What a load of crap.<p>Look at the CPI: that should be subtracted from the ENTIRE graph to show that most things on there have in fact deflated over time (is that even true), and that the apparently HUGE increases in College Tuition are still big, but not nearly as large.<p>Also omitted is the vastly more important figure of how much students are <i>actually</i> paying. Financial aid doesn't come in only loans. Less than half of those attending the more expensive institutions pay full price.<p>Additionally, those paying full price <i>generally</i> come from families (professionals, businesspeople) whose income has increased more than the cost of tuition over that same time period.<p>While it's certainly a problem for the future, right now the rising costs haven't had a large effect. This is FUD.
Without knowing what the Y axis is this actually doesn't even look yikes, if anything I got flashbacks of this graph I remember seeing in one of Tufte's book: <a href="http://wattsupwiththat.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/djia-sunspots.png" rel="nofollow">http://wattsupwiththat.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/djia-suns...</a><p>EDIT: Just saw the link at the bottom of the "article".
Before we all jump on the higher education is a vascous bubble !!11! bandwagon, can anyone verify whether this blogspam is using any Al Gore style statistics? For example, are the $s adjusted for inflation since the 70s? I'd check this all myself, but the iPhone really isn't conducive to this sort of thing.
At the end of the day you have you deliver value, and being in debt for a lifetime isn't value. My fear is that the higher end schools won't change their ways and that only the very rich will be able to get a degree from a name school. I really see this as hurting the middle class in a huge way...
What is it with HN and its continual, deathless drive to prove higher education is worthless? Christ, OK, some of you dropped out of college, <i>that's fine</i>, you're doing alright these days. You all don't need to keep posting this kind of shit to make up for your own feelings of inadequacy.