Institutional fee raised for Spring 2010 semester

The Board of Regents has put into effect a $100 per semester fee increase for all students. The new fee will go into effect January 2010 and will be applied to the upcoming spring semester.

For all research universities, including Georgia State, the fee is now $200. Other schools that are not of research status will also have a $100 increase, and include: University of West Georgia, Georgia Southern, Valdosta State University, Georgia College and State University, Kennesaw State University and Southern Polytechnic State University. A per semester fee increase of $75 will be added to other comprehensive universities not listed above, and two-year schools will be forced to pay an additional $50 per semester fee.

The reason behind these hikes is, of course, the school system's budget constraints. Due to a lessening in tax collections, the University System of Georgia, or USG, had to find money elsewhere.

"A special institutional fee is part of the overall strategy to ensure access and academic excellence for students," says the Frequently Asked Questions page from the USG Web site. "The fee increase spreads the cost equitably among all USG students and is necessary to ensure academic quality."

The Web site also assures students that the hike is a last resort option. The Board has approved budget reductions at 4, 6 and 8 percent levels; the only reason the fee has been increased now is because they have now implemented the 8 percent budget reduction. Another option would have been to raise tuition.

The additional fees are applied to every student, including those on the guaranteed tuition plan. If the Board was to increase tuition, the fee would not apply to every student. Therefore, by changing the institutional fees, they are able to evenly spread the financial burden among all the students.

Also, this fee cannot be paid for by the HOPE scholarship. The USG Web site did not specify if it could be covered by other scholarships or grants.

Luckily for students, this fee is not permanent.  According to the Web site, there is a "sunshine" date of June 30, 2012.

Teachers and USG employees are paying this institutional fee as well. They are burdened with $152 million of the reductions. The Board of Regents has also approved a fee increase for the year 2011. These fees do not pay for projects planned by the university such as dorms.

For more information about these fees, visit www.usg.edu.