38% Say Government Should Pay for College for Those Who Can't Afford It

Rasmussen Reports ^ | 1/6/12 | Rasmussen Reports

[floridarunner01]

Most Americans still believe any good student can find a way to get into college, and if a student is accepted at a college but can't afford it, a sizable number of adults think the government should pay for it.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of American Adults finds that 60% of adults believe that just about any good student who wants to attend college can find a way to do so in America today. That’s up from 54% in early May 2009. Twenty-nine percent (29%) don’t believe this to be true, while 11% are not sure. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

[freedumb2003]

Here is the actual survey:

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National Survey of 1,000 Adults
Conducted January 4-5, 2012
By Rasmussen Reports

1* Do people learn more practical skills in college or through life experiences and work after college?

2* In today’s economic environment, is a college degree still a good financial investment?

3* Which of the following educational option offers the best value for the money - a four-year college, a two-year community college, a Masters degree, vocational school, or an online degree?

4* In America today, can just about any good student who wants to attend college find a way to do so?

5* Should every American attend a post-secondary school institution, whether it be college or some kind of vocational school?

6* One major city is now considering a proposal that would require all high school students to apply to at least one college before graduating. Do you favor or oppose a law in your community that would require all high school students to apply to at least one college as a requirement for graduation?

7* The same city is also considering a proposal that would require all high school students to take college entrance exams like the SAT or ACT. Do you favor or oppose a law in your community that would require all high school students to take college entrance exams as a requirement for graduation?

8* Who is most responsible for determining whether a student should apply to college – parents, the school system, the government or the students themselves?

9* If a student is accepted into college but cannot afford to go, should the government pay for that student’s college education?

NOTE: Margin of Sampling Error, +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence

[hal ogen]

Just what ever happened to the quaint idea of working and saving to support what ever you want to do? What ever happened to the idea of delayed gratification? This socialistic stuff is undermining the United States.

[RWB Patriot]

Wonder how many of them have connected the government paying for college with the rise in tuition for those who don’t qualify for government help?

[freedumb2003]

>>Just what ever happened to the quaint idea of working and saving to support what ever you want to do? What ever happened to the idea of delayed gratification? This socialistic stuff is undermining the United States.<<

Destroying it.

[floridarunner01]

Back when I went to college, I worked a full-time job and maintained good grades and paid most of my tuition myself.
Today, there are actually some kids are graduating college at age 22 with ZERO work experience. It’s amazing.

Of course tuition is astronomically higher today than it’s ever been.

Also remember how parents used to save money for their kids college education? The whole 20 years they will save money. I guess if the government is going to pay for it, why bother save anymore..right?

[maddog55]

38% of those polled are liberal azzsholes.

We should get their names and have them totally fund any student they want.

[Venturer]

When I graduated High Schoolin 1960 there was no doubt in my mind that college wasn’t in my future.

My parents did not have money and they had taught me responsibility, that bills had to be paid and borrowing money wasn’t the way to make it in life.

10 days out of High School I was on my way to Ft, Knox for basic training.

Todays kids have been brought up by parents who think nothing of borrowing and live off credit, so they start right out borrowing $50,000 to $100,000 to continue their education.

Now that’s fine for them,but then they are saddled with the debt, and they cry about it. I have paid taxes my whole life, I got my kids through Community College, it was all I could afford, they worked while they attended.

Still paying taxes for schools for other people’s kids to get through High School, why should I have to pay to get them through college?Public school should be paid for, I don’t have a problem with that, but those who elect to go to college need to pay for it themselves.

[Scotsman will be Free]

The 38% in favor of the govt footing the bill for college should be arrested and deported. They are all socialist, country wrecking swine.

[duckman]

The ‘gimmie’ generation. Back in the late 60’s early 70’s I had a full time job and went to night school. It took me 7 years to get a BS in Marketing Management. That was 7 years of hell with classes 4 nights a week and most of Saturday. I was carrying an average of 20 credits a semester. Those were the good old days. No gov’t handout. These people make me sick.

[Smokin' Joe]

Still paying taxes for schools for other people’s kids to get through High School, why should I have to pay to get them through college?

Because, Citizen, there are still students who graduate the K-12 system who are not knee-jerk liberal automatons, and they need the additional indoctrination!

(/sarc, sorta)

Besides, without a year or two of remedial courses, how can the gross failures of the secondary education system be covered up?

[uncbob]

Yep
You good do that back then but with the advent of student loans driving the cost of tuition the through the roof it is really not that feasible today

Thank the government for screwing up something else in the economic sphere

[TwelveOfTwenty]

38% Say Government Should Pay for College for Those Who Can't Afford It

What they're saying is that tax payers should pay for it.

Perhaps they would like to lead by example, and offer to pay for it out of THEIR pockets. After all, that's what they're saying ALL tax payers should do.

[Yaelle]

If everyone does it, college becomes 13th through 16th grades, and is then mostly worthless. Less than worthless for conservative families who didn’t want their kids to be indoctrinated liberals or booze and drug connoisseurs.

[SumProVita]

I wonder what percent think the state should also take the ACT or SAT exam FOR them if they can’t score well enough to be admitted?

[Jack Hydrazine]

The Euro-peon-ization of America rages on!

[Puppage]

Don’t forget to pay for their cell phones and to get their nails done.

[freedumb2003]

>>I wonder what percent think the state should also take the ACT or SAT exam FOR them if they can’t score well enough to be admitted?<<

For minorities and womyn that is basically what is happening.

[ThePatriotsFlag]

...and 46% don’t pay taxes. Same folks?

[jpsb]

Medical care used to be affordable, then government started paying for it and the costs went thur the roof. A college education used to be affordable then government started paying for it and the costs went thur the roof. Go figure.