The Daily O’Collegian

Tuition, financial aid increase this fall

OSU students will pay 9.9 percent more in tuition costs when they return for the fall semester.

On June 22, the Oklahoma A&M Board of Regents approved the FY 2008 bill that increased tuition, OSU Interim President Marlene Strathe said. But there is more to the bill than the tuition increase.

“You have a whole range of areas: fringe benefits for faculty and staff, insurance costs, utilities, academic support costs,” Strathe said. “There are [price increases] when utilities go up, so you will have to pay the cost.”

This year Oklahoma State University received $4 million of the $10 million needed to meet mandatory expenses, Strathe said. The remaining $6 million comes from tuition.

“We don’t have any other way to cover those costs,” she said.

The tuition increase will not only benefit the members of faculty and staff who will be receiving raises, but also will give students more opportunities for financial aid.

For in-state students, the Oklahoma Higher Learning Access Program will help cover costs.

OHLAP is a need-based program that pays tuition, said Margaret Betts, assistant director for special programs in the Financial Aid and Scholarship office.

When tuition goes up, so does the amount of OHLAP funding a student receives.

“OHLAP has expanded to what they call a permanent source,” Strathe said.

Cowboy Covenant is a program that pays fees for in-state students who don’t have enough gift assistance, Betts said. Gift assistance includes the Oklahoma Tuition Aid Grant, tuition waivers, grants and other forms of financial aid.

“We’re excited about this because it allows students to get basic costs within the duration of their undergrad program,” Betts said. “OHLAP and Cowboy Covenant are coming together to support students.”

About 85 percent of OSU students received some kind of financial aid from the institution, federal government or other source, Betts said. In the 2006-07 school year, OSU administered $206 million in financial assistance.

“We’re always looking for ways to increase financial aid without tuition increases,” Betts said. “We’re working to adjust eligibility as well.”

Though the tuition increase has brought with it new forms of scholarship and financial aid, these programs were founded on the basis of the needs of the students and not for the tuition increase.

Two federal government programs are included in the new scholarships available for students this fall: the Federal Academic Competitiveness Grant and the National Science and Mathematical Access to Retain Talent grant.

“These are the first new federal grant programs we’ve had in 15, maybe 20 years,” Betts said.

ACG is “pure cash money,” Betts said. It is available for students who took a rigorous course of education in high school. A first-year-award maximum is $750 for those students who have completed no less than 23 hours. The second-year maximum is $1,300 for those who have completed between 24 and 47 credit hours with a 3.0 cumulative GPA, according to the ACG description.

SMART is for upperclassmen who are in an approved field of study, such as engineering or chemistry, according to the SMART description. Those students who have completed between 48 and 71 credit hours in their major can receive up to $4,000. Undergrad students who have completed 72 or more credit hours can receive an additional $4,000 as well.

The maximum amount a student can receive is $8,000.

“We’re always looking for ways to sponsor students, but there are some limitations,” Betts said.

Student loans represent half of the federal money available to students, Betts said.

The loan program is another way to help students through college, but there are other options students should try before even thinking about taking out a loan.

“Before considering loans, I would encourage students to really sit down and use the Bursar calculator page and calculate their tuition and fees and other charges,” Betts said. “Really put pencil to paper to figure out your budget needs.”