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NEWS
| february 19, 2004
Enrollment
Spring totals up by 6.6%
Provost Dana Dunn says tuition
hikes didn’t slow the growing enrollment.
By Kate
Bolen
The Shorthorn Staff
Spring enrollment increased 6.6 percent over last spring with a
total of 24,187 students despite tuition increases, officials said.
This is the 15th consecutive semester of enrollment increase compared
to the same semester of the year before.
Dana Dunn, provost and vice president for academic affairs, said
this semester’s tuition increases did not “damper the
enrollment momentum.”
“We did not want to price students out of an education,”
Dr. Dunn said. “It was all carefully planned out.”
The Tuition Review Committee circulated a study in the fall that
said tuition increases would have a marginal negative impact on
student enrollment. The report determined demand for public schools
is “inversely related to in-state tuition.” Dunn said
then that any impact would not overcome the rate of growth.
Administrators said, as long as the tuition remained competitive
with other universities and students had financial aid options,
enrollment would not decrease.
Dunn said funds from the increases were put aside for financial
aid distribution and the new B-On-Time loan program.
Ray Boldreghini, financial aid associate director, said more than
50 percent of students receive some kind of financial aid.
“We were able to increase funding for a large number of students
who were given additional funding to offset the $10-per-hour increase,”
he said.
While most undergraduates have seen a $10-per-credit-hour increase,
nursing and engineering undergraduates pay an additional $10 per
credit hour, and engineering graduate students pay an additional
$20 per credit hour.
The state sponsors the B-On-Time loan program, which allows some
high school graduates to receive aid. If these students finish their
degree on time while maintaining a B average, the loan will not
have to be paid back.
“We must give priority to Texas Grant eligible students that
are not receiving it due to insufficient funds,” he said.
As for fall 2004, Boldreghini said officials from the Financial
Aid Office are taking projected tuition cost estimates into account
when they look at awards for the new school year.
Student Congress President Josh Warren said, although he is excited
about the enrollment increase, he believes fall 2004 enrollment
numbers will truly show if tuition increases will affect students’
choice on coming to the university.
“Students are looking to enroll in the fall, not the spring.
That is when we will see if they will still choose UTA over other
schools,” he said.
Rusty Ward said students don’t choose to come here because
of the price. The vice president for business affairs and controller
said the rest of the state institutions have raised their rates
as well.
“I don’t think they are coming here because we are the
cheapest one on the block,” Ward said. “The quality
of our education speaks for itself.”
The spring enrollment numbers were collected Feb. 4, census day.
CORRECTION
This article imprecisely quoted Provost Dana Dunn.
She said tuition increases implemented this semester did not “dampen
the enrollment momentum.”
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By the numbers
24,187
Total number of students registered for spring
6.6
Percentage of
enrollment increase
from last spring
1,058
The increase in the
number of students
taking 12 or more
hours from last spring
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