Summer enrollement down, costs up

Summer school has always had a somewhat negative stigma attached to it: Some have said it's for athletes, people who failed during the semester, or people who can't handle more than a few classes at a time.

Still, more than 10,000 students each summer fill UA classrooms for presession and first and second summer sessions. Students can take as many as 15 credits, the equivalent of a full semester.

Summer school is fundamentally different for the university than a regular semester. The major difference is that the state doesn't fund summer school, so the university is responsible for all costs the state normally funds. But because the university doesn't give financial aid for summer school, it covers all its costs, and then some, for summer session.

Departments even end up with positive cash flow from summer school, which lets them add classes as long as student demand is there.

But over the last two years, it's been dwindling. Last week the Office of Curriculum and Registration announced that the pace of summer school registration is down 19 percent this year compared to last year, which was down 9 percent from 2003.

With summer school tuition up significantly, perhaps this is no surprise. However, summer school still makes considerable sense for students. In summer school, students can get into virtually any class, including some of the classes that are most difficult to get into during the school year.

Class sizes are also smaller, allowing for a better student experience. Furthermore, with summer school students can stay on track for, or even accelerate, their graduation date, which is good for everyne involved.

For out-of-state students, the advantages are even more dramatic. Although they normally pay a large premium over in-state students, out of state students pay the in-state tuition price during summer session. Still, the Office of Curriculum and Registration reports that the percentage of out-of-state students in the summer is the same as during the school year.

Clearly not enough out of state students are taking advantage of this discount.

The UA has been having a shortage of seats in classrooms during the year, and students are saying that getting classes is too difficult, yet a major solution is going underutilized.

More students should get on the summer school bandwagon. It's not just for slackers. It may just be for the most prepared students after all.

- Opinions are determined by the Wildcat Opinions Board and written by one of its members. They are Evan Caravelli, Brett Fera, Caitlin Hall, Ryan Johnson, Jesse Lewis and Lisa Rich.