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As tuition goes up, is it worth the price?

Jesse Hall on the University of Missouri Campus
cindyt7070
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Jesse Hall on the University of Missouri Campus

With the cost of a college education continuing to increase and state funding simultaneously decreasing, some are beginning to question the value of attending a university at all.

The University of Missouri Board of Curators has voted to approve a 3 percent tuition increase for in-state undergraduate students at its meeting Monday.  That’s much lower than what had been discussed in the last few weeks, and it will leave the system with a projected $47.1 million budget gap. UM System President Tim Wolfe says he doesn’t know yet how they will make up this difference but layoffs are not out of the question. 

 “Needless to say, there’s no way that we can see clear right now of not being in a situation where somebody that’s in a job right now will no longer be in that job after the budget process is complete,” Wolfe said.

Meantime, the measure will increase out of state tuition by 7.5 percent, just weeks after the news that the University of Missouri had more students apply from out of state than in state tuitions for the first time in its history.

Wolfe just took office as new University of Missouri System last Wednesday. That same day, he sat down with local reporters for a quick Q&A session about his new position. KBIA’s Harum Helmy has more. (Skip to the 1:15 mark in the audio file above to hear the story).

With the cost of a college education continuing to increase and state funding simultaneously decreasing, some are beginning to question the value of attending a university at all.  In his e-book, “Is a College Education Still Worth the Price?” MU English Professor Richard Schwartz reminds students why their educations have become so costly.  Schwartz says that the more vocational education system that universities have developed isn’t preparing students as well for the world.  He spoke with KBIA’s Erin Dismeier. (Skip to the 4:20 mark in the audio file above to hear the interview).

Ryan served as the KBIA News Director from February 2011 to September 2023