Christian Fischer
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Eighty-nine percent of “first-time, full-year freshmen” accepted some form of financial concessions in 2014-15, according to the National Association of College and University

Business Officers. Out of each of these students, the average award given was estimated to cover “54.3 percent of tuition and fees.”

So, what that essentially means is tuition is sometimes half off. Almost no one pays full price, and the discounts are sometimes steep. But if that’s the case, then why do we need to discount from a price when we could lower the price to begin with? When looking at the University of Iowa, “47.2 percent of full-time undergraduates receive some kind of need-based financial aid and the average need-based scholarship or grant award is $6,028.” Depending on the circumstance, that amount could be substantial, however, the UI is mostly made up of out-of-state residents, and that tuition can end up being more than $30,000 a year.

Colleges, including the UI, are handing out grants and work-study options — still, financial aid is complex. According to U.S. News College Compass data, 61 percent of UI students still have to take out student loans, and they will graduate with some sort of debt.

This is where “anchoring” comes into play. The anchoring effect is a cognitive bias that causes you to rely too deeply on the first piece of information you receive in a situation. For example, most people wouldn’t pay full price for a brand-new sports car. That’s why negotiation takes place at car dealerships and at the end of most visits you end up walking away with a brand new Lexus (or a more sensible car).

So, in the case of education and financial aid, students and their families are being influenced in the same way, just it’s not a sports car but a tremendous chunk of debt. Families feel as if they’ve walked away with this great bargain, when realistically an American education often times take over a decade to pay off.

Another argument for not just lowering the price of tuition is that if you put two of the same thing on one table with two separate prices, a majority of people will reach for the more expensive item. Not only will they reach for it, though, they will also feel smarter doing so. The thing about both of these arguments is that it feels as though no one really knows how much tuition really is while those in charge clearly have the upper hand. There seems to be a lot of research put into the psyche of consumers, especially those of the students, when more effort should be put into finding solutions to make college more affordable. As an out-of-state resident, I can say that I have maybe fallen into the trap of both anchoring and a high price at some point or another, but should I have to pay for these decisions 20 years down the line?