Colleges throwing in high-def amenities to lure in millennials
By Darren Murph 
posted Aug 8th 2008 1:34AM
posted Aug 8th 2008 1:34AM
[Image courtesy of Flickr]
posted Aug 8th 2008 1:34AM
The number of televisions estimated that sit unused in closets.
The EPA estimates that nearly 100 million unused televisions are currently taking up precious, beautiful space. (source: EPA, July 2008)
Now that we've thrown 'em off the trail, use the form below to get in touch with the people at Engadget. Please fill in all of the required fields because they're required.
College life would have been good if my should would have given us U-verse instead of forcing Comcast's basic cable. INFOMERCIAL SUCK!!!
You were lucky to even have Comcrap basic cable!
I went to a religious university for a year and we didn't even have cable...each dorm was hooked up to a central antenna. Not for moral objections, mind you, but because "the cost for cable was too much". (And this was in 2005!)
Wow, "millennials" is a dumb word. How about we don't use that word on here anymore, mmm-kay? Thanks!
Why? It's a commonly accepted word to define a generation. Should gen-x be outlawed as well?
I'm actually surprised that this guy even made it a whole semester...
Colleges in the United States are nothing more than businesses. I include even state institutions in this statement. No such thing as an institution of higher learning unless you consider learning how to swindle others.
BTW, my wife feels almost as strongly as I do and she's an educator. She dislikes his institution's administration, which often equates to power that is inversely proportional to their education (ahem, swindling).
very true, and for supporting evidence: emphasis on successful sports programs
That's great, the opinion of two people really does define an entire educational system.
Yes, most undergrad programs and universities are designed to extract as much money as possible. I just had to pay my state university $1200 from an outstanding bill due August 1st... that they will turn around and give back to me August 18th. They're going to make interest on it and give it right back to me.
However, just because the administrative end of the university works that way does *not* mean that the mindset of the entire system is how you so lovingly define as "swindling". Good people exist and often make up the majority of faculty and staff. To me, it sounds like you're just bitter for some reason and while it sucks you had a bad experience, the sweeping generalization you just made has no place here.
Your tax dollars and I went to the United States Air Force Academy. Gotta love getting paid to go to school and flight training.
I was going to join the military, too. But I have seizures, and the military doesn't allow us. They be hatin' on us epileptics!
Can you IMAGINE an epileptic with a M-16 in his/heard hands???? :)
USAFA, where the men are men and so are the women
No kidding, Diego. Apparently the school is 20% women, which is funny, cause I had it figured at about 5% based on looks.
Boy, this is really a great idea! When I was in college, I had to go over to the girls dorms to watch TV. This way I could have stayed in my room and been even more of a hermit!
NOT!
I'd rather have the tuition not rise as much than have the school buy a bunch of LCDs.
For real! Why can't students bring their OWN damn LCD if they're so intent on wasting their parents money? I can see it now, some punk a few years from now blaming that fact that he/she flunked out/didn't graduate because the university provided a HDTV that took up all his studying time.
Back in my day, we had to use AOL dial-up and hope there was a local phone number.
Uh... Go Pack?
High-def amenities to lure in millennials? Give me a break.
Look, I love gadgets and technology like the next guy, but if colleges are going out of their way because they feel they have to "lure" kids with flat-panel HDTV's and such in order to convince them to attend school, then these kids either need adults around them with their heads screwed on straight to help them shape their priorities properly, or these kids shouldn't be going to school to begin with.
What's with the adults running these colleges? They're teaching kids that an education isn't a privilege - which it most certainly is - but rather, they're teaching kids that bribes are OK and that the process of learning is supposed to come with toys and that they deserve them (which they don't), and they're teaching them that the colleges are desperate. These colleges need to re-evaluate their motives, and find other answers to their financial desires.
All they're doing is spoiling kids and subsequently distorting their perspectives of reality. But naturally, the kids won't think there's anything wrong... why would they? Any kid would like the idea of getting a bunch of gadgets they don't have to work for, so they can't be trusted to understand.
People need to be equipped with certain things to function while obtaining an education. I'm going back to college myself and will need some new gear, but a flat-panel HDTV isn't part of it and certainly not anything that any student needs. (The only exception to that might be if a student is majoring in film or mixed media and needs to review the results of his work on TV, as well).
Look, if you can go to college at all, meaning you've not only been accepted, but you also have the financial means, then consider yourself extremely fortunate. Once you've focused and studied hard and consistently and earned your degree, and have gone out and built something that resembles a career (even if it's just a job for the time being), THEN you can go out and buy toys. Of if you don't wait that long, then buy them with your own money.
Colleges shouldn't be supplying that crap, and that's not what you go to school for.
I didn't make something clear in my post, so just to quickly add...
I realize that Darren said these colleges (which ever ones they are) are trying to lure new students to room on campus (not just merely attend the college to begin with); but you know it's also going to lure in potentials who haven't even been accepted yet and are still deciding on which school to even attend. Regardless, providing HDTV's and the like, communicates the same things I mentioned above, no matter who they're trying to lure.
And only those mature and wise enough are going to be aware of that going in.
Access to better cable/satellite I understand. The dorm cable was awful. We had like 10 incarnations of MTV and each one made me want to gouge out my eyes. That's why, for a time, I ended up pirating a lot of TV in college. We did have a movie channel that we would get some decent flicks on (Anchorman like six months after it was in theaters) but the quality was for shit -- and this was on my crappy little SDTV.
However, PROVIDING HDTVs for students? That's getting a bit ridiculous. I'd wager their tuition or housing rates went up anywhere from 4-10% this year, and that's where some of the money went. I went to a state university and it was costing upwards of $8,000 per semester for housing, a meal plan and tuition and they kept REMOVING services.
Most of us brought our own TVs to college. And if you don't have a TV, you'll live. I went my freshman year sans TV, and just bought a 40" LCD for next year. Not having a TV can only help you do better at college, and providing incentives for people who are just finding out that they don't have to go to classes to sit around in their rooms is a plain bad idea. If you didn't bring a TV and can't live without it, find a friend who has one and is willing to tolerate your ass sitting around in their room.