Poll: Should UC Berkeley Abolish Tuition?

How do you make a University of California education more affordable while still bringing in revenue?

It's a complex riddle, but UC Riverside students think they have the answer — scrap tuition altogether and "invest" in students instead.

A student group called Fix UC presented the "UC Student Investment Proposal" to the Board of Regents in Wednesday night's meeting. The plan would abolish upfront tuition and require instead that students pay 5 percent of their annual income for 20 years after graduation, interest free.

The group claims that the UC system's current annual revenue would be tripled under the new plan to $4.6 billion. The San Francisco Chronicle explains the math behind the plan here, and details can be found on Fix UC's website under "data". 

"We think the ideas are constructive," Yudof told the student group in the meeting. "We will give it a close look," he said, adding that Executive Vice President Nathan Brostrom along with other other "number crunchers" would "review it thoroughly."

But despite the impressive numbers, UC officials expressed concern about the vague ideas for payment enforcement, the LA Times reports. The proposal states that contribution would be enforced by a new University of California office in charge of collection, but does not offer further details.

Fix UC President Chris LoCascio told the Daily Cal that the student plan encourages a lifelong relationship with the university, and an incentive for all UC schools to support students in a successful career.

Fix UC claims that the plan would eliminate the financial burden that college puts on parents, alleviate the financial burden shouldered by students and their families, and allow each UC campus to "grow and thrive" due to increased revenue.

In the last decade, UC tuition has nearly quadrupled and state funding has been drastically cut. Last year, the State of California cut $660 million in UC system funding, and tuition for the 2011-2012 school year increased by around 18 percent over the previous year. 

What do you think of the plan to eliminate tuition and opt for student investment instead? Take the poll and share your thoughts in the comments.