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A random poll taken on April 20, 2010 consisting of twenty participants shows that the majority polled believe that college is a worthwhile investment in their future. Ninety percent of the poll participants are past or present college students. Of the 20 students polled 13 of them believed that college is worth their time and money.

The poll was made up of twenty American- Midwest, middle- class men and women, their ages ranging from 19-55 years old. Thirty percent of the group answered that they were going to school in order to receive a better job, another 30 percent of the students said they were or had been attending college because they were working at getting into a desired field. 20 percent of the students said they were only attended college because it was expected of them. Only five percent of the students polled stated that they were attending college to learn, with the other 10 percent not attending school, or going for other purposes.

Almost thirty percent of the polled group stated that they were able to pay for their college expenses out of their own pocket. However, more than half of the poll participants answered yes to receiving financial aid, with less than 10 percent of having benefited from grants and scholarships. Ninety-one percent of the students who answered yes to receiving financial aid said that they were only able to pay for school with the help of student loans that must be paid back. Almost thirty percent of the polled group stated that they were able to pay for their college expenses out of their own pocket.

President Obama announced the details of the Education Reconciliation Act at NOVA Community College of North Virginia, on March 30, 2010. In his speech the President announced that the Education Reconciliation Act is aimed to help middle-class Americans pay for college tuition, by means of increasing maximums on scholarships and grants, and by tripling the already largest existing educational tax credit known as the “bettering education credit.” The poll results showed that Sixty-five percent of students believed that college was a worthwhile investment; however the results were torn fifty – fifty when the students were asked if their additional schooling should be paid for by the government.

In his speech at NOVA, President Obama also stated that the Education Reconciliation Act will include steps to better prepare high school students for their college experience. These steps may help reduce the amount of money students lose every year because of taking unnecessary classes. Only Thirty five percent of the polled students said that high school prepared them enough for college, leaving the other sixty five unsure in a new atmosphere. This is shown in the results with almost half of the students stating that they had changed their majors at least once, 90 percent of those students answering that they lost money on classes and books that they did not need.