As one student poignantly stated:
"It is so disheartening that The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG), which is supposed to be giving students the opportunity to make their lives better, is so determined to implement rules and policies that make completion of a degree even more difficult than making passing grades. Not only are we forced to pay a 50% Tuition Surcharge, but we not charged said surcharge until MONTHS after they issue Financial Aid. Then, just before they drop the students' current classes, we are notified that any aid we are due in the coming weeks will not cover the previous semester's balance, so we have to come up with thousands of dollars - RIGHT NOW.
My questions for The University of North Carolina at Greensboro - UNCGare: How is this fair? How is this at all helpful to the student? How are these types of practices not a detriment to the existence and progression of "our" university? How are those of us paying for our college education independently (without the help of Mommy, Daddy, Grandparents, trusts, inheritances, and/or spousal support) ever supposed to attain the degrees we are working so tirelessly toward, if we are constantly being bombarded by financial, logistical, and administrative obstacles? Do you really care more about the date by which ONE of the MANY thousands of dollars you receive yearly is deposited into your vast bank account, than you do about allowing a student (who is not just surviving through, but THRIVING in college) to attain the degree they so desperately seek?
These questions, UNCG, are not rhetorical - I absolutely expect an answer. You do not have to answer them here, but you will hear from me in other forms and forums, so you WILL answer them at some point. You will see and hear from me very soon."
Whatever excuses the administration at UNCG wants to make (ranging from the 'everybody is doing it' model to the 'it's not our fault' version) there are things that are adding to the costs that we very clearly have the ability to control and the failure to do so is as damning as actively picking the pockets of students when they are walking to class. We continue to downgrade the quality of the institution when we drive away dedicated staff, revolt dedicated faculty, and squander our money on unnecessary bean counters with fancy titles but little to offer.
It appears, dear UNCG, that the owl may have a larger family than you expected. A response is in order - and look sharp about it.
This is a very real issue that impacts students and makes it difficult for some to continue their education.
ReplyDeleteThere are improvements that should be made in the timeliness of when the Tuition Surcharge is posted to student accounts. It should not be months into the semester, but as early as possible.
With that being said, the Tuition Surcharge is not a UNCG policy, but a state requirement imposed by the NC General Assembly beginning in 1993 (Senate Bill 27 Section 89B) and has been updated a few times since.
In effect, this tuition surcharge penalizes students who take more time than necessary to obtain their degree. I think the logic behind this is that NC taxpayers are supplementing the cost of the student's enrollment and that taxpayers should only be expected to supplement students seeking a degree for a reasonable amount of time. After the student exceeds that time, it's time for them to pay more of the cost of receiving their degree instead of the taxpayer being asked to supplement a student who continues to be enrolled and is not making progress towards obtaining their degree. I don't personally care for this law, but I believe that is the logic.
This may not all be the student's fault. It could be from faulty advising or not being able to get into the classes they need.
When these tuition surcharges are assessed late in the semester, it becomes a burden to students. Last year, these surcharges were seen as late as April.
Keep in mind, however, that Fall registrations are not cancelled until August at the earliest.
UNCG also has no choice in allowing student's with prior semester debts to stay registered in future semesters. This is a requirement of the Office of State Controller acting on legislation passed by the General Assembly (G.S 147-86.21 and Gs147-86.23). This requirement specifically states that "Institutions of higher education shall develop policies and procedures to ensure that no student having any outstanding past-due accounts with that institution is allowed to enroll for the next term." There are also federal guidelines that limit the amount of financial aid that can be used to pay prior academic year balances.
Unfortunately, all of this information is not helpful to the student who has to come up with a large balance out-of-pocket. The university needs to be more proactive in posting and notifying students as early as possible when that student will be charged the tuition surcharge.