Proposal would raise grad student tuition by $250 more than undergraduates'

The graduate student community had mixed reactions to President Pete Likins' proposals to increase graduate student tuition by $250 more than the price undergraduates will pay next year.

Grad Student Tuition Academic year Resident Non-resident 2003-2004* $3,342 to $3,842 $11,862 to $12,362 2002-2003 $2,592 $11,112 2001-2002 $2,490 $10,356 2000-2001 $2,348 $9,804 1999-2000 $2,264 $9,416 1998-1999 $2,158 $9,110 Source: The University of Arizona Graduate Catalog, Arizona Board of Regents * Under President Pete Likins' proposed plan

Likins has proposed to increase tuition by $1,500 for non-resident graduate students, and either a $750, $1,000 or $1,500 increase for in-state graduate students.

"I don't think it is evil or bad. It is something they have to do to survive," said Tim Rooks, a third-year creative writing graduate student. "I feel like tuition is already pretty cheap, so increasing the tuition would be the first thing I would do as a legislator."

The proposed plan would be enacted next year, which some students said is too soon.

"It is still on the low end, but it is still a large increase in one year," said Theresa Seifert, a first-year law student. "I understand that the Legislature is not giving the school as much money as they need, but that is a pretty big hike."

With issues of teaching assistant workload and graduate student quality of life already on the minds of many graduate students, non-degree representative Jim Collins of the Graduate and Professional Student Council said the additional tuition increase could greatly affect graduate student enrollment.

"I know we had a budget cut and it has to be dealt with in some way, but if you raise tuition as high as they are talking about, you are going to be losing graduate students and that sort of defeats the whole purpose," Collins said. "We are here for the students."

Many grad students serve as graduate teaching assistants in undergraduate classes.

Pete Morris, the president of the GPSC, said the tuition hike could be a difficulty for some students, but could also aid the graduate students if the additional revenues are used well.

"GPSC is willing to support the increase if the money they receive is put back into improving the quality of life for graduate students and the quality of education they will receive," Morris said.

Morris wants funding to be used to reduce GTA workloads.