I have a love-hate relationship with the College. On one hand, it has put a roof over my head, food on my plate, and given me access to a debt-free bachelor’s degree. If I were kicked out of the College tomorrow, I would have none of these things. On the other hand, it is here that I have most starkly been reminded of the divide between the wealthy and poor in this country.
All Ephs seeking further education must figure out how to get into the graduate programs they’re interested in, but there are also those of us for whom simply getting in is not enough: We must also find a way to pay. Going into my final semester, I have failed to secure funding for graduate school. Among the opportunities I applied for were two different fellowships from the College which would have helped me complete my master’s and, possibly my doctorate, in philosophy. I even advanced to the interview stage for each fellowship, but granted neither.
Financial pressure was in the back of my mind when I interviewed for funding, and it made those two interviews feel like the most important of my life. They did not go well. Perhaps I would not have received a fellowship even if the interviews had gone better, but I may have cost myself enough to fund my postgraduate studies and cover my living expenses during that time.
The College has made commitments to supporting low-income students, and prides itself on being the first undergraduate institution in the country to meet 100 percent of demonstrated need with grants. My request is that, next, we become the first to meet 100 percent of demonstrated need for postgraduate study.
My reasons for this are admittedly selfish. For one, my student aid index — an indicator of financial need calculated based on the FAFSA form — is -1,497 on a scale of -1,500 to 999,999, where a negative number indicates higher need. Secondly, I want to go into academia.
For the last two years, I have taken classes almost exclusively in philosophy, political theory, and theology. It may be argued that, if I knew money would be an issue, I should have used my time at the College more strategically. Yet, I have studied what truly matters to me. I consider my time at the College to have been enriching both intellectually and spiritually. I came across philosophy and theology by chance, and it was a miracle that I did. Before college, I had no idea about either of them.
It might seem that I should take out loans for my studies if I am so passionate about them, but it is a big risk to take out a loan for a philosophy degree. There is no guarantee that you will get to complete your doctorate, and the job market is extremely competitive. I am not convinced that it would be a smart investment to pay for a master’s, especially with the extra pressure to perform at a high level and the stress that brings.
Despite its commitment to financial aid, the College has failed to facilitate upward mobility. The New York Times reported in 2017 that less than one percent of Williams students come from poor families and later become wealthy. the Times also reported that Williams has the lowest rate of poor students becoming rich adults among all NESCAC schools. I believe that the cause for this is actually tied up in a good thing: Our commitment to the humanities and a liberal arts education. Indeed, similar schools, like Amherst and Bowdoin, also struggle with social mobility.
Williams is exactly the kind of institution that should double down on supporting low income students in the humanities. According to my back-of-the-envelope calculations, the College has the resources to fund a need-based application process for postgraduate study. The operating budget of the College is $178 million. Its endowment is $3.7 billion and growing. Postgraduate programs range in cost between $40,000 and $80,000 annually. The College could support 200 students in each graduating class with $40,000 of postgraduate aid annually and maintain an operating budget below $200 million.
The full potential of many of our bachelors’ degrees depend upon receiving either a master’s or a doctorate. Currently, the College is participating in a system that allows for low-income students of equal academic standing to be put into unequal circumstances.
The psychological toll of student debt is a well-studied phenomenon, not to mention the financial burden. In one Harvard survey, 70 percent of people with at least $100,000 of debt reported overwhelming stress. Student loans hang over people’s heads for decades and cost them tens of thousands, sometimes hundreds of thousands, of dollars in interest. To allow this status quo to continue despite having the resources to ameliorate it is to say that the education of low-income students should cost them more, in both time and stress.
Students at the College work hard to put themselves in a position to be able to continue their studies, and that is why students whose families have the resources to help them pay to continue their education are usually happy to do it. If the College takes pride in being able to say it helps those of us who do not have access to these resources from our families, then why does it neglect us when it comes to this essential front? A need-based financial aid program for graduate studies would improve student outcomes, bolstering the reputation of the College and improving alumni relations.
The more expensive college becomes, the more society will be talking about the problem of student loan debt. Recently, former President Joe Biden tried to address the issue, but he was blocked by the Supreme Court. Now, President Donald Trump is considering suspending the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, which nullifies loans to students who make ten years of consecutive payments. It is no wonder that fewer and fewer students are willing to take out loans. Between the early 2010s and the early 2020s, the percentage of students taking out loans dropped by 18 percent.
It may seem like a lot to ask the College to pay for our education at another institution, but the reality is that the College offers very limited opportunities for graduate programs of its own. If it had a large catalog of graduate programs, then my request would be to continue to support low income students through these programs. While I do not suggest that the College expand its graduate offerings — its focus on undergraduate students is part of what makes it special — as it stands, the system for financial aid leaves many of the College’s recent degree holders in a position where they must take on at least $100,000 in debt anyways.
In all likelihood I will not be entering my program this fall. Perhaps, in my first few years after graduating, I will find funding for a different master’s program, or perhaps I will apply to law school or become a teacher. In any case, I will always remember how close I came to my dream program, and how it felt to realize that the safe bet would be to not go because I am too poor.
I might not get to achieve my dreams, and yes, that falls heavily on my class position. Still, I think: At least I got further than my parents. Maybe, if I work hard enough, my children will get further than me.
Stone Murphy ’25 is a political science major from Berkshire County, Mass.
