarships) fuels the generous scholarships for the next year. After talking to a lot of different people on campus, I hear that a numerous students choose this school because of the generous financial package. As a freshman, I also had a difficult time getting a job. Understanding that seniority is in play no matter where you are, I came before school began session to ensure that I had plenty of time to make the connections I needed. Career Services was also very helpful in providing a long list of places that I could ask for a job. The only way to find one is physically visiting each office. There are also other options that can make college cheaper. Renting books or buying them used from an online site is often much cheaper than purchasing the books new. When you are done with them, you can also sell them through the countless book buyback sites to students who want to buy used textbooks rather than new ones. I agree that the food here leaves something to be desired. However, I recently talked to a member of SGA who enlightened me on something. Sodexo provides one thing that most colleges don’t: all you can eat. Students are able to swipe in once and eat however much they want. This includes taking wraps back to the room as well as fruit and cookies. As a vegetarian and someone who enjoys organic food, the transition was hard but I find myself eating things such as plain pasta, meatless spinach wraps, and steamed vegetables. College will be expensive no matter where you go. You just have to be frugal and find ways around the expensive aspects.
ReplyDeleteI have a major problem with people complaining about voluntary privileges. No one person in this world is forced to go to college, beyond their own parent’s control, and furthermore no one is forced to pay $40,070 a year. There is a great abundance of opportunities when it comes to selecting a college, and more than often there are more opportunities than we all even care to know about. My point is, no one forced any of us to attend Merrimack and pay $40,070 a year and in fact I can guarantee that there is not one person on this campus that is actually paying the full amount (including all of their loans) and that is because Merrimack is very generous in their scholarships and financial aid. I know that when I received my financial bill my family and I still needed a little extra help with financing the remaining balance, so I therefore took the initiative to dig deeper in to the loan/scholarship opportunities that Merrimack supplies and greatly took advantage of these opportunities. Merrimack would not have all of these extra loans/scholarships to give away if it was not for the $40,070 tuition. Therefore each and every one of us who received generous scholarships and loans from Merrimack (which I think is fair to say 99.9% of the students) should thank the overpriced tuition. Furthermore, Merrimack is a private school which has EXPENSIVE written all over it, we all made the voluntary decision to attend a private school even though there are hundreds of other less expensive private schools, state schools, and community colleges. I think it is almost insulting to question where our tuition money goes especially when Merrimack College clearly provides a wide range of clubs, organizations, and events which all house a budget that enable them to do school-wide activities that most of us partake in on a regular basis. Without all this “extra money”, Merrimack would not have nearly enough money to fund as much programs and organizations as they do, we would not have popcorn, friend dough, inflatables, and of course free t-shirts at orientation if not for the money that Merrimack gains from tuition. Not to mention the top-notch professors/doctors, up-to-date technology, gorgeous scenery and facilities, and acceptable living quarters. All of these things we take advantage of would not be as welcoming and give Merrimack the lovely community feeling we all fell in love with. Now of course the cafeteria is nothing Merrimack can brag about. The problem is, is that with such a small school believe it or not there is not a lot of extra money coming in once all of the necessities and organizations are accounted for (trust me I work in the accounting office and hear them talk about it every day) and therefore the cafeteria must search for QUANTITY not necessarily QUALITY. Feeding 2,000 students every day is not easy, and finding tasty food at a reasonable price is nearly impossible. We should be lucky that our meal plan includes “all we can eat” and can therefore take food back to our dorm as another meal option. To make a point about the Warriors Den, once again that is a voluntary privilege, no one HAS to eat there. No one is forced to spend $6 on a grilled chicken sandwich and $1 for tomato and onions, if one chooses to spend that sort of money on food that is their problem and they should not complain about it. Merrimack includes money to the Warriors Den on all the different meal plans and we should be lucky we have that extra money as well because from talking to people from other colleges they have to eat at the main Cafeteria or pay for their food at the Café. I do not disagree, however, that the Warriors Den is ridiculously overpriced, but once again we are all given money to spend there and can choose NOT to go there. Merrimack is a college with such a wide range of opportunities from a diversity of clubs and organizations, to endless community service projects, all the way to internships in Boston that could not be found at most other school and this all thanks to the tuition we all CHOSE TO PAY!
