Students taking courses in the Engineering School now pay an additional $32 per credit hour to cover lab expenses, even if the Engineering courses they take don’t have lab components. The fee, instituted this semester, applies to Engineering students and also students in other schools who enroll in Engineering courses.
The University has considered implementing a similar fee for years, said Bob Bremer, the Engineering School’s associate dean for management and finance. Revenues from the fee will cover the cost of new technology in the Engineering labs.
“Compared to 10, 20 years ago, technology is rapidly changing and needs to be refreshed more frequently,” Bremer said. “[The fee] became necessary.”
An operating budget draft by Michael Strine, the former executive vice president and chief operating officer who resigned earlier this month, calculated that approximately $6.1 million of revenue will come from additional fees, including the new Engineering fee and new clinical fees in the Nursing School.
But to some fourth-year Engineering students without labs the fee is unfair, said fourth-Year Engineering student Maria Rode, who has no required labs left.
Without the fee, though, others think the Engineering School wouldn’t have been able to keep up with changing technology.
“I think the Engineering fee is all about providing the best hands-on education that we can for our undergraduate students,” Engineering Dean Jim Aylor said. “Basically, to be a successful engineer you have to experience the analysis of the product you’re designing. [You have to experience] state-of-the-art technology.”
The Engineering School is not alone in demanding such fees. Virginia Tech and Virginia Commonwealth University charge fees by the credit hour and charge engineers additional tuition.
“Differential tuition and laboratory fees have grown as accepted ways to address the higher cost of engineering programs at the top public engineering schools,” according to a statement on the Engineering School’s website.
Although Rode agreed that some labs she had taken in her first three years had been underfunded, she said students deserve more information about what the fees are going to be used for. And her classmates agree.
“I’m still kind of in the dark,” fourth-year Engineering Student Matt Mahoney said.
Third-year Engineering student Carolyn Jensen said in an email that the fee could be detrimental to students who are already struggling to pay tuition.
“The difference could end up approximately equivalent to the cost of a new textbook in a three- or four-credit lab course,” she said. “However, I think students in that position will find ways to pay the extra fees.”
Rode said the additional fee would not have made her second-guess her decision to attend the University — as an out-of-state student she already pays more — but she opposed the blanket, per-credit-hour fee.
“I would have preferred if, instead of by credit, it was charged to people taking labs,” Rode said.
— Joseph Liss, Senior News Associate Editor, contributed to this story.
Read More
Class of 2024 celebrates graduation at final exercises
By Finn Trainer | 2 days agoIn his opening remarks, University President Jim Ryan praised the graduating class for their resilience during challenging times.
U.Va. Alumni Association submits plans for new Alumni Hall building
By Caroline Hagood | 4 days agoWest said that despite the proposal moving through City Council’s review process, the project is still years away from becoming a reality.
Graduating student leaders reflect on how they impacted the University community
By Jackie Bond and Brandon Kile | 5 days agoAccording to Lilian Rojas, Board of Visitors student representative and fourth-year Batten student, the Class of 2024 is defined by its resilience.
