2008 Woodie Awards
Students taking higher course load may pay proportionately more for their tuition
Student addresses tuition increase during March 18 meeting.
By Regis L. Roberts
Issue date: 4/4/08 Section: News
Originally published: 4/3/08 at 2:05 PM CSTLast update: 4/3/08 at 6:46 PM CST
"The more hours you take, the chances of you taking a class without lab and course fees greatly reduces that ... (percentage difference)," he said. "It would be very difficult to find someone who took four or five classes who didn't get a lab and course fee; they won't pay that fee anymore."
He said this information was available to trustees, but the percentage gap is made negligible with the added benefit of eliminating lab fees.
He said 76 percent of students are now paying at least some lab fees.
He said a student who was enrolled in six hours in the past was paying an average of $18 in lab fees, while a student taking 12 hours was paying an average of $36.
With those average lab fees added to the cost of tuition, a student who will take six hours in the fall can end up paying less than they have been.
The average $18 added to the other costs for six hours totals $434, $6 more than the proposed $428 for six hours in the fall. This represents a 1.4 percent difference between current average college costs and costs for the fall semester.
The current cost for 12 credits with the estimated $36 is $727.
When this adjustment is made, the difference between current average costs and the fall decreases to 2.5 percent.
"It all gets onto averages to a certain extent," he said. "You will find that individual students could be affected in any different manner." This means a student could be paying more or less under the new tuition plan depending on how many classes they take and the lab fees they would have otherwise incurred.
This new tuition plan has many advantages, McLaughlin said in agreement with the entire board during the March 18 meeting.
There will be more "truth in advertisement," as District 2 trustee Denver McClendon put it, because students will now know exactly how much they are paying for college.
In the colleges' bulletins and course schedules, a student can see how much tuition they are paying on a char. Lab fees, if there are any are listed within course listings in the schedule.
He said this information was available to trustees, but the percentage gap is made negligible with the added benefit of eliminating lab fees.
He said 76 percent of students are now paying at least some lab fees.
He said a student who was enrolled in six hours in the past was paying an average of $18 in lab fees, while a student taking 12 hours was paying an average of $36.
With those average lab fees added to the cost of tuition, a student who will take six hours in the fall can end up paying less than they have been.
The average $18 added to the other costs for six hours totals $434, $6 more than the proposed $428 for six hours in the fall. This represents a 1.4 percent difference between current average college costs and costs for the fall semester.
The current cost for 12 credits with the estimated $36 is $727.
When this adjustment is made, the difference between current average costs and the fall decreases to 2.5 percent.
"It all gets onto averages to a certain extent," he said. "You will find that individual students could be affected in any different manner." This means a student could be paying more or less under the new tuition plan depending on how many classes they take and the lab fees they would have otherwise incurred.
This new tuition plan has many advantages, McLaughlin said in agreement with the entire board during the March 18 meeting.
There will be more "truth in advertisement," as District 2 trustee Denver McClendon put it, because students will now know exactly how much they are paying for college.
In the colleges' bulletins and course schedules, a student can see how much tuition they are paying on a char. Lab fees, if there are any are listed within course listings in the schedule.
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