Desperate for money after years of budget cuts from the state, universities are increasingly turning to out-of-state and online students to bring in more revenue.
Through a pilot market rate tuition program, universities are able to charge different tuition rates for online and continuing education master’s degrees and certificate programs. In most cases, this means a higher tuition rate than what was charged before. Money from this tuition is used to help support other college or university programs.
University presidents say they want the power to set market rate tuition for more than just online and continuing education programs in the future, citing a need to bring in more money and offer tuition closer to the national average. After years of budget cuts from the state and strict limits on tuition increases, many universities say they are crippled in their ability to recruit and retain faculty, cope with growing enrollments and maintain campus buildings.
“What we seem to find is market rate tuition is working well,” said Tico Perez, the chair of the State University System Board of Governors’ Budget Committee. “It allows universities to benefit and put that money back in play often times in those other graduate categories…We are going to get creative as budgets get tighter.”
This year, five universities want to offer 17 master’s degree or certificate programs that will charge market rate tuition with a total price tag of ranging between $11,000 and $57,600, generating about $27.5 million in extra revenue for these universities over the next several years, according to documents submitted to the state university system.
The SUS Board of Governors approved these market rate tuition proposals Thursday, and during that same meeting several university presidents and board members said they would be open to expanding market rate tuition to other graduate and undergraduate programs, citing a need for more “flexibility.”
But the political reality of persuading lawmakers, who have tuition-setting powers, to expand market rate tuition will be difficult. Legislators are reticent to deregulate tuition, though at least one influential lawmaker, Rep. Bill Proctor, R-St. Augustine, who leads the House Education Committee, said he was open to greater tuition hikes.
The head of the Senate’s higher education budget committee is less sure.
“I don’t think we are there yet,” said Sen. Evelyn Lynn, R-Ormond Beach. “They’d have to convince us…right now we are very concerned with increasing tuition as it is.”
Currently, tuition increases at state universities are capped at 15 percent each year overall.
By Lilly Rockwell
