Northern Iowa proposes instate tuition for students from border states

CEDAR FALLS — In hopes of boosting enrollment and addressing Iowa’s workforce needs, the University of Northern Iowa is proposing slashing tuition rates for non-resident students from bordering states to match the instate rates paid by Iowa residents.

The proposal — which has Board of Regents backing but would require financial support from the Legislature — is expected to up UNI’s enrollment of students from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska and South Dakota.

A projected enrollment increase of threefold to sevenfold would boost the pool of degree-holding graduates likely to stay in Iowa to work, UNI President Mark Nook told lawmakers this week.

“Because about 80 percent of our students are going to graduate who come here as freshmen, and 40 to 50 percent are going to go into the (Iowa) workforce, we expect to be able to produce, at a minimum, 130 … new workers in the Iowa workforce every single year,” Nook said. “And the statistics actually say it should be close to 310.”

Nook billed the proposal to drop tuition for neighboring undergraduates from an out-of-state rate of $20,340 a year to the instate rate of $8,564 as an answer to Iowa’s workforce needs.

And he noted UNI has capacity for more students.

“We have currently about 9,200 students, almost 9,300 students on our campus,” he said. “But we have capacity for at least 13,000. So we have room to grow.”

‘Population isn’t growing’

UNI’s enrollment has dropped 34 percent to 9,283 since its high of 14,070 in 2001. In the last decade, the student body has receded 22 percent from nearly 12,000 in 2014.

Iowa, meanwhile, reported 70,000 job openings in November and 53,900 unemployed people in December, according to the most recent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

“Our population isn't growing as fast as other states,” Nook told lawmakers. “It isn't growing as fast as the economic development and, in particular, the jobs are growing in the state.”

Iowa, according to a 2024 report from The Pew Charitable Trusts citing U.S. Census Bureau data, ranked 33rd nationally in population growth between 2008 and 2023, with a growth rate of 0.41 percent per year — below the national average.

Looking forward, Iowa’s annual population growth is expected to shrink in the coming decades — with a population decrease projected in the 2040s, according to Pew.

“As a regent institution, a state-supported institution, we've always got to be looking at, what are the problems in the state? Is there a way for us to help find a solution to those problems?” Nook said. “So what we are proposing is to help us recruit more people to this state through the University of Northern Iowa. We have capacity.”

‘Really high return’

UNI’s current enrollment from Iowa’s six contiguous states totals 443 — which is anticipated to produce about 130 degrees a year, about 52 of whom stay and work in Iowa. With a conservative threefold impact from lowering tuition rates, UNI projects enrollment from those states could swell to 1,329, producing 390 degrees and 156 Iowa workers.

Should the lower rates produce a sevenfold impact, enrollment could grow to 3,101, producing 910 degrees and 364 new workers.

But cutting the cost by more than half for 440-plus students will hit UNI’s budget — which relies heavily on tuition revenue and state appropriations.

“In other words, if we do this, and we don’t add some money to UNI, we create a $3 million hole in UNI’s budget,” Nook said, pointing to one aspect of its appropriations request for the 2026 budget year.

“So we’re asking the state to provide $3 million to support these students,” he said. “In return, we will get a minimum of 130 workers into the Iowa workforce. That’s a recruitment cost of a little under $30,000 per worker.”

UNI also is asking for a $2.5 million increase in general aid from the state, $1 million to create a new Center for Civic Education, and $1.6 million for its community college collaboration.

Should lawmakers approve the $3 million tuition supplement for contiguous-state students, Nook predicted a “really high return on your investment.”

If enrollment increases as predicted, tuition and fee income from just those students could reach $27 million — an amount that could double when room and board is factored on.

“So a $3 million investment will generate $54 million a year in the Cedar Valley and, really, the state, and produce between 130 and 300 new workers every single year,” Nook said. “That's what we're asking the $3 million for.”

South Dakota is the only state currently offering instate tuition for Iowa residents. A select number of institutions in other adjacent states give tuition discounts to Iowans — like the University of Wisconsin-Platteville and the University of Nebraska-Omaha, which offers an “Omaha Urban Rate.”

Although UNI’s proposal — which has received Board of Regents approval — aims to start offering neighboring students the lower rates for the coming 2025-26 academic year, UNI spokesman Pete Moris said the impact might not be immediate.

“Realistically, since the majority of incoming freshman college students will have likely made their college decision by the time state appropriations are determined, we anticipate that UNI wouldn't likely see a significant enrollment increase from this initiative until 2026,” Moris said.

Vanessa Miller covers higher education for The Gazette.

Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com