With less than 50 percent of University of Wisconsin System students graduating in four years or less, the Board of Regents expressed concern over the cost of extended time necessary to complete a degree and debated various options to increase this percentage at their meeting Friday.
According to UW System President Kevin Reilly, 29 percent of students within UW Systems actually graduate in four years, an increase over the past few years when only 27 percent received a degree in that time.
“Students who graduate in four years enter the workforce faster — there’s less forgone income,” Reilly said. “[They] start earning wages while we get more capacity for incoming students.”
He added the board needed to discuss ways to help students and families plan ahead, while looking at family’s ability to pay the cost of higher education.
According to the presentation by the president, students taking 15 credits per semester pay 20 percent less in fees and tuition for a 120-credit degree versus a student taking the minimal requirement of 12 credits per semester.
By graduating in four years, Reilly added, students save $14,873 over the amount a student graduating in five years must pay. A student graduating in six years spends an extra $23,225.
To offset these costs, Reilly presented to the board cost-saving options available at other UW universities.
UW-Stout is offering three-year degree programs in business administration, psychology and hotel, restaurant, and tourism management next fall.
Another cost-saving option endorsed by the board was for students to start at UW Colleges while living at home. Students are guaranteed transfer to UW System universities, as is evident by the approximately 2,500 students who transfer each year.
“For these cost-saving options, we probably haven’t done well with students and families in communicating effective discussion about these options,” Reilly said. “We haven’t really marketed it, talked about it.”
He added the board will try to work together to put more and more degrees into a four-year template that is clear on campus, while remaining mindful that different kinds of familie`s have different options.
Regent Danae Davis said students who take longer to graduate generally work over 20 hours a week to support themselves or come into universities having to take remedial courses in their first year. With these time-consuming scenarios, there is a significant delay for these students to graduate.
Reilly responded saying work generally provides conflicts with scheduling for classes, which could easily be remedied.
“If a student comes in and says, ‘I want to graduate in four years,’ we can negotiate that. Sign an agreement and we’ll make it clearly possible,” Reilly said.
Regent Kevin Opgenorth said there seems to be mixed messages about the timeliness of graduation.
“[I’ve heard the saying] ‘You have all your life to work, don’t rush through school,'” Opgenorth said.
He added the board should consider the message they want to send out and that communication would be key in helping students and families better evaluate their options.
The Board of Regents will convene again in February, when the plans and policies discussed at Friday’s meeting will be solidified.
