Editor’s Note: A previous version of the graph in this story incorrectly stated the tuition rates for international undergraduate and graduate students. The number originally listed was the Global Select rate, which is for international students with certain GPAs. It has been updated with the correct tuition rates.
The Kansas Board of Regents approved a 4.9% tuition rate increase for the upcoming academic year at Wichita State University.
The approval increase is expected to cost $190.95 per semester for in-state undergraduate students taking 15 credit hours, or $12.73 per credit hour.
Other Kansas universities asked for tuition increases ranging from 3.5% to 6%.
WSU President Richard Muma presented the tuition proposal to KBOR on May 20, asking for a 4.9% increase across tuition rates, but with no increase to student fees.
“We’ve been looking at our projections over the next five years,” Muma said during the May meeting. “And if we do nothing, particularly with declines in international enrollment, we’re going to end up with a pretty significant budget reduction.”
In January, Muma said he was anticipating a 7% budget reduction for the university that would likely result in workforce reduction. The projected budget was made due to declining international enrollment.
During the May 20 KBOR meeting, Muma said over the last four years, WSU has seen a decline of about 2,000 students in international enrollment, and that the university is expecting about 750 international students to be enrolled for the upcoming semester.
Aside from the budget reduction, Chief Financial Officer David Miller told The Sunflower in April that WSU was seeking an increase because of the university’s state funding being cut by 3.5%.
“We have been cutting and reallocating internally,” Muma said in the May meeting. “We’ve been handling it internally, so it hasn’t been a crisis of any kind, but it’s certainly not good.”
Multiple programs have already faced cuts, including within the athletic department and creative writing program, and Liberal Arts and Sciences being asked to reduce its budget by $1.5 million.
After reviewing the proposal, KBOR, the governing body for higher education in the state, approved the request.
