For the 10th straight year, Northern Arizona University’s proposed tuition and mandatory fees will maintain the Pledge guaranteed tuition program, resulting in no tuition increase for the 2017-18 academic year for 98 percent of continuing undergraduate students on the Flagstaff campus.
“The Pledge program provides stability and predictability for our students and their families, and we remain committed to this important program,” said NAU President Rita Cheng. “NAU has engaged in significant planning and preparation to develop a proposal that controls costs while providing a high quality education for our students and enhancing the workforce of our state.”
President Cheng is also recommending a one-year moratorium on new fees and fee increases with the exception of an increase to the existing Honors Program fee that corresponds with the development of NAU’s new Honors College. NAU is continuing its evaluation of course and program fees and the financial impact on students resulting in further fee eliminations and reductions.
“I am proud to say NAU is eliminating 41 course fees and reducing another 246 this upcoming year, in addition to the 228 net course fee reductions that were seen this year. This is not an easy decision, especially when combined with maintaining the Pledge tuition program and keeping the change in tuition rates for the next year as low as possible,” Cheng said. “NAU has committed to increasing the conversation over the next year around differential program costs and student awareness of fee uses.”
Fall tuition for incoming undergraduates and all graduate students includes a moderate increase. If approved, total tuition and mandatory fees for incoming resident undergraduate students starting on the Flagstaff campus in fall 2017 would be $11,059, with the base tuition guaranteed for four years.
This year’s tuition proposal also includes reforming NAU’s online education structure. After careful evaluation of the marketplace and consistent with ABOR expectations that online education delivery should occur at competitive price points, NAU is moving to one undergraduate and one graduate credit hour base rate structure for students enrolled in NAU online. This is consistent with other ABOR university practices as well as a majority of institutions throughout the nation.
“Our focus on students and their success is unwavering, and NAU’s contributions to Arizona’s economy, workforce and citizenry continue to grow,” Cheng said. “This proposal meets my goals of leading a financially viable organization that serves students in a high-quality manner while being sensitive to the cost considerations they and their families face.”
The Arizona Board of Regents will consider all three universities’ tuition and fee proposals during its meeting April 6-7 at the University of Arizona. NAU’s tuition proposal:
Flagstaff campus
- New resident undergraduate students: $11,059
- New nonresident undergraduate students: $24,841
- Resident graduate students: $10,261 ($272 increase)
- Nonresident graduate students: $22,609 ($632 increase)
NAU-Yuma
- Resident undergraduate students: $7,867 ($359 increase)
- Nonresident undergraduate students: $21,015 ($605 increase)
- Resident graduate students: $9,651 ($273 increase)
- Nonresident graduate students: $21,999 ($633 increase)
NAU Statewide
- Resident undergraduate students: $7,867 ($220 increase)
- Nonresident undergraduate students: $21,015 ($604 increase)
- Resident graduate students: $9,651 ($272 increase)
- Nonresident graduate students: $21,999 ($632 increase)
Personalized Learning
- Personalized Learning: $3,000/six-month subscription (no change)
- Personalized Learning-RN to BSN program: $3,750/six-month subscription (no change)
Online
- Undergraduate
- $425 per credit hour for 9 credit hours and below; at 10 credit hours and above, per credit hour increments will be $125 per credit hour
- Graduate
- $550 per credit hour for 9 credit hours and below; at 10 credit hours and above, per credit hour increments will be $200 per credit hour
NAU-Yavapai
- Resident undergraduate students: $6,315 ($472 increase)
- Nonresident undergraduate students: $17,903 ($1,387 increase)
Public tuition discussion scheduled
Northern Arizona University will hold an interactive tuition hearing via videoconference in conjunction with the Arizona Board of Regents, Arizona State University and the University of Arizona from 5-7 p.m. Tuesday, March 28.
The NAU hearing will be conducted in Flagstaff in the Babbitt Administration Center, Room 206 and in Yuma at NAU-Yuma’s Academic Complex (AC), Room 111. The hearing also will be streamed online.
Regents will accept comments via e-mail to the Arizona Board of Regents at tuition@azregents.edu; by regular mail at 2020 N. Central Ave., Suite 230, Phoenix, AZ 85004; or by fax at (602) 229-2555.