CW'66 Higher education has been subject to widespread, often harsh, criticism of late. Whether America's colleges and universities still provide an affordable product is discussed at home, at parties, and in boardrooms. Nothing has caused more collective anxiety than the inability of family incomes to keep up with the escalating cost of higher education and the perception that a college education is increasingly out of reach for many Americans. This theme has become the subject of cover stories in Barron's, Newsweek, Forbes and, most recently, in Time . Whether or not investigative reports on college costs are presented accurately, the concerns of the American public and the policy-makers whose actions help make higher education available and affordable are real.
Higher education is expensive, despite the best efforts of many within the industry.
These issues should be discussed, and discussed thoroughly, beyond cover stories and investigative reports that sometimes don't get it quite right. At Penn, for example, we admit students based on academic merit, not on their ability to pay. Those who need financial assistance will receive it. It's that simple. Penn has been a leader for more than a decade in helping its students cope with college costs.