I agree with this 100%. US higher ed is largely funded by tax (direct and indirect). International students paying full tuition, even if true, is insignificant. I think there’s been a misguided focus on admitting international students over the past two decades. Some of the reasons behind it are valid such as diversity and globalization. However, it’s also contributed to skyrocketing tuition costs.
The post implies that supply and demand is driving up tuition costs, and is stating that higher education is heavily funded by tax.
The latter part resonates with me. Taxes provide major funding to big public schools like Ohio State, where most American students attend school. Phd programs are often fully funded by NSF and other government agencies. The article seems to be talking about private schools, which are much more expensive but not the only option. And while this may not be true at Harvard, across the country most Americans going to private schools are paying full tuition. This is a big part of the reason private school are viewed as unequal, wealth divides. Poorer american students often can’t go to many private schools where they can’t get financial aid to attend. The school will only have scholarships for a small number of students, and the rest need to be wealthy enough to pay the tuition.
