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发帖数: 2053 | 1 http://finance.yahoo.com/news/majority-americans-want-college-free-090023304.html
[Bloomberg]
August 1, 2016
Few things are as universally beloved as getting something for nothing.
Everyone supports free samples at the grocery store, soda refills, and,
perhaps one day soon, college tuition.
Once an idealistic pipe dream of the far left, free higher education is now
largely supported by a majority of Americans. Sixty-two percent say they
support debt-free university tuition, according to a July survey of 1,000
American adults conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates
International for consumer financial company Bankrate Inc. Among those who
are opposed to the initiative, 26 percent said they would support making
college debt free for students coming from families that earn less than $50,
000 annually. Another 5 percent are willing allow it for those whose
families earn less than $85,000 a year.
But when it comes to putting their money where their mouth is, Americans are
more reluctant. Among those surveyed, 48 percent they would not be willing
to pay more in federal taxes to fund free college.
Making college tuition free is most heavily supported by those in the
millennial generation, the survey found. This is unsurprising, given that
millennials face a staggering amount of student loan debt. Undergraduate
borrowers who finished college in 2014 are burdened with an average $28,950
in loans, and the delinquency rate on such loans is increasing. A July
survey by the Federal Reserve found 29.2 percent of those polled did not
attend college because it was too expensive. Among those who started their
degree, 28 percent said they could not complete it because of the cost.
While 79 percent of millennials support free college, only 64 percent of Gen
Xers and 49 percent of boomers feel similarly. Support is also split along
political lines. Democrats overwhelmingly support the idea, while just 33
percent of Republicans are in favor.
Debt forgiveness is not as attractive as free college, the survey found.
About a third of those surveyed said student loans should be forgiven after
the debtor makes payments for 10 years, but 40 percent said the loan should
never be forgiven. So while the future might be student loan-free, Americans
don't expect to cut a break for those who are already laden with debt. |
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