According to a recent study by Student Loan Hero, Wyoming’s public colleges are ranked as the third most affordable in the nation, with costs at $122 per credit hour. Wyoming was surpassed only by New Mexico and California.
President Laurie Nichols said that these findings are not surprising.
“In-state tuition at UW is very low,” Nichols said. “When compared to our peers or really any other land-grant university, you will not find lower in-state tuition than Wyoming. The state has made affordability for Wyoming residents a real priority over the past many years.”
Vice President of Administration William Mai, said generous state funding is what enables UW to keep tuition low. Funding comes from a block grant provided by the state legislature. Most of the revenue from that grant is generated from severance tax, federal mineral royalties, and sales and use taxes.
Mai said that this block grant provides close to $400 million per biennium.
According to the State Higher Education Executive Officers 2015 Higher Education Finance Report, Wyoming’s Full-Time Equivalent allocation is $17,300 per student. This supersedes the national average, which is $6,966 per student.
Nichols said that these numbers reflect Wyoming’s commitment to higher education.
“We are at an index of 2.48 while the national index is 1.0. In other words, we are well funded by the state,” Nichols said.
Nichols and Mai both said that maintaining low tuition costs will continue to be a priority as the university undergoes budget cuts and changes in funding.
“While Wyoming is going through a rough economic time right now, I suspect they will stay true to funding education as much as possible and we will continue to sell the value of a strong university and higher education to the prosperity and well-being of the state,” Nichols said.
Mai said that the university is working to keep tuition as low as possible while maintaining top-notch faculty and researchers by staying out of debt.
“The university has been very conservative in taking on debt of any kind, whether it’s for construction or anything else,” Mai said. “I do think the university, pretty much like everything else in the state of Wyoming, is really debt adverse.”
Some students are still concerned about UW’s tuition levels. Jasper Hunt, sophomore, said UW’s low cost is good, but does not necessarily mean that students are better off financially.
“I think it’s great that Wyoming schools are cheap, but Wyoming has a lower cost of living and lower wages,” Hunt said. “If you are working to put yourself through college, low costs aren’t enough to help you stay out of debt.”
Garrett Formo, a Junior at UW, said affordability is one of UW’s main appeals.
“Relative to other universities, UW is very affordable, especially for Wyoming residents who qualify for Hathaway,” Formo said.
Despite this, Formo said that he is concerned about the way the university allocates funds.
“I am concerned that UW doesn’t spend money in ways that benefit everyone in an academic sense,” Formo said.
Mai said he wants to assure students that assessing tuition and fees is a priority for UW administrators.
“University Administration looks at [costs] very carefully and is very conservative in the way that it approaches tuition and fees, very mindful,” Mai said. “There are also other parties around the state who have an important voice in that too, not the least of those whom are the trustees and the legislators.”
As budget changes continue, Mai said tuition and fees at UW will continue to be evaluated in order to make receiving an education as affordable as possible.
