Gov. Arnold Schwazenegger’s proposal to solve the state’s budget crisis could increase student fees and lower financial aid at the University of California. The governor’s plan is raising concerns among undergraduates, non-residents and graduate students alike.
If the proposal is approved by the state legislature, student fees would be raised 10 percent for undergraduates, 40 percent for graduate students and and additional 20 percent for non-residents. Financial aid available from new student fee revenue would also be reduced from 33 percent to 20 percent, while Cal Grant eligibility would simultaneously be reduced.
“”It makes me upset,”” Thurgood Marshall College junior Michelle Lee said. “”I understand that there’s a need for money because of the deficit, but I think that there are other things that could be done instead of making increases in education fees.””
According to the proposal, undergraduate tuition would increase by $498. Meanwhile, non-resident undergraduates would have to pay $2,746 more and non-resident graduate students would have to pay $2,449 more. Both increases would be in addition to campus-based miscellaneous fees.
For Thurgood Marshall College freshman Jean Heff, who is currently paying about $33,000 in out-of-state student tuition and fees, the increase could mean more difficulties.
“”I’m very disappointed, especially because the governor probably could have taken money from other things instead of the school system,”” Heff said. “”I think that if the increase was a few percent less, it would help a lot.””
Graduate students face an increase which would raise tuition as much as $2,088 from the current yearly tuition of $5,219. Graduate Student Association Vice President External Heather Flowe said that the fee hike could translate into decreases in capital investments in the California economy.
“”In reality, increases in graduate student fees mean that departments will enroll fewer graduate students,”” Flowe said. “”In many departments on campus, there is little funding to go around to support graduate student tuition. Increasing student fees, I’m afraid, might discourage students.””
Financial aid would also be cut from student fee revenue collected from student fee hikes and set aside specifically for financial aid.
“”We’ve used it to help fund low-income students,”” Director of Financial Aid Vince de Anda said. “”We’ll have to look at a lot of analysis, but it is simple math. The pie is going to have to be sliced thinner and that means that there would be less grant funds in student packages.””
According to UC spokesperson Hanan Eisenman, the cut could mean rescinding a part of the University Student Aid program that had previously assisted students who were not eligible for any other grants to cover half of last year’s fee increases. The part that would be rescinded gave aid to approximately 6,500 students who came from middle-income families making $90,000 or less.
“”The cut to financial aid is one of the most distressing parts of the proposal because there would be difficulty in maintaining access for low-income students,”” Eisenman said.
The proposal also does not allow for the Cal Grant to cover the fee increases. Requirements for the grant that would make some students eligible are expected to change.
“”The income threshold is going to go down, which means that some middle-income families, mostly families in the margin who were eligible for Cal Grant last year, are not going to be eligible this year,”” De Anda said.
The UC Board of Regents is expected to set student fees for Fall 2004 later in the winter or spring quarter.
“”A lot of families are probably concerned about the proposal,”” Eisenman said. “”The key question is how the fees and financial aid can work together in a way that would let low-income students still have access to the university.””
Students seeking financial aid for the fall quarter must complete applications by March. According to De Anda, because the university does not know what the outcome of the proposal will be, the office of financial aid services and the university must continue to analyze the impact of increases and make the best possible guess in order to set aid packages by February or March.
“”This should in no way discourage students from applying, and they should still make those deadlines,”” De Anda said. “”We’ll come up with the best package that we possibly can, using all our resources, and we’ll try to use our lobbying power as much as we can. It’s a reality that there’s a budget problem and something has to give.””