ReplyDeleteI agree that college is extremely expensive. I am here on scholarship and would not be able to attend Merrimack if it was not for that scholarship. If you are looking for a more econimically friendly option, you should probably look to attend a state school, which most high school graduates are opting towards these days. However, I don't think you will receive the quality of an education at a state school that you would at Merrimack, or other private schools. When you graduate from here and go out into the real world and try to find a job, the people hiring you are going to look at where you graduated from, and seeing Merrimack on your resume is going to be a big advantage. Going to college is essential to getting a good paying job. If you don't go to college, you won't be in debt like everyone who is going to college, but you also won't be able to get a high paying job like someone with a college degree.
ReplyDeleteCollege is expensive. With scholarships and other forms of financial aid to costs may become a bit more manageable. Paying for college is a large financial burden, so it may seem ludacris that we come here and are expected to shell out more money for expenses not inculded in tuition and room and board. However, to say that this college it taking advantage of our limited funds with overly inflated prices is more bizarre.
ReplyDeleteOnce we are out of college, scholarships won't exist anymore. Learning to spare our funds now will help us come graduation when we a overcome with student loan debt and the expenses of everyday life. The money we pay to go here is put towards our education first, the technology in the classrooms, as well as the upkeep of the campus along with funding other services that the college employs. So the prices in the Den are a bit high. What place of business aiming to make a profit doesn't up their prices? All the extras we pay for on campus are not unique to this school or the world outside of Merrimack for that matter. Thinking that all services would be offered no strings attached? Merrimack is not all inclusive; it is a college not a hotel.
When it is all said and done, a college education a Merrimack College is going to cost you just about an arm and leg. Obviously, a college education is invaluable. The privilege of going to college is one you must take full advantage of because when you walk out the doors in four short years, you will be faced with big loans and have to go to work in the real world. When you look at the numbers your perspective may be altered. First, lets divide our total tuition by the number of classes we take for the year. So, if we take roughly $30,000 for tuition and divided it by 8 the total cost for each class is around $3,750. Next, lets divide the cost of room and board by the number of month we are actually in school. We are out for basically the whole month of December and a couple of weeks in January; don’t forget the week off for spring break. So when it is all said in done we go to school for about 6 months. After the calculations, Merrimack College almost charges us $1700 a month for rent (there are two people who live in one room so that cost is doubled) that is more then that my parents pay for their mortgage. Yet, the school claims that $4000 of that goes to food. But last time I checked if you do not use all your swipes for the week at the café the school does not reimbursed you your money for that week. Don’t forget that we must buy all the supplies to stock our room such as water, snacks, food, fans (because there is no AC), different hygiene product, and so much more. A college education goes way beyond the actually “education” aspect of our spending. I can only hope that when I graduate from college I will be able to find a job that is going to pay back all of this debt. I could never understand two things: one, how is it that the less you go to school the more you have to pay, and secondly that all college institutions are considered non-profit organizations, but if the average cost of each student is around $25,000 a year and if you multiply that number by 2,000 student the total comes out to a staggering 50 million dollars!!! I would sure love to be on that budget.
ReplyDeleteComing from a single-parent home with a modest income, I feel extremely fortunate to be able to come to Merrimack. Out of all the schools I applied to, including state schools, Merrimack actually ended up costing the least amount of money, thanks to all of the grants, scholarships and loans the college awarded me. Being a relatively small school, I think it's great that Merrimack can afford to help out all of their students, and as was said before, most of the people I've talked to have said they came here because of their financial aid packages. With regard to the cost of printing papers in the library- I'm not really sure what you mean. Every time I've gone to the library to print out a paper, it's been completely free. I'll agree that the food isn't the best- but considering the cost of food and the amount of people the school needs to feed, I'd say it's pretty good. There's always plenty of options, including desserts. Further, no college is going to have gourmet food; it's just not realistic. Being a small school, Merrimack needs the money it generates from tuition, etc to fund all the programs we can take advantage of here, including clubs, trips and sports. However, I think you'd be hard pressed to find a student here who pays the full $40,000 per year. Attending Merrimack, or any private school, is a choice. For a lot of us, that choice was even cheaper than attending a state school, and if, not, then that was sitll a conscious decision. College costs money, plain and simple, but I think the experiences and education we receive here are worth every penny, especially considering a lot of those pennies are deducted anyway by means of grants and scholarhsips.
