Universities have lost what makes them havens for the intellectual. They have become businesses led by administrations caring more about maximizing profits than educating young minds and preparing them for the real world. As with almost everything else in this country, greed has slowly seeped into our higher education system and has completely watered down the experience college students receive, while simultaneously “nickel and diming” us at every turn along the way.
If you are an avid reader of The Reflector, you might have noticed I seem to come back to university-related issues a lot this year, and with everything I feel needs to be fixed, it all revolves around this main point.
I, for one, am sick and tired of being unable to escape powerful people ruining everything they touch for more money. What I will say to those people is this— your bottom line is completely irrelevant. What matters is a solid education with an accommodating experience reflecting the price tag, and does not financially cripple its “customers” for no rhyme or reason. 
Adam Davidson for the New York Times, explains how education is different than other commodities better than I ever could. “(T)he product of this particular industry is not just an end in itself. Education can have enormous personal benefits for those who acquire it, but it also has external benefits to the rest of society,” Davidson explains.
This sentiment is exactly why education is one of the last things in the world that should be corrupted by money-grubbing antics. Schools raising tuition, creating asinine fees, charging through the nose for parking, creating substandard expectations for class rigor so more people can stay in college, and charging students to set up payment plans are only some of the multitude of ways colleges across the country penny-pinch their students. 
This would almost be excusable if universities were strapped for cash. However, they are incredibly profitable institutions in a lot of cases, especially for D1 football schools. This is made evident by the exorbitant salaries for many high-ranking officials, both on the academic and athletic sides.
Many top football coaches make multi-millions every year, and even university presidents, can make as high as 1.5 million a year, according to Darian Somers of U.S. News. If universities were truly prioritizing education over everything, as they absolutely should, why would they be shelling out so much money for other matters?
Having a good coach means having a winning program, yes. Having a winning program would theoretically mean more revenue to use toward benefitting students as well, but you do not see this happening in a lot of cases. As for the president situation, the 1.5 million a year peak for salaries is held by Arizona State University president Michael Crow.
ASU’s tuition is around $11,000 a year, so his salary could send nearly 150 students to school tuition free. Of course, he should be paid well for his job, as it is important, but the point is, he is vastly overpaid for a position in an institution meant to be about enlightening young minds and doing good for the world. It is another example of why universities are essentially running themselves like a corporation.
With all of this mind, I am disappointed in the direction higher education is headed, and I feel sorry for future generations. Prices will only continue to increase while revenues do so at an even higher rate. Before long, college could be yet another thing reserved only for the rich.