Earlier today I pointed out that a plurality of Americans support single-payer health care — until they found out what it is.

I suspect the same may be true for “free college,” another proposal endorsed by Bernie Sanders and others on the political left who want America to be more like Europe.

As Samuel Goldman explains, “Americans don’t actually want the kind of stripped-down higher education that couldbe providedat public expense.”

The parison is useful. AWashington Postpiecerecently praised Germany for allowing students from around the world to enroll at its universities without charge. WhatGerman universities offer in exchange was not discussed. More specifically, the piecedidn’t mention the servicesGerman universities usuallydon’tprovide. Here is a partial list:

* Sports.

* Dorms.

* Elaborate food and other amenities.

* Subsidized clubs and extracurricular activities.

* Academic remediation.

* Flexibility in majors.

German universities, in other words, are different from what most Americans have in mind when they think of college. Even the most famous are fairlyspartan institutions, in which most students live at home or in private housing, with a minimum of academic and personal oversight. Classesare generally large lectures at which attendance is strictly optional. Graduation is based on rigorous exams rather than modular coursework. And students choose their subjects of concentration prior to enrollment, and switching is not easy.

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