New study finds the cost of college tuition and living expenses continues to rise, forcing many full-time students to work long hours for low pay
SEATTLE, March 21, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Intelligent.com, a trusted resource for online degree rankings and higher education planning, has published a recent report that analyzes the projected price increase of college tuition and room and board. The report also provides insight into the current job market and the relative importance of a college degree.
According to the report, the average cost of tuition and living expenses for public, in-state four-year colleges could reach $31,000 per student per year by 2030. A 2021 Intelligent.com study found that public university students today earn a federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, meaning they must work 28 hours every week in order to pay for a year of tuition. This does not account for the costs of room and board. By 2030, assuming the federal minimum wage is raised to $15 per hour, students must work 40 hours per week to afford both tuition and room and board. However, if the minimum wage remains at $7.25, students may have to work over 60 hours a week.
According to an Intelligent.com study in January 2023, over 1 in 3 companies eliminated college degree requirements during the labor shortage to attract more applicants. Additionally, in an Intelligent.com study in March 2023 that surveyed 1,000 non-college-educated, full-time employees, 64 percent of respondents said they 'somewhat' or 'strongly' agreed that 'the ongoing labor shortage has opened up better job opportunities for them.'
The survey referenced in this piece was commissioned by Intelligent.com and conducted online via the survey platform Pollfish on March 8, 2023. Overall, 1,000 participants in the United States were surveyed. All participants passed through demographic filters to ensure they were age 26 or older, employed for wages, and had received no higher education than technical college. To view the complete report, please visit https://www.intelligent.com/in-2030-working-your-way-through-college-would-require-average-of-60-hours-week-at-current-minimum-wage/.
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Heidi Thiel, Intelligent.com, (800) 203-5102, [email protected]
SOURCE Intelligent.com
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