2010-11 Fee Schedule:
Samford University’s board of trustees has approved a $761 per semester tuition increase for fulltime undergraduate students for the 2010-11 academic year. Fulltime undergraduate tuition will total $21,722 for the year. Undergraduate tuition for 2009-10 was $20,200.
On-campus undergraduate housing will increase an average of 6.5 percent. Meal plans will increase 5.5 percent. Actual costs will vary according to the residence facility and the meal plan.
Students in Samford’s evening degree program will pay $350 per semester hour, a $15 increase.
A tuition increase of $706 per semester was approved for McWhorter School of Pharmacy. Cumberland School of Law tuition will increase $711 per semester. Increases will vary per credit hour for other graduate programs.
All increases will be effective with the fall 2010 semester. Complete financial information for all undergraduate and graduate degrees programs is available at www.samford.edu.
Samford’s total costs remain about 37 percent below the national average for private, doctorate-granting universities, according to R. Phil Kimrey, Samford’s vice president for enrollment management.
The nationally-recognized Princeton Review recently named Samford one of the 50 “Best College Values” among private universities in the U.S. Among the criteria used by Princeton Review in the selection process were total cost, faculty-student ratio, class size and available financial aid. The increases will help cover rising costs necessary to sustain Samford’s academic quality and small class sizes and help Samford attract and retain highly qualified faculty, Kimrey said.
At the same time, Samford projects increases in available student financial aid for the 2010-11 fiscal year. This year, Samford expects to award more than $25 million in university-funded financial aid and is in the midst of a multiyear, $200 million fundraising campaign that includes a significant goal for scholarships.
“We take our financial responsibility to our students very seriously,” Kimrey said. “We will do our best to provide for capable students with demonstrated financial needs during these difficult economic times.”
Even with the increases, Samford must continue to find other funding sources beyond tuition and fees, which provide only about 58 percent of Samford’s annual operating budget, according to W. Randall Pittman, Samford’s vice president for advancement.
“When successfully completed, The Campaign for Samford will provide much-needed funding for scholarships, faculty and academic programs,” Pittman said. “Keeping Samford affordable for our constituents is important, as is our commitment to providing the quality programs that our constituents have come to expect.”
A new campus life fee of $145 per semester will provide additional funds for student activities, facilities upgrades and other non-instructional costs. Separate fees will address the needs of graduate and professional students, Kimrey explained. Anticipated physical improvements from the campus life fee include additional recreational, study and gathering spaces.
The idea of an activity fee has been discussed with student groups for several years, Kimrey said. Student committees will be organized to provide advice to the university’s administration on the use of proceeds from the fee.
Samford continues to monitor costs, Pittman noted, but, providing competitive faculty salaries and rising facility costs impact budgets, even as the university sustains its growing academic reputation as a nationally-ranked university.
“Samford’s academic excellence, which is especially important to students and alumni, does not come without cost,” Pittman said. “But, we also understand that reasonable costs are one of the criteria for which we were recognized as one of the Best College Values by Princeton Review.”