Breaking down tuition fees

By Margaret Thomas
Contributing Writer

With their tuition staying the same, out-of-state students attending the University of North Florida can feel relief this year. But resident students will be paying a 5 percent increase.

As mandated by the Florida Legislature, UNF raised its tuition fees from $103.37 per credit hour to $108.95 for undergraduates and from $231.97 per credit hour to $243.97 for graduates.

“There was no limit on the amount of tuition to be raised for out of state students, so we elected to leave it the same,” said Shari Shuman, vice president for administration and finance.

Dr. Tom Serwatka, special assistant to the president, said that, despite the increase, UNF should evaluate where it ranks among other universities within the state system.

“If you look at the numbers, we’re on the low end of tuition costs when it comes to in-state tuition,” Serwatka said. “If you look at out-of-state tuition, though, we are the most expensive in the country. We rank sixth as the least-expensive university for comparable universities, which means we’re less than 44 others.”

Some students, however, are not looking at the numbers.

“While I was paying for tuition this summer, I noticed all these fees tacked onto my bill that I had no clue of,” said Dyann Busse, an out-of-state senior communications major. “I was paying $10 or so to the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship and for some other stuff I don’t think I’ve ever used. I think it’s great out-of-state tuition isn’t being raised, but it’s still so expensive no matter what way you look at it.”

Busse was recruited by UNF to play basketball. Out-of-state waivers have helped pay for her education, but during summer terms she has to pay for her classes out-of-pocket.

“I took two classes this past summer and it cost me $3,000 or so,” she said. “I know I’m lucky to have so much financial help during the fall and spring, but when summer comes around, it hurts.”

As a resident student, Melody Zortea has not given much thought to the increase.

“Because I’m in-state, I receive the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship, which pays for 75 percent of my education,” Zortea said. “The loan I take out every year pays for the other 25 [percent].”

As resident students experience the increase in tuition, they may wonder where the extra 5 percent is going. According to Serwatka, the increase goes toward teacher salaries, hiring more advisors and other special learning applications beyond the classroom.

Fees assessed in addition to the base amount per credit hour include an athletic fee of $12.25, which is more than 11 percent of the initial per-hour cost for an undergraduate resident student. There is also an activity fee of $7.49 per credit hour, which goes to fund Student Government activities at the university.

A new annual ID card fee of $10 was also added to cover the cost of an initial OspreyCard. Previously, students would pay $10 at the OspreyCard office for the first time they received an ID card. Starting this fall, registered students must pay $7 every year they register, which is added to their tuition- and-fees account.

“The problem was, the ID Card office was losing money in previous years,” said Vince Smyth, director of auxiliary services. “This will also provide the money for capitol equipment replacement in the future.”

The new fee goes directly to the ID office to cover services that come with the card, including the library identity services, fitness center and aquatic center identity, and lunch meal service, according to Smyth. But students must pay an additional $15 fee for every replacement card that was either lost or defaced.

Zortea said it is good to know the increased cost of tuition is going to improve UNF, but that it is unfair she is paying for things she does not use.

“I think it’s great our money helps with teacher salaries and things of that nature, but what about things I don’t use?” Zortea said. “I pay an athletic fee for a gym I never use, and I pay some medical-facility fee for a clinic I’ve never gone to. It just stinks that I’m paying so much money to go to school and the only thing I do around here is go to class.”

E-mail Margaret Thomas at uspinnak@unf.edu.