The Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction not only failed to lower the national debt but also failed in helping students. The committee’s recent lapse in reaching an agreement regarding how to address America’s steadily rising national debt triggered several planned cuts to federally funded programs.
Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants assist low-income undergraduate students who wish to go to graduate school. Unfortunately, those grants will be reduced by $57.4 million, affecting 1.3 million students across the country, according to the National Education Association. Associate Director of MSU’s Office of Financial Aid Val Meyers stated these grants go to “the neediest of the needy” students.
Federal funding for work-study programs will be cut by $76.3 million, which would affect 713,000 students across the nation and hurts MSU students. Last year, 4,236 MSU students were awarded the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant and 1,084 students participated in work-study.
It’s counterintuitive to make it more difficult on students who already are completing work-study programs. If students are working, they already are making an effort to mitigate their circumstances.
Removing an incentive to work punishes students for gaining the experience they need to be successful in the future.
For students in certain professions, such as medicine and law, a graduate degree is a necessity to break into the field. And with the horrid state of the economy, it’s already difficult for an undergraduate student to find employment right out of college. With this round of triggered cuts, it’s harder for undergraduate students to afford postsecondary education and make themselves more attractive to employers.
How does the U.S. expect to foster a globally competitive environment without emphasizing higher education? In the past, a bachelor’s degree was enough education to qualify for a job. Today, as more students achieve undergraduate degrees, a graduate degree is what’s needed to stand out from the pack.
There needs to be more support for undergraduate students making the transition to grad school.
Congress always has had the ability to prevent these triggers from going into effect. The recent actions of the committee don’t inspire confidence in Congress’ ability to do so, but if it’s at all possible, Congress needs to make it happen because cutting federal funding for students doesn’t help anyone.
Yes, the federal government saves a bit of money in the short term, but that doesn’t compare with the amount of money a well-educated workforce could produce.
Students lose the ability to distinguish themselves affordably in this despondent economy and have to make the difficult choice between paying off student loans with inadequate income or adding more debt in an attempt to shore up the income.
With these budget cuts, the lack of options for students is stifling.
With the trigger resulting in budget cuts to other higher-profile areas, like defense, it’s important for Congress not to lose sight of the impact cutting higher education can have.
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