I was scrolling through Facebook, as I do, and I saw this article. I thought it would be interesting to read, so I did. I have quite a few things to say, but first, you should probably take a look at "I'm A College Student Who Is Against Free Tuition."

To start off, I'd like to talk a bit about what it means to have "free tuition." Tuition is a part of the price for college. Usually, it's clumped together with fees, and it looks atrocious. In Massachusetts, for state schools, tuition is usually under $1000. That's right, under $1000. UMass Boston is $325 per year, Salem State is $682 per year. The price jumps dramatically when you add fees. These fees are anything from MassPIRG fees, course fees, registration fees, and the list goes on, and on, and on. So, realistically speaking, free tuition isn't as ridiculous as many think.

Let's take a look around the world. 24 countries have free tuition for their citizens. Don't believe me? That's okay, because you can see the list here. Some even offer free tuition for international students. So how do they do it? How do they manage this cost? Why can't we do it? We're supposedly the best country in the world, yet it's the most expensive country to get an education in. Most of these countries only allow free tuition at public/state funded schools for two years, so they get the equivalent of an Associate's degree. Which is remarkable. Realistically speaking, this is doable in the US. But, if you don't agree, that's totally okay.

So, back to the article, while reading I got pretty angry. It started pretty early: "Why Paying For College Isn't A Burden." This took me by surprise. I found myself wondering, "How much do you make? How many hours do you work a week for you to feel comfortable saying this?" I work 29 hours a week (the max at Salem State University), and I find myself struggling when I make more than minimum wage. Then I read the first sentence of the article. The author has her tuition paid for. This really threw me off guard because... of course paying for college isn't a burden when you're not paying for anything.

Now, before I go on, she gets scholarships. She worked extremely hard to get to where she is and I in no way want to undermine that. I admire her hard work in high school and in college to achieve this amount of success. However, the author fails to see every side of this story. She fails to mention students who may not have been as lucky as she is and was.

In high school, I kicked my education game up a notch. I was undiagnosed and had two mental disorders, I played a sport, and I had a whopping total of 12 surgeries while I was in high school. I graduated with a 3.48 GPA. Every single day I got home from practice, a game, or school and I did my homework until it was done. I studied until I knew my material. I worked as hard as I possibly could under my circumstances. I live in a decent town and got a great education. Many students from my town got scholarships, but I believe one person in my class got a full ride to a school.

I have a lot of problems with this article, mostly in the sense that the author is speaking as if she is paying for her education. She is paying in time, she is paying in her hard work and her grades, however she is not paying any money. She does not need to make a decision, do I attend school next year and put myself further in debt? Do I live on campus again and pay for that? She is attempting to make the reading believe that she is paying and that she does not see that as a burden, but it's not a burden for her because she is not paying. She does not have loans. She will graduate "in four year, debt free " and is trying to tell her readers that she doesn't mind paying for college.

I currently have a similar GPA to when I was in high school. I work four jobs, go to school full-time, and still somehow manage a social life. I will graduate with over $70,000 in debt, which I'll be paying off in about 15 years. Hopefully. The entire time I read this article I felt, "Oh, so since I don't have scholarships it means I don't work hard enough?"

Anyone who knows me knows how hard I work, and how much effort I put into my studies. I attended the cheapest school I got accepted to (a state university) and I worked hard. Sometimes, the cards just don't align.

Sometimes students come from families where they can "afford" college according to the state, but they're living paycheck to paycheck. Sometimes first-generation students don't know what to expect and they get to college and they don't do so well. Sometimes the opposite happens. Sometimes a student wants to get the best possible education, but can't afford it. Sometimes a student works their asses off, and they get their reward at the end of four years: a degree. Plus debt to pay off. Sometimes people need help to be successful.

And if we want to go further into statistics and reasons why a student may not get a scholarship, let's take a look at the American Education System, which is actual garbage. As someone who studied education for three and a half years, I can tell you that some people are better off in our education system than others.

If you come from a wealthy area, your schools are probably getting more money. And if they're getting more money, they have more resources. If they have more resources, students will do better on state testing... meaning they get more money, and more resources.

Meanwhile, if you come from a not so wealthy area, your schools aren't getting as much money. Which means they don't have as many resources, and more students aren't doing well on state testing and for some God forsaken reason, the government has decided to punishthose schools and take away funding when that happens. Meaning that these schools are losing more money and their resources are depleting and their students are doing worse and worse and they're stuck in this never-ending cycle. Meaning that scholarships are few and far between for these students... the ones who really need it. Because, don't forget, they're from not so wealthy areas. These are the students who live in the city, these are the students whose parents might not have a degree. These are the students who go to school then go straight to work, or home to take care of siblings. These are the students who cannot afford to pay for tuition. These are the students whose families technically make enough money, but they still can't afford to go to school and get an education.

Students who start off in good districts tend to do better academically. There is no question about it. They will do better on standardized testing, they will be the students who get full rides and they'll be the students who think that paying for college isn't a burden.

This is why we need free college tuition. And don't you dare tell me that I'm not working hard enough for my degree, and don't you dare tell me that these students are undeserving of a decent education because they cannot afford it. Don't you dare tell me that race, class, gender and other factors don't come into play here because they do. They always do and you are not in the place to say they don't need help.

You never know who you're going to find out there. One of these kids who would use the free tuition could have the cure for cancer, or they could have the capacity to create the first self-driving cars. They could be the person who cures Alzheimer's or they could be a future teacher! These students could be anything, and they deserve to reach their full potential.