College is expensive. With outrageously increasing tuition, high housing costs, large textbook expenses and overpriced meal plans, the university seems set on making sure that students are broke as well as educated when we graduate. While students often complain about the high tuition or the ridiculous textbook rates, we tend to overlook one major money thief: Highland Market.
Located at the corner of Highland Avenue and Sixth Street, Highland Market sits in perfect proximity to most of the housing on campus, creating a easy place for students to purchase a breakfast burrito or a convenience store item. With the large selection, the good food, and the ability to use a CatCard, Highland Market seems like a college student’s dream come true.
That’s before you look at the prices.
While Highland offers a lot of the food and materials that would typically be purchased at an inconvenient Target or Circle K, the convenience comes at a price. Many of the items at Highland are much more expensive than other stores. Campbell’s Soup at Highland market cost 41 percent more than the exact same soup at Walmart, and the DiGiorno Frozen Pizza was 42 percent more than one would find at an off-campus food store.
Once again, the university is finding a way to shake all the loose change out of our pockets. Highland Market is operated by Arizona Student Unions, and just like the UMart and the other restaurants on campus, the Union controls its prices. Through allowing students to use their meal plan and CatCard for the convenience store items, students are more inclined to purchase food at Highland Market than at a different store like Circle K.
“They are taking advantage of us,” said undeclared freshman Phill Mendel.
The university may be taking advantage of our wallets, but it’s because we are letting them. Every time that we purchase an item from Highland Market, we allow them to overcharge us. Indiana University offers students a 40 percent discount when they use their student ID cards; all we get are fewer taxes.
The extra dollar spent at Highland Market may not seem like a big deal, but the high prices serve as just another example of the UA trying to rip us off.
It’s asinine to ask people to completely stop going to Highland and it’s ridiculous to think that people will stop buying products there. But when you walk up to that register to make your purchase, take a moment to think about the pricing, take a moment to think about how the university is overcharging us just because it can, because those thoughts lead to change and that’s something that doesn’t seem to be in our pockets.
We can’t stop paying tuition and we can’t stop buying textbooks, but we can buy items at Highland Market less frequently. Take a walk, ride a bike or get a friend to drive you to Target or Circle K. The UA has been nickel and diming us for too long, and it’s time to take a stand. We’ve been occupying Highland Market for too long; it’s time to vacate it.
— Dan Desrochers is a chemistry sophomore. He can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu or on Twitter via @WildcatOpinions.
