Comments on: Why Are All College Majors the Same Price? http://theunbrokenwindow.com/2008/02/15/why-are-all-college-majors-the-same-price/ The curious task of economics is to demonstrate to men how little they really know about what they imagine they can design. - F.A. Hayek Mon, 01 Dec 2008 23:11:15 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.3 By: Tom S. http://theunbrokenwindow.com/2008/02/15/why-are-all-college-majors-the-same-price/#comment-24 Tom S. Fri, 15 Feb 2008 19:04:21 +0000 http://theunbrokenwindow.com/2008/02/15/why-are-all-college-majors-the-same-price/#comment-24 Do colleges charge the same price? Although the tuition appears to be the same, the lab fees associated with certain majors (or courses) can be substantial. For instance, physics, art, and psychology often have lab and computer fees that appear to be related to the additional marginal cost. If the fees seem to be nominally low, this would make sense since the marginal cost of education is quite low. Then again, hard sciences often pay better than the others and those extra student fees don't appear to cover the difference. But, if this were to be argued, my reply would be those higher salaries are often paid in return to the larger outside grants that come to the university, not for the higher cost of instruction. Do colleges charge the same price? Although the tuition appears to be the same, the lab fees associated with certain majors (or courses) can be substantial. For instance, physics, art, and psychology often have lab and computer fees that appear to be related to the additional marginal cost. If the fees seem to be nominally low, this would make sense since the marginal cost of education is quite low.

Then again, hard sciences often pay better than the others and those extra student fees don’t appear to cover the difference. But, if this were to be argued, my reply would be those higher salaries are often paid in return to the larger outside grants that come to the university, not for the higher cost of instruction.

]]> By: David Kaplan http://theunbrokenwindow.com/2008/02/15/why-are-all-college-majors-the-same-price/#comment-23 David Kaplan Fri, 15 Feb 2008 13:35:44 +0000 http://theunbrokenwindow.com/2008/02/15/why-are-all-college-majors-the-same-price/#comment-23 The colleges are subsidizing the tuition of the hard science majors by sticking the soft social science majors with part of the cost, with a long view goal of producing well-paid doctors/scientist alums who will give back to the school that educated them. Although I think we may be underestimating the expense of keeping blowhard philosophy/religion professors on campus, funding school trips to foreign countries for language students, and keeping the history professors' bar stocked properly. I actually think you have it in #7 "Or maybe institutions feel like students will enroll in cheap majors but sample courses in the expensive ones, losing a significant amount of revenue in the process." We would have (already have?) too many religion majors and not enough science majors. The colleges are subsidizing the tuition of the hard science majors by sticking the soft social science majors with part of the cost, with a long view goal of producing well-paid doctors/scientist alums who will give back to the school that educated them.

Although I think we may be underestimating the expense of keeping blowhard philosophy/religion professors on campus, funding school trips to foreign countries for language students, and keeping the history professors’ bar stocked properly.

I actually think you have it in #7 “Or maybe institutions feel like students will enroll in cheap majors but sample courses in the expensive ones, losing a significant amount of revenue in the process.”

We would have (already have?) too many religion majors and not enough science majors.

]]>