Tessa Barber, president of Graduate Assistants United at the University of South Florida, said many out-of-state students are already working multiple jobs to cover their tuition.
If their cost to attend USF goes up, she said, it will put more financial strain on them.
“That's a bill that you can't pay,” said Barber, whose organization represents graduate assistants at USF. “That's a grocery that you can't buy. And it's an additional burden.”
Several Florida universities raise their fee
In June, the state Board of Governors unanimously approved a rule allowing universities to raise their out-of-state fees by up to 10% this year and up to 15% next year. Changes for each university need to be approved by each school’s Board of Trustees.
USF will be the fourth university to consider raising its out-of-state tuition fee.
Earlier this month, Florida State University and the University of Florida also approved 10% increases.
Florida International University votes on a 10% increase Wednesday. The University of Central Florida considers a 10% increase Thursday.
The USF Board of Trustees plans to vote on the proposal at a special meeting Thursday as well.
What are the numbers?
If approved, out-of-state undergraduate students will pay $381.15 per credit hour and graduate students will pay $466.97 per credit hour starting in the fall semester, which begins Aug. 25.
Both are below the State University System’s average of $491.90 and $628.17, respectively.
USF said this increase would help cover the “increasing costs of instruction and operations,” according to an email sent to students at the beginning of July warning of the possible change.
"You have to go from ‘I could afford a couple things here and there for me and to go out with my buddies here and there and to go on this trip’ to ‘well, I just got to devote all my time to working and paying for school.’ "Jake Ferraro, USF undergraduate student from Colorado
Board of Governors member Alan Levine told the News Service of Florida he doesn’t want universities to start accepting more out-of-state students just to get more money in fees.
He said the gradual increase allows out-of-state students to plan for how they will foot the bill.
USF currently charges the lowest fee among the 12 state universities.
The last time USF increased its out-of-state tuition fee for undergraduate and graduate students was in 2012. Florida International also increased its graduate fee in 2012. No other state university had increased its out-of-state fee since, until now.
If USF’s increase is approved, Florida A&M University would have the lowest undergraduate out-of-state fee by $2 and USF would still offer the lowest graduate out-of-state fee.
FAMU is not considering an increase this year.
How this will affect out-of-state students
But the GAU's Barber urged the university to consider other increasing costs students face as well.
“That 10% represents a huge income boost for the university, but for current students, that represents even more financial strain than we already undergo,” she said.
If approved, the change would result in roughly $5 million in additional revenue for USF.
Student body president Sumit Jadhav is an international student who pays USF’s out-of-state tuition rate. He also has a seat on the Board of Trustees and will vote Thursday on the increase.
When making his decision, he said he’ll consider his tuition bill and the difficulties the increase could cause other students.
"It just comes down to how everyone manages their personal finances,” Jadhav said.
He didn’t say what parts of his budget he would need to cut.
Jadhav cannot get a job in addition to being student body president because as an international student the number of hours he can work is limited.
For 15 credit hours, the fee increase could cost Jadhav and other out-of-state undergraduates more than $500 more per semester.
But when he votes, Jadhav is also going to consider how this will help the university fund infrastructure and research, things he said ultimately improve how the university is perceived.
“It definitely will help us maintain the edge that we have and further improve our performance within the state,” Jadhav said.
Jake Ferraro, a USF undergraduate from Colorado, said he’ll have to make those budget cuts Jadhav suggested if his tuition bill gets increased.
And for him, that means less money for fun.
“You have to go from ‘I could afford a couple things here and there for me and to go out with my buddies here and there and to go on this trip’ to ‘well, I just got to devote all my time to working and paying for school,’ ” Ferraro said.
Ferraro said he’ll need more hours at his job or even a second job to cover the increase.
Barber agreed. She said it will be harder for students to manage.
“I hope they would consider that while 10% might seem like a small, small number compared to someone who makes six figures, it's not a small one for us,” Barber said. “It represents a huge, huge burden.”
