European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 02, 1978, Darmstadt, Hesse                                College coping with costs by Steven v. Roberts new York times the waiting is hard for  now Boston University i deciding How much financial Aid Itcan give her this fall. Costs Are go ing up about $500, her father has retired and if Shannon does not get a hefty in crease she might have to stay out of school for a year or perhaps leave entirely. In Washington Congress has debated various proposals to give parents tax cred its for tuition payments toward higher Edu cation. A companion proposal would extend the credits to private elementary and secondary  is almost certain to pass the Bill after which the president is expected to veto it. One reason for the popularity of the. Legislation is dilemmas like Maura Shannon s. Statistics show that incomes Are in creasing As fast As or faster than average College costs but for Many Middle class famines the Burden of College education is very real and very painful especially with several children in school and More especially if they choose private colleges. More Young people Are going to College All the time. Census data show that the number of Whites in higher education in even the Best Laid plans have been swept aside by inflation. Creased 50 percent in the last decade and for Blacks the figure More than tripled. But he Cost is causing Many students to limit their choices and to make compromises. They go to Public schools instead of Pri vate ones seek two year degrees instead of Bachelor s degrees or study Only part time. Even the Best Laid plans have been swept aside by inflation leaving parents angry and frustrated. Pat Yohn the Mother of two teen age sons in new Orleans put it this Way we were thinking of having $10,000 for each child but that was years ago and it s just not going to make it accordingly Public opinion polls show overwhelming support for almost any proposal that promises to provide some Relief. At the same time then is wide sprawl he. Among Tutton pay of Parent that entreat tax credit or Opoian cannot help very Raaseh. " toe most generous Bill which would pm taxpayers some $30 million this yeardasmuchas$5.jbilboninl98j-would provide a credit of $500, but the average yearly Cost of attending a four year Pri tote i Anition is now $4.800. And at Boston  the total will bit $7.200 next Juk. A l really throwing a dog a Crumb Usa Doil Magazine  interrupting College with a Job. Stopping out9 by Gene i. Maeroff new York times a he nation s College seniors increasingly Dubi Ous of the value of advanced higher education Are deciding in growing numbers not to go directly into graduate and professional schools. T concerned about the Cost of education and no longer inclined to regard schooling As an unbroken Suc cession of degrees Many students who have recently graduated Are planning to work for a year or longer before embarking on the next phase of their studies. They re sick and tired of continuing in lockstep Fash Ion through school said Bill Washburn assistant to the Dean of undergraduate studies at Stanford University in Palo Alto Calif. Apparently the trend toward stopping out that developed in the late 19cos and Early 1970s when so Many undergraduates took leaves of absence for a semester or two has helped to create a climate in which it is now acceptable to defer advanced stud ies. The change is being welcomed by Many educators who think that students will get More out of their graduate work if they take time to mature after completing their Bachelor degrees. Furthermore the students feel that by getting jobs and having a Chance to reflect on their earlier education they will be Able to make better informed decisions about what to study on the master s and doctoral Levels. Also Young people Are More Likely today to want to pursue advanced studies on a part time instead of a full time basis. Signs of the changing attitudes Are found on campuses throughout the country. At Harvard University the graduating class last year had the lowest proportion of students 40 percent intend ing to continue their education immediately to any group of Harvard seniors in the last 20 years. Even the nation s medical schools which have borne the Brunt of the popularity of advanced studies reported this year through the association of american medical colleges that applications had declined by 10 percent. Even those who Are More certain of their goals May want a break from their studies. At Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland eight students accepted for this year s freshman class at the medical school have had their entry postponed until next  whole idea of being a student again put me off said Amy Borros of North brunswickn.j., who was just graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and is passing up an acceptance at the Medill school of journal ism at Northwestern University so she can work and travel for a year. They said i would not automatically be admitted the following fall but that i would have a Good  Bonus s two roommates made similar decisions. One is going to teach autistic children for a year before apply ing to medical school and the other is working As a wait Ress before going on to get a  in clinical pathology. A Survey by the Council of graduate schools in the United states in the academic year just ended found that even though enrolments had held almost steady the number of applications had dropped. Also the greatest growth in enrolment in graduate schools was Par time students. The difficult Job Market for  s in the academic world is another influence Virld Young men and women to weigh their choices More carefully before going to graduate school. I Don t think it s worthwhile right now to get a higher degree in the humanities said a graduating English major at the University of California at Berkeley who plans eventually to get further education but will work and travel first. Berkeley s English department has seen the number of applicants for graduate programs fall by 90 percent in a single year from 300 to 200, and More of those applying now have taken a break since ending their undergraduate studies. A faculty committee on enrolment at the University of Chicago where enrolment losses in some Seg ments of the graduate program have caused concern has suggested that the institution develop offerings with a special Appeal for students who have delayed advanced studies. Kenyon College in Ohio is a Strong Liberal arts school that has customarily prepared undergraduates for fur ther studies but now that the proportion continuing immediately into graduate and professional schools has dropped from 90 percent to less than 50 percent the school is reviewing its curriculum. The undergraduate years have been seen Pri Marily As a Way to prepare for further study As a link in a Chain said Bruce Haywood f Vost. Kenyon s pro now we re examining our own purposes and goals. We re not looking at the College As just a preparing ground for advanced scholarship. Since fewer students Are going on immediately for advanced degrees Kenyon has already opened a career development office and an after Kenyon Library to provide them information on their choices. The idea of gaining practical experience after attain ing the baccalaureate is also being promoted by the Grad uate school of business at Stanford University which wants Young people to have on the Job experience before studying for a master s degree in business administration. John Beggs an account representative for Westinghouse in Pittsburgh said. I think the whole system is due for an  to Many economists and College administrators the idea that tax credits Are Only a Crumb is a Good reason for defeating  Huff director of financial Aid at Stanford University in Palo Alto Calif., called tax credit a very expensive but in effective remedy because much of the re Lief would not go to needy students. Almost unanimously the experts prefer president Carter s proposal which would aim at helping Low and Middle income families without aiding the wealthy. Bat to beleaguered parents of col lege age children even Crumb can teem to be an improvement. In the last 10 years the Cost of a Public school education has jumped 74 percent and that of a private school 77 percent. Gross incomes Nave grown slightly faster in that period but after tax incomes have lagged slightly behind. Since 1970, tuition at Boston University has increased 141 percent. Harvard University has raised fees 85 percent in the same period and the Massachusetts Institute of technology has increased its tuition88 percent. The crunch is particularly tight at a school such As Boston University which enjoys neither a Large reputation nor Large endowments. While Harvard endowment is about $60,000 per student Boston s is Only $1,400 and As a result financial Aid is scare. Since the school is also trying to in crease its minority enrolment the Avail Able Aid is quickly exhausted on the poor est students and Only half of those who qualify receive scholarships. Rick while Side a Boston University senior from Cleveland whose Mother earn about $22,000 in her government Job. Is Dis qualified from receiving any Aid so he works at several jobs to help pay College Bills. In addition he attends school Only part time and takes courses Over the sum Mer when tuition is less. Each family tries to Cope with the Crouch in its am Way. Shannon who. Has Ste i buns has already taken it $s,000 la team a can non practice for Otey students. Lou Domenech. An accounting major from Medford mass., is working 10 hours a week this summer. Gary beams the son of a labourer in Dayton Ohio drooped out of school for a year to work and save Money. The James Donovan of Pittsburgh Are paying College costs by drawing on a Small Trust fund they had set aside for their retirement. Wednesday. August 2, 1978 the stars and stripes Page 13