Last modified: Wednesday, April 9, 2003
Information about IU's new-student fee
1. Why did Indiana University adopt a new-student fee?
To enhance academic excellence through the support of critical missions and initiatives of the university. Improving undergraduate instruction, recruiting and retaining outstanding faculty, investing in academic programs and enhancing graduate fellowships are goals that must be pursued so IU can remain among the best American public universities. Additional funding is necessary for IU to do that. Because of financial challenges including rising costs and diminishing support from the state (IU ranks near the bottom of the Big Ten in terms of state support per student), this increase is needed to keep IU at the forefront of American public higher education.
2. How much is this increase, and whom does it affect?
The increase will be $1,000 per year for all new full-time students on the Bloomington campus in the 2003-04 academic year, $800 for new full-time equivalent students at IUPUI and $500 for new full-time equivalent students on the regional campuses. Currently enrolled students will not be affected, nor will graduate students.
3. How will this increase be assessed?
Each year, new students will pay fee rates that include the new-student increment. Eventually, all undergraduates will be paying the higher rates.
4. Who will be considered a "new" student under the program?
Any student who has not been enrolled at any IU campus before the first Summer Semester session of 2003 and who enrolls for the Fall Semester 2003 will be considered a new student and will, therefore, be assessed the new-student rates. If a student has been enrolled at any IU campus before Summer Semester 2003, and chooses to re-start his or her studies at IU in the fall 2003, that student would not be assessed the new-student rate. Students who begin their IU studies with the first Summer Semester session of 2003 will be assessed the new-student rates in the fall. New IU students in 2003-2004 who later transfer from one IU campus to another during the course of their studies at IU would pay the new-student rate assessed by the campus that they are attending.
The exemption from the new-student fee also extends to high school students who have taken IU courses for college credit before Summer Semester 2003; they will not be considered new students for fee assessment purposes if they continue their studies at IU.
By the fall of 2010, students who took IU classes before the 2003-2004 academic year will no longer be grandfathered in under this proposal. At that time, all students will be paying the same fees.
5. How will the new-student fee rates work on the individual IU campuses?
On the Bloomington campus, all students who take between 12 and 17 credit hours are considered full-time students and pay a flat tuition rate. So, $1,000 will be added to the current flat rates to provide the base for calculating 2003-04 rates for new students. New students who take more than 17 credits will pay the new flat rate plus a per-credit hour rate for each hour over 17. Those who take fewer than 12 credits will pay on a per-credit-hour basis, with the credit hour fee for new students adjusted to include a pro-rata new-student increment
On all other IU campuses, students are assessed fees on the basis of credit hours taken. The $800 increment at IUPUI and $500 increment on the regional campuses is based on a class load of 30 credit hours per academic year. The basis for determining per-credit hour fee rates for these campuses will be the current fee rate plus 1/30 of the new-student increment. New students who take more credits will pay a somewhat higher overall fee; new students who take fewer credits will pay less.
6. How will this funding improve undergraduate instruction?
Students paying the fee will directly benefit over the course of their academic careers. Funding from this increase will be used to hire more full-time, tenure-track faculty, and thus lower the ratio of faculty to students. For example, at IU Bloomington, money raised through the fee is expected to pay for the hiring of 100 new faculty members over five years. At IUPUI and the regional campuses, the funding will enhance efforts to hire more full-time, as opposed to part-time, faculty members and improve student retention. Providing more faculty members and smaller classes will enhance the student academic experience. Academic leaders at each of IU's campuses will formulate campus plans on how best to use the money raised through the additional fee.
7. What is IU doing to protect student access?
Some of the funds raised through the fee will be allocated for targeted student financial aid on all of IU's campuses. At IU Bloomington, that will mean a $3.9 million increase in financial aid dollars available by the fifth year of the program, a 20 percent increase in funds for undergraduate scholarships.
8. How will this initiative help Indiana University's graduate education?
This initiative will allow IU to expand the number of fellowships offered to outstanding graduate students and ensure that we are competitive with other major universities. Strong graduate programs are the hallmark of outstanding research universities. These students will become our future leaders and teachers in many segments of society. Our graduate fellowships need to be funded at a level competitive with our peers.
9. How will this help the Indiana economy?
The best faculty members are the men and women who stay on top of their field through continued research and development. Studies show that for every $1 million in research and development grants received, nearly 42 jobs are created. Indiana University annually brings in more than $300 million for research and development, and this funding bolsters the state economy by creating and sustaining thousands of family-wage jobs. Outstanding faculty members attract those research dollars, while also producing the scientific breakthroughs that will fuel future economic development.
10. Why doesn't IU budget its money better to avoid this costly increase for students?
The university is always monitoring its operations to make sure it is delivering services in a cost-effective manner. In February of 2000, an outside evaluation of the university's administrative services functions uncovered no significant inefficiencies, and the recommendations of the consultants continue to guide decisions on avoiding future costs. An independent report by the Indiana Educational Policy Institute found IU ranked well below its peers in administrative spending.
11. Have other universities enacted any similar increases?
Yes. In the Big Ten, Purdue University, the University of Illinois and Ohio State University have approved similar tuition increases for basically the same reason as IU: to enhance the quality of their academic programs. If IU doesn't keep pace with its competitors, the university may quickly fall so far behind that it would be impossible to catch up.
