I really hate to tell you this, but it’s something that you need to know. Attending Northwestern costs a lot of money.

I know it’s a shock, but let me qualify that a little. According to NU’s Web site, undergraduate tuition costs in the neighborhood of $26,000 per year, or slightly more than $8,600 per quarter. These figures become more interesting when you break them down even further. Assuming you take four classes a quarter, a lecture meeting three times per week costs you more than $70 per class. One that meets two times per week bumps that figure to more than $100 per class.

That last little bit of information may be the most devastating thing you hear today, and I’m truly sorry I had to tell you. You are now cursed. There’s virtually no way you’ll be able to sit through an entire hour of your next pointless lecture without thinking to yourself, “I’m paying $70 for this?”

A solution exists for this curse: It’s something I call “a la carte schooling.”

A la carte schooling is very simple. You would start each quarter with $8,600 in your student account and withdraw from that account on a lecture-by-lecture basis by scanning your WildCARD when you enter the classroom. For fairness, all class periods including a midterm or final would be free.

Think of the possibilities. Students would be forced to take more ownership of their education. Instead of hearing that college costs some colossal sum of money the likes of which most college students have never seen, they will be forced to face the fact that the lecture they are sitting in costs them $100. Paying for lectures directly will make students think about which lectures are worthwhile and which are simply worthless. And let’s face it, some definitely are. It might also go a long way toward correcting the economic anomaly that is a college education. What other service can you think of that people buy for exorbitant sums, and then are happiest when they don’t use the service?

For professors, this new system would really turn up the heat. The only way for professors to get students into their lecture, and make any money for the school, would be to provide an engaging, relevant and worthwhile lecture. Professors who find themselves devoid of any teaching ability will soon find themselves devoid of employment. Conversely, popular and interesting professors will bring in revenue for the school and will be rewarded.

Finally, here is a system that gives students a real (read: monetary) voice in their education. CTECs may be easily overlooked, and research looks great to U.S News & World Report, but it’s tough to ignore a professor losing thousands of dollars for the university each week. Sure it might create the occasional “Anthropology lectures for a week vs. a new PlayStation 2” conflict of interest, but I’m confident after a while the kinks would work themselves out.

Imagine being in control of your own education, having a real say in who your professors are and becoming a voice on campus that can not be ignored. I know, it’s a radical idea, but the next time you find yourself mired in a pointless lecture wondering where your tuition dollars are going, see if it doesn’t make sense.