The Board of Regents affirmed the University of Michigan-Dearborn’s commitment to student success, academic excellence and creating access and opportunity for qualified students with the approval of the university’s $155 million 2021-22 general fund operating budget June 17.
The fiscal year 2022 budget includes a 1.9 percent tuition increase, which aligns with the Higher Education Price Index and is well below what the state of Michigan is expected to set as a cap on how much universities can increase tuition this year. Campus leaders said the increase is the lowest possible to maintain the academic excellence expected at UM-Dearborn.
“As UM-Dearborn continues to be challenged to serve students with limited state support, maintaining the excellence of our education programs and ensuring access to the university are among our top priorities,” UM-Dearborn Chancellor Domenico Grasso said. “Accordingly, we continually increase financial aid awards for students for merit and demonstrated financial need with approximately 88 percent of our state of Michigan appropriation going directly to students via financial aid.”
Regents also extended the Go Blue Guarantee to the Dearborn and Flint campuses. The financial aid program offers up to four years of free tuition for high-achieving, in-state undergraduate students from low-income backgrounds.
OTHER BUDGET NEWS
Beginning this fall, full-time, high-achieving, in-state undergraduate students attending UM-Dearborn will automatically qualify for the award if they have a family income of $65,000 or less and assets less than $50,000.
In addition to meeting the income and asset provisions, incoming first-time college students need a high school GPA of at least 3.5 to qualify for the Go Blue Guarantee and will be eligible for up to eight semesters of free tuition. Incoming transfer students need a transfer GPA of at least 3.5 and will be eligible for up to four semesters of free tuition.
Returning students at UM-Dearborn who have not exceeded the semester limit as noted will be eligible starting this fall and must have a GPA of at least 3.0. Program specifics are available on the UM-Dearborn Go Blue Guarantee website. Additional information will be added as it becomes available.
The initiative is supported at UM-Dearborn by a lead gift from Kathy and Jim Hackett.
“Our campus has been piloting this program for the past year aligned with our need-first financial aid strategy. Today’s announcement of the extension of the Go Blue Guarantee will help to supplement the already significant investment that UM-Dearborn has been providing during the pilot program,” Grasso said. “We are grateful for the leadership of President Schlissel, the regents and our philanthropic partners on bringing this important initiative to our campus.”
Last year, UM-Dearborn introduced a block tuition structure to encourage undergraduate students to take increased course loads and graduate more quickly and economically.
With the 1.9 percent increase in tuition, full-time, in-state, undergraduate students will see a $264 annual increase to $13,816. Out-of-state undergraduate students will see tuition and fees at $28,048, or about $528 more than last year. Graduate students will see an increase of about $180 annually, for in-state students, or $336 annually, for out-of-state students, for the typical part-time (6 credit hours per term) graduate rate.
The university will continue to charge the reduced registration fee of $200 per semester that was introduced last year.
“The university community has worked hard throughout the past year to be more efficient, reduce expenses and keep our tuition increase as low as possible,” Grasso said. “These changes enabled us to successfully manage our resources during the pandemic and present the regents with a balanced budget for FY ’22 with a focus on student success.”
