by Michelle Aranovsky
World Editor

  The US often prides itself on its supposed equal opportunity for all. However, the increasing cost of a college education is becoming an insurmountable barrier for many middle- and low-income students and their families, decreasing the opportunities for these students to obtain degrees. With the cost of tuition and room and board at the University of California reaching about $100,000 over four years and the costs of many private colleges exceeding $150,000, the price of a university education is a strain on the budget of the average American household.

    However, this struggle to foot the bill for college is not a universal issue. Consider this: in many Nordic countries, including Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, the only cost of a college education is proof of citizenship. During a profile of the nation, a Danish student remarked to 60 Minutes, that, "We get paid to go to school actually. Instead of in the U.S. you pay to go to school, we get paid to go to school if we pass our exams.” 

    The Danish State Educational Grant and Loan Scheme Agency awards Danes over the age of 18 with grants and scholarships that cover tuition costs at public universities, as well as monthly post-graduation stipends for a year. With child? No problem. The Danish government provides maternity and paternity leave for young parents to take up to a year off from their education to raise their families. In addition, students can take out loans from the government, which they can pay back over a 15-year period.  Danes are also permitted to use their funds to study abroad; conversely, international students participating in foreign exchange programs in Denmark are offered the same grants that the Danish themselves receive. Approximately 300,000 Danish students benefit from this program every year, which provides more than 11 billion Danish Kroner, roughly two billion USD, to teach the new generation. 
    
    How do the Danes pay for this system? Denmark is a socialist state that relies heavily on taxes. In fact, in 2005 the tax rate was 50.1%. However, 33% of the taxes are paid back directly to citizens, in addition to free health care and education.  Denmark also has been consistently ranked as one of the happiest countries in the world. Perhaps it is because students do not have to worry about paying back student loans to cover the cost of a college education.
Sources: Danish Education Support Agency, CBS, Denmark.dk