Higher fee increases at state universities tied to demand for services

Different factors than those driving tuition increases have pushed student mandatory fees up at a much higher rate than tuition in the past decade at Iowa's three regent universities.

But state Board of Regents and university officials say mandatory fees reflect student demand for services and facilities and the cost of providing those things at the University of Iowa, Iowa State University and the University of Northern Iowa.

Student fees pay for things such as new recreation centers at the UI and ISU, wireless Internet access on campus, student health clinics, campus busing and student organizations, including student government.

“Those are things that they very much wanted,” UI Senior Vice President for Finance Doug True said. “Fees are earmarked for something quite specific. This is what you pay and this is what you get, in very precise terms.”

Mandatory fees paid by students have increased at a rate more than double the tuition increases from 2001 to 2011 at the UI and ISU, and by not quite double at UNI.

The fees total $1,329 next year at the UI, $1,077.60 at ISU and $942 at UNI. Students pay mandatory fees on top of tuition, which is just more than $6,400 next year for in-state undergraduates at the three universities.

UI senior Alex Rothlisberger, 21, said even though students are told how much they pay in specific types of fees, it's still hard for him to know what he's getting with some of them. Rothlisberger also pays an additional technology fee charged to upper-level Tippie College of Business students.

“They tell you it's for technology or student activities or arts and culture, but I'm a finance major, so I'd always like to know more specifically where it's going,” he said.

From 2001 to 2011, mandatory fees increased 231 percent at ISU, 227 percent at the UI and nearly 191 percent at UNI. That's compared to the base tuition increases in that same time period: 106 percent to 107 percent at all three schools.

It's reasonable to wonder why fees increased so much more than tuition in the past decade, Regents President David Miles said.

Partly, it's due to a change to the way the regents approve tuition and fees, which significantly inflated the fee increase percentages for several years, Miles, of Waukee, said.

The regents used to approve tuition, then designate a portion of tuition revenue for purposes such as student activities, student services and building debt service.

But in 1999, the board separated tuition from all mandatory fees as distinct financial streams. Initial increases to mandatory fees in those first few years were larger and on top of a smaller base number, Miles said, which inflated the increases.

Regents pay attention to keeping fee increases in line with tuition increases, Miles said. The base tuition increase for next year is 5 percent, while the fee increases at the UI and UNI are 3 percent and 4 percent, respectively. The fee increase at ISU next year is 20 percent, due to a large fee for a new student recreation center.

“I think the biggest concern on fees today ... is just keeping an eye on them and making sure the fees are going for high-priority uses at the universities,” Miles said.

Committees on each campus that include student representatives have input into fee recommendations, and student opinions are important, Regent Bob Downer of Iowa City said.

“A number of the larger fee increases are related to specific projects that students support,” he said.

Student leaders need to keep tabs on fees and have good communication with regents and university officials to make sure the increases are resulting in activities and programs that benefit students, said UI Student Government President Elliot Higgins, 21.

“I think student fees do generally go to help improve the lives of students,” Higgins said. “But I do think it's beneficial to have transparency in the process and to be involved.”