Many Alabama universities and colleges might claim having affordable tuition, fees, or room and board for undergraduate students seeking their first degree, but what does affordable education really mean?
Many Alabama universities and colleges might claim having affordable tuition, fees, or room and board for undergraduate students seeking their first degree, but what does this really mean? Is education in Alabama actually affordable? Are you actually getting your money’s worth attending Auburn University at Montgomery (AUM)?
The Alabama Commission on Higher Education (ACHE) Annual Tuition and Required Fees Analysis for the academic year 2017-2018 (found at http://www.ache.alabama.gov/Content/Abstract1718/Fees/6_4YR-Annual-TF-Analysis-2017-2018.pdf), reports that there are 14 public colleges in Alabama and breaks down the cost of tuition and required fees by college. Of the 14 public colleges, AUM has one of the least amounts of reported required fees at $760 per 30 hours taken at the institution. Required fees mean fees that are required of all students to pay every year such as but not limited to administrative fees, student activity fees, technology fees and student health fees. This does not reflect, however, other or additional fees students may be charged such as but not limited to online class fees, lab fees, clinical fees, fine arts fees, hybrid course fees, university affiliation fees or graduation fees. This number also does not reflect new fees that will be implemented in the fall of 2018 such as the athletics fee. Comparing AUM to the other 13 public colleges’ In-state tuitions for undergraduate residents in the academic year 2017-2018, there are 5 other colleges that have more affordable tuition rates per 30 hours taken in this ACHE analysis. Below are the Alabama public colleges In-state tuitions for undergraduate residents in the academic year 2017-2018 ranked from least to greatest cost according to the ACHE analysis mentioned above:
- Athens University- $5,940
- University of West Alabama- $7,614
- Alabama A&M University- $8,220
- University of North Alabama- $8,310
- Alabama State University- $8,328
- Auburn University at Montgomery- $9,150
- Jacksonville State University- $9,270
- Auburn University- $9,336
- University of Alabama in Huntsville- $9,356
- University of south Alabama- $9,390
- Troy University- $9,480
- University of Alabama at Birmingham- $10,410
- University of Alabama- $10,780
- University of Montevallo- $11,730
According to AUM’s Tuition & Fees web page found at http://www.aum.edu/admissions/costs/tuition-and-fees, the estimated total cost of attending AUM in the academic year of 2017-2018 is $23,667, but again not including any additional fees or charges that might be specific to a college, department or major, expectations of certain technologies such as smart phones or laptops that are needed to full-fill class assignments, or perhaps travel expenses for field trips or extra credit assignments off campus.
In comparison to the 15 Southern states that participate in the Academic Common Market, found at http://home.sreb.org/acm/states.aspx, (to include Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia) Alabama’s average undergraduate tuition, fees, room and board rates for In-state tuition at 4-year public colleges in the academic year of 2016-2017, according to the National Center for Education Statistics 2017 Tables and Figures, Table 330.20 found at https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d17/tables/dt17_330.20.asp?current=yes, was significantly higher than 9 other states. Here are the total average undergraduate tuition, fees, room and board rates for In-state tuition at 4-year public colleges in the academic year of 2016-2017 ranked by least to greatest cost:
- Florida- $14,806
- Oklahoma- $15,754
- Mississippi- $16,843
- Arkansas- $16,871
- West Virginia- $17,096
- Georgia- $17,353
- Texas- $17,799
- Louisiana- $18,319
- Tennessee- $18,340
- Alabama- $19,052
- Kentucky- $19,673
- Maryland- $20,647
- South Carolina- $21,508
- Delaware- $21,698
- Virginia- $22,567
Alabama 4-year public colleges are perhaps not as affordable in comparison to other Southern states that participate in the Academic Common Market. AUM, in comparison to other 4-year public colleges in Alabama, is also perhaps not as affordable. Though AUM has introduced several new scholarships within the past few years to help financially aid students in attending school, including Opportunity Scholarships and Military Family Scholarships, AUM’s Budget of Revenue, found at http://www.auburn.edu/administration/business-finance/pdf/17-18_aum.pdf, for the 2017-2018 academic year shows on the first page on the second pie chart that not even 1/16th of the total AUM Expenses by Object budget is allocated for student aid. Only 5.7% is allocated for student aid. True, this sum of money is still a large portion in comparison to the estimated total cost of just one student attending AUM; however, these numbers raise the question: Can AUM do more to financially aid their students education expenses instead of allocating money towards other aspects of AUM? Page 7 of the AUM’s Budget for 2017-2018 shows that while several offices and departments took budget cuts, the Office of the Provost’s budget increased by 36%. Several students have voiced concerns about what the perceived “affordability” of college is at AUM, especially transfer students from other 4-year institutions.
By Ashleigh Hicks