Pointlife
Students give perspective on tuition payment methods
The Pointer
mbaum925@uwsp.edu
One of the recurring aspects of college life, outside of all-nighters, hangovers and angst-filled relationships, is tuition. In a traipse across campus, Pointers revealed how they felt about tuition and how it is paid for.
Occasionally in discussions about paying for classes, students become jealous of others whose parents pay for their tuition. Four freshmen dance majors whose parents assist in their educational expenses, Olivia Crevier, Valerie Rodrigues, Devin Handel, and Kym Nolden, do not always feel the wrath of this disdain. Rodrigues believes that it sometimes depends on the person when it comes to the jealousy factor.
Nolden’s path to her degree will not be entirely family-assisted. Her parents have agreed, as they did with her older siblings, to pay for her first year of tuition, but it will be up to her to pay for the remainder of her college bills.
It should be acknowledged that all of these students reviewed scholarship opportunities first before going to their parents to help pay for school. These grants, loans and scholarship opportunities were first introduced to them at the end of their junior year in high school.
To many students, when it comes to grants, loans and assistance, there is a lot of bureaucracy, and at times it comes across as being dispensed unfairly. Nolden was under the belief that parental income is normally in accordance with how much students receive for financial aid.
Rodrigues applied for financial aid but was declined because her parents made too much money.
Crevier’s money for tuition flows from her grandparents to her parents, then to her the need to fill out financial aid paperwork is not required.
Crevier does have lingering feelings of remorse about her parents paying her way.
“I feel bad that my parents help me pay as I have no time for a job since I am both a dance major and pre-med student,” said Crevier.
During election campaigns, in addition to talk of universal health care coverage, there was also much talk of free college education. It was not surmised to be a wise idea, according to Rodrigues.
“I believed there would be quite a problem in regards to fairness. Some individuals would take advantage of a good situation as college is not for everyone,” said Rodrigues.
Other suggestions during this past campaign season centered on the belief that all young citizens should serve a civil service or military position for the country for one to three years and then receive a free education. Nolden believes in a similar manner as Rodrigues towards college, that not all civil service and military programs are for everyone.
Regardless of how students acquire money for tuition, the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point will continue to be here to instruct and shape the leaders of tomorrow.
