Study: U.S. Ranks Low In Providing College Access

December 3, 2008 6:45 a.m. EST

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - A study released Tuesday by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education pointed out the United States is trailing other nations in granting access to college education to its citizens. The center warned unless something is done to improve access, competitiveness of the U.S. will be placed in peril in the future.

While the lack of access has been identified as a weakness, educators are at a loss how the problem will be addressed. William Kirwan, chancellor of the University System of Maryland, told the Washington Post, "I don't know what it's going to take to get our nation to wake up to what's happening with regard to the education deficit we're building."

Patrick Callan, president of the center, said other countries have drastically exerted more efforts to improve access to higher education to their citizens, similar to what the U.S. did from the 1950s until the 1970s. The opposite happened in the U.S. the past few decades resulting in college cost becoming out of reach for many, higher high school dropout rates and gaps in success rates of American students from various races, incomes and states.

The result is that the U.S. is one of the few countries where the older citizens have better education than the youth.

According to the study, almost all states failed when it came to providing affordable college education, except for California. Over the years the percentage of public four-year college tuition on the national level over average family income has risen to 28 percent from 20 percent, less financial assistance. But California's distinction may soon be gone as the state, which is grappling with a huge budget deficit, is planning to hike tuition at its 109 community colleges and cutting the budget of four-year universities.

The U.S. has almost 40 percent of residents with at least an associate's degree, but ranks only tenth in the world in terms of percentage of adults aged 25 to 30 who have college degrees.

Kirwan, quoted by Washington Post, further warned, "We're standing pat while the rest of the world is passing us by. If we continue on this path, our chances of being the leader in the knowledge economy in the decades to come are between slim and none."