The Arizona Board of Regents increased ASU Main in-state tuition by 8.5 percent for both graduate and undergraduate students Thursday, in line with what ASU President Michael Crow recommended earlier last month.
But students on the east and west campuses will see a lower raise of 7 percent next year, or $278 more than the current tuition rate, a slight differentiation in tuition that came as part of a motion by Regent Fred Boice.
Beside resident undergraduate tuition for the east and west campuses, Boice's proposal to the board followed what Crow had recommended, including more dramatic 16.9 and 16 percent increases in tuition for future nonresident undergraduates and graduates, respectively. Returning out-of-state students will pay an increase of 8.5 percent.
"As time goes by, more and more, we rely on the money of the students," Boice said.
Boice's proposal split tuition at UA and NAU in a similar fashion, with differences noted between UA main and UA south and NAU Flagstaff and NAU Statewide.
The six tuition brackets include undergraduate and graduate residents, nonresident undergraduate and graduates and future nonresident undergraduate and graduate students.
Undergraduate and graduate student tuition increased by $338 and $428, respectively.
Out-of-state undergraduate and graduate students will pay an additional $1,090 per year. Future nonresident students, undergraduate and graduate, would pay an additional $2,172 per year.
Differing tuition by campus has previously been discussed for the regents, but prior to Boice's proposal it had not specifically been discussed for next year. He said the move to different costs for each university and their branch campuses reflects the Changing Directions Initiative passed two years ago.
"Students are going to have to pay more for the higher level," he said. "There is a difference [in campuses] and I think we're just acknowledging that difference."
Crow said by 2007 students can expect to see price difference according to college, not campus.
"Differential tuition is now policy," Crow said.
Undergraduate Student Government President Sophie O'Keefe-Zelman said she understands the logic behind differential tuition but wishes students would have had more time to react to the possibility of it before Boice announced his proposal.
"I think different costs make sense to a certain extent, but I would rather see them lie between colleges," she said.
Student Regent Wes McCalley brought an additional recommendation to the board that he said mirrored what the student governments proposed.
"I think it was good to get it out there," he said of the request.
Only three regents voted in favor of his proposal.
O'Keefe-Zelman said she was disappointed McCalley's proposal didn't go through, but was glad to see the regents take it into consideration.
"I think we set a really good precedent this year of the board taking our recommendation seriously," she said.
Reach the reporter at rkost@asu.edu.
