Mississippi State’s increase of tuition and fees didn’t hurt its enrollment.
According to the Institutional Research Office, enrollment went up from 16,101 students to 16,206 students despite an increase of $284 for in-state students, $496 for out-of-state students and a new utility fee charged to all students.
Vice president for student affairs Bill Kibler said the tuition increase didn’t appear to affect enrollment.
“It doesn’t appear to be the case of an adverse effect,” he said.
“The tuition increase did not affect my choice to attend State,” freshman Adam Carlisle said.
He added that he did not even know the tuition had been raised since last year.
Kibler said that it was hard to judge how the increases would affect individual students.
“The stress falls on low-income families,” he said.
In May the university announced the Promise Program. The program is designed to pay tuition and fees for students of low-income families, allowing them to attend the university, Kibler said.
The department of student financial aid had this to say about the program on it’s Web site: “Mississippi State University strives to combine access and excellence in fulfilling its traditional role as The People’s University and in keeping with the needs of Mississippi.”
According to the department of student financial aid’s Web site, the program allows Mississippi residents whose family income is under $30,000 and who have maintained a B average in high school to receive the grant. Transfer students can also apply but must have maintained a 2.5 grade point average. The program allows freshman students to keep the grant for five years and transfer students for three on the condition that they maintain satisfactory grades.
According to Kibler, approximately 120 students received the grant this year.
“The university expects more for next year,” he said.