New 'Tuition Promise' Program Brings Certainty to Students

BY JAKE STANLEY | Miami University journalism student

As concerns over the cost of college have become a national talking point, Miami University has joined a number of other institutions in creating a guaranteed tuition program.

The Miami Tuition Promise ensures that all undergraduates, beginning with this fall’s incoming class, will pay the same annual attendance costs over a four-year period. Each semester will serve as the beginning of a new “cohort” that locks in the price for eight consecutive semesters, as well as winter and summer terms.

The policy applies to all future undergraduates, including international and transfer students.

“The program is designed to provide certainty and assurance around tuition, fee, room and board costs over four years,” said Brent Shock, the university’s assistant vice president for enrollment management. “It will benefit any new student enrolling at Miami University.”

The total cost of tuition, room, board and fees charged by the university will be frozen for four years for each cohort. Charges related to student health insurance, vehicle registration and textbooks will not be included in the freeze.

“The key was to give students price certainty,” said David Creamer, the university’s senior vice president for finance and business services.

“Predictability is the biggest thing for families,” added Jayne Brownell, the university’s vice president for student affairs. “Students don’t realize that scholarships stay the same for four years while costs increase. To say your bill is going to be the same for four years just helps make better decisions and takes out the element of surprise.”

The promise had been previously discussed by the university’s Board of Trustees and was officially endorsed by Associated Student Government in a September 2015 resolution.

The legal pathway for creating a guarantee program was established by the amending of the state universities section of the Ohio Revised Code by the Ohio General Assembly on Sept. 29, 2013. Leaders from Ohio University lobbied lawmakers to enact the legislation following a decision by its board of trustees to guarantee tuition in 2013.

Although similar programs exist throughout the country, Miami and OU are the only public institutions in Ohio to currently offer tuition guarantees to undergraduates. Among private institutions, the University of Dayton has guaranteed a freezing of its cost of attendance since fall 2013.

Creamer said that the university and state legislature had worked in tandem since last fall toward defining the parameters of Miami’s promise program.

“When [former] President [David] Hodge recognized this was something we needed to do, that’s when we formed a committee and began to figure out what we needed to do,” said Creamer.

The committee’s work has already resulted in freshmen who are pleased with price assurance.

“It’s a good thing,” said Patrick Keck, a first-year student from Columbus, Ohio. “Knowing what to expect from tuition is good for finances and keeps me from being surprised.”

Both Creamer and Brownell admitted that the university is taking a risk in deciding to freeze attendance costs, especially in the case of another financial collapse or large deduction in state funding.

Nonetheless, Creamer believes that Miami is doing the right thing for its students.

“We may not be able to avoid [issues] long-term, but we shouldn’t have it certainly impact our families,” said Creamer. “It’s not easy for the university to absorb that, but it’s often more difficult for the students and their families to do so.”

For students who require more than eight semesters to complete their degree, the Board of Trustees has also created an appeals committee, consisting of three appointed members, that will determine if a student's guaranteed costs will be extended beyond the completion of their cohort.

Brownell believes that extensions will be offered in cases involving severe illness, military service and other scenarios outside of students’ control. However, she does not expect the committee to approve extensions if students change majors or show a lack of initiative in finishing in four years.

If an exemption is denied, the student’s tuition will be priced at the level of the cohort that entered one year later.

As for the program’s impact on the current student body, Brownell believes that it will sustain enrollment more so than expand it.

“I don’t think it is going to attract more students,” said Brownell. “I think it is going to help more with graduation and retention rates more than recruitment.”

Photo: The Campus Avenue Building serves as Miami's home for matters regarding financial aid, such as the Tuition Promise Program. -- Photo by Jake Stanley