ReplyDeleteI do not believe that we are wasting our money by attending college, especially Merrimack College. We are getting an excellent education by profound professors who strive to provide us with new technology and rigorous courses. It was our own decision to attend college, no one forced you to go here. There are other colleges that aren't as expensive and if there is an issue with graduating in debt than there are plenty of community colleges that are not as expensive. Most students here at Merrimack are on scholarship and it is thanks to the large tuition bill that allows this. I also feel the tuition is the price it is because of all that Merrimack has to offer its students.There are activities that are happening around campus almost everyday, for example, the photo booth on main street in the sak today. There are countless other events, such as concerts, movies, dances and special performances like the hypnotist. I will agree that it is difficult to find a job on campus, but it is achievable. You have to put yourself out there and be willing to do whatever is needed. Yes, maybe upperclassman get first choice and they can have cars, but there is a possibility that freshman can have cars after Columbus Day. And it is isn't a far walk to local restaurants and stores around North Andover to look for a job and I think most of us are capable of walking a little ways. I would like to say that it doesn't cost you anything to print in the library, so that shouldn't be a worry. And the den, that is a privilege. It is an option besides the cafeteria that offers a different variety and it is for our convenience, so therefore it may cost a little more, but you do not have to buy food there if that is the issue. Like other people have commented, the cafeteria offers 'all you can eat' and you can bring meals and snacks back to your dorm for another time. I am very content with what Merrimack has to offer me and I have accepted that I will be in debt after graduating, but it is the experience I will receive here and the education that will provide me a job after graduating that I am most thankful for.
ReplyDeleteI agree that college is very expensive, but I think Merrimack College is very generous with the scholarships they give out and the financial aid they award. Most people that graduate college are going to be in debt for a while and that is just something we have to accept. It is not something that happens only to Merrimack graduates. However, if it is really too expensive there are other options. You could go to a state school which is less expensive, or you could chose not to go to college at all. I think that Merrimack graduates are more likely to get better jobs right after graduation becuase Merrimack helps with the transition process of school to work. Merrimack has a great reputation as a school so it makes sense that it would be more expensive than many other colleges. In the end, it is your choice to go to Merrimack College. I agree that getting a job on campus is hard and jobs tend to go to upperclassmen first. However, when you are a senior how would you feel if freshmen were the first ones with opportunities for jobs. It is seniority, and underclassmen have to deal with it until they are older. The cafeteria food is not that great, but it is pretty cheap when you take into account the fact that once you swipe in you can eat as much as you want. Plus, there are plenty of restaurants around that are within walking distance. So, the den and cafeteria are not the only options. Merrimack college may cost a fortune when you think about it in long term, but you are getting a great education so you can aquire well paid jobs.
ReplyDeleteI agree 100% with the fact that going to college is a very expensive process. However I disagree with the statement that Merrimack is taking money away from us. Going to college is your choice and where you go to college is also your choice. Many people choose to go to Merrimack because of the great education that is offered here, but with good education comes a good amount of money. You need to spend a lot of money in order to go to a school and eventually graduate and get a good job. If you succeed in this good school you are more likely to get a better, high paying job than people who go to smaller, cheaper schools, that are less known and offer a lower quality of education. As the old saying always goes, "you get what you put in," if you invest a lot of money into your education and excel while doing so, you will be rewarded in the end with a good, high paying job. Yes, college is a very stressful process and we will all see our bank accounts begin to diminish, but we have to remember that if we put in enough effort it will all be worth it in the end.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that college is very expensive. I am here on scholarship as well and I didn’t get that opportunity for a work study because I waited two days after school started and everyone had already gotten jobs. I feel as though freshman should have first pick with the work study because it’s our first year and because we would be able to get to know people. I wonder where all of the money we pay to be here goes. It is definitely not improve upon cafeteria food or even pay for printing. But a college education is so valuable I don’t get why they don’t try to help us out, I mean we must have some brains to actually be in college. And it is every college that does this, not just this one, and have you ever thought of the bigger colleges where does all their money go from their 10,000 undergraduates. I guess you get what you pay for so if you work really hard in school and make the grades it would be all for something but if you slack off and barely pass then it’s your parents fault for letting you go to college and screw it up. So we all make a choice whether to go to college or not but it really it’s our say on how much money a college should cost, education is priceless.
ReplyDeleteEverything is way too much money on campus. As far as the bookstore, it should not be operated by Barnes and Noble. They drastically overprice everything. My brother went to buy a book for class and they tried to charge more than the MSRP (manufacturer's suggested retail price) of the book. He pointed it out that their price was more than what it said on the back of the book an they lowered it to MSRP. Also, the food services should not be just by Sodexo. Without competition, the cafe and the den can jack up their prices just like the book store. Everything can be more affordable if Barnes and Noble is kicked out and if other food services are allowed on campus.
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