This month, the California State University (CSU) Board of Trustees was set to discuss a new plan to increase revenue by charging super seniors and those repeating courses extra fees.
Students who are enrolling in courses at a CSU after completing 160 units will receive a fee increase, referred to as a graduation incentive fee. This proposed hike is intended to encourage students to graduate within four years.
They will also be implementing a course repeat fee and a third-tier tuition fee, charging additional fees per unit taken over 18 units.
These fees overall would ideally allow for 18,000 more students to enroll in the CSUs and make more room in courses that are often over-enrolled, as students would have to be more careful when registering for class. Not only is this wishful thinking, but it also burdens current students with fees they could not have planned for.
It is already quite clear how we feel about fee hikes, not to mention the fact that this plan seems a bit unjust considering that many students take a fifth year at UC Davis because there is such difficulty getting into classes to complete major requirements. While none of our majors are officially impacted programs, there are still a lot of classes that only students with priority registration — such as athletes and honor students — and nearly graduated seniors can get into because of their high demand.
It is also unfair to charge students for taking more units. Students with double majors who aim to graduate in four years often have no choice but to load up on courses. These ambitious students shouldn’t be punished, and neither should those who need to repeat a course. Having to sit through the same class is painful enough without having to pay more for it.
While UC Davis is obviously not a part of the CSU system, this does not mean we are unaffected. If this plan goes through, and if it proves successful, it is likely that similar fees will be implemented in the UC system as well.
We don’t want that.
