Tyler Cowen questions whether college is still worth it due to rising costs. He cites an example of George Washington University's sticker price of $95,000 per year for tuition and room/board as a "ridiculous" starting point for negotiations. The article also touches on the issue of declining enrollments in universities, partly attributed to tightened immigration policies under the Trump administration, which are affecting foreign students' ability to attend college. According to Cowen, many professors are not adequately prepared to teach AI-related skills, with some even attempting to ban or restrict its use in their departments.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-05,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Tyler Cowen, an economist and author, questions whether college is still worth the cost. He notes that $95,000 a year is the sticker price for George Washington University, including room and board, which he considers ridiculous as a starting point for negotiations. Additionally, many universities are failing to keep up with the demand for AI skills in the workforce, despite more and more jobs requiring AI knowledge. In fact, some humanities departments and law schools have attempted to ban or restrict AI instruction, which Cowen believes is doomed to fail. Moreover, he suggests that students know more about AI than their professors do, which raises questions about what professors should be teaching.
Written for “College Value Debate Continues” on 2026-09-05,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
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Leaning score -0.35 for article 4298 (high confidence, 2 verified quotes) · logged 2026-09-05
Should you still go to college?
asserted
you → go → college
At this point you really have to start to wonder.
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you → have → point
The prices get higher and higher.
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prices → get → ?
Paying a fortune for Stanford is one thing, but $95,000 a year for George Washington University, room and board included, is another.
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room → pay → University
The school is ranked 59th by U.S. News & World Report.
asserted
school → rank → News
I know that is only a sticker price, and not the final charge, but as a starting point for negotiations it is ridiculous.
asserted
it → know → negotiations
It gets worse.
asserted
It → get → ?
It seems that more and more jobs will require AI skills of some kind, yet few major universities are embracing AI instruction as a general practice.
asserted
universities → seem → practice
The computer science departments have done plenty, but humanities departments, law schools, and many other parts of our universities are working to ban or restrict AI.
asserted
departments → do → AI
That enterprise is doomed to fail; professors in every discipline should be teaching their students how to use AI to learn the subject matter.
asserted
professors → doom → matter
The simple reality is that in many cases the students know more about AI than their professors do.
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professors → know → AI
So what exactly are the professors supposed to teach?
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professors → suppose → what
It is no wonder AI makes them nervous.
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them → make → ?
Another issue is declining enrollments.
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issue → decline → enrollments
Many schools are in financial trouble, if only because there are not enough young people turning 18 and looking to continue their education.
asserted
schools → be → education
This problem cannot be fixed anytime soon, especially with the Donald Trump administration being much tougher on foreign students and their immigration and visa renewal prospects.
asserted
administration → fix → students
