As rising tuition dominates schools across the country, Ashland University defied this trend by announcing a tuition reset earlier this year.  AU has received positive feedback from prospective students in terms of a higher number of applications as well as campus visits compared to previous years.

W.C. Vance, director of admissions, indicated that campus visits increased by 29 percent from Sept. 1 through Dec. 1.  During this time frame, 263 more potential students participated in official visits than this point last year.  

The admissions events and tours remain key opportunities for spreading awareness of the tuition reset. Specifically, the newly established model decreased the attendance price by more than $11,000 to an amount of $18,908.  Many prospective students at these information sessions consider this reduced price a selling point when evaluating AU against other schools.

Keystone High School student Alicia Sadowski expressed her interest with the lower cost.  She discovered the news at a campus visit and believes the change will help AU stand out from the competition.

“It would be cheaper to come here than other schools,” Sadowski said.

Other students heard about the reset before their official campus visit.  Kassandra Vaughn, a high school student from Wooster, said that her church camp counselor first informed her about the price changes.  She indicated that this factor enhanced the already positive aspects of AU.

“It is a really great school,” Vaughn said.

Another prospective student, Lloyd Latsch, of Holmesville, expressed similar sentiments regarding the tuition.

“It is not completely unreasonable in costs and fees,” he said.

His father Mike Latsch explained the tuition reset served as one of their reasons for visiting Ashland.  He said they saw an advertisement for the tuition reset on a billboard and that the school guidance counselor also informed students about Ashland’s new initiative.

“The price discount did catch us,” he said.

Besides campus visits, the university has witnessed a greater number of applications compared to this time last year.

Scott Van Loo, vice president for enrollment management and marketing, indicated that the number of applications has grown by 15 percent this fall.  With 1,879 received as of November 2013, this represents an increase of 255 students when measured against this time in 2012.

Van Loo described the potential impact of this growth.

“Applications translate into more admitted students and then in most years, translate into more enrolled students,” Van Loo said.

While the admissions office is still processing forms from prospective students, Van Loo said that the majority of individuals satisfy the minimum requirements for acceptance.

“All the indicators right now are that the academic profile of the student is going to be stable if not slightly increased over what it was last year,” Van Loo said.

Van Loo also pointed out that most of these applications are from high school students and the transfer rates have remained constant.  He noted that typically not as many first year students switch to AU mid-year, but he expects an increase in transfer applications during the spring as more consider leaving their current institutions.  

To attract a higher number of prospective students, the university has focused its marketing efforts on the tuition reset and emphasized the decreased cost in promotional materials.  

After the announcement, the admissions office mailed postcards to prospective students discussing the changes.  Interested individuals can also obtain information through pamphlets and brochures as well as the AU website.   Environmental ads encompass another marketing strategy that includes billboards displayed in Northeast Ohio and other areas.

Through these efforts, Van Loo discussed the projected increase in the number of students that will attend AU next fall as a result of the reset.  He said that this year’s freshmen class totaled 621 students.  Next year, the admissions office has predicted a freshmen class of 664 students for an increase of 43 people. 

Despite these projections, the university does not anticipate any short-term capacity issues resulting from a higher number of students such as running out of space in the dorms.

However, Van Loo explained that more entry level classes will be added if necessary next fall.

“There’s a general awareness of what we want to do to make sure that we have the right amount of offerings for students coming in,” Van Loo said. “There’s meetings already taking place related to appropriate planning.”

During preparations for next year, the university is also working on calculating the costs that current students must pay.  While most returners will not witness a significant drop in the price of attending AU, Van Loo explained the initiative’s impact on them.  

“We’re moving from a high tuition, high discount model to a low tuition, low discount model,” Van Loo said. “Discounting is the amount of financial aid that the institution contributes that goes directly against tuition, fees and room and board.”

In other words, returning students should be aware that their costs will remain close to this year and the change factors into the amount of university aid.  Although this realization may disappoint current students, Van Loo said this option remained more advantageous than raising tuition again.  This year, an increase would have resulted in a net price of more than $40,000 and in seven years, the cost of attending AU would exceed $50,000.

Van Loo believes that the potentially high prices in the future might have discouraged many students from the university. While a lower tuition potentially creates an image of less prestige, Van Loo indicated people will still value the high education and variety of opportunities at AU.

“Families are excited about a private institution priced where we are because they feel it’s then a true representation of what it is going to cost to attend,” Van Loo said.

Van Loo also discussed that a greater number of schools around the nation have implemented similar changes in their tuition to avoid being overlooked by students for financial reasons.

Concordia University embodies one of these schools and decreased tuition by $10,000 last year.  Located in St. Paul, Minnesota, this university remains similar to AU in size, institution type and enrollment.

After announcing the reset last year, Concordia has experienced a higher number of new students.  Specifically, 691 more individuals are attending Concordia this year compared to last year.  In addition, they witnessed a 30 percent increase in applications and campus visits in the months following the reset. 

Ohio Northern is another school that recently implemented a tuition reset.  This fall, they announced that their tuition would decrease 20-25 percent and would vary based on the specific college of study.  For instance, the college of arts and sciences featured a $36,470 price but with the reset will now cost $27,500.

As more schools consider the option of lowering their tuition price, Ashland will stay competitive among public schools as well as other private institutions announcing tuition resets.  

In addition, Van Loo noted that it becomes easier to share AU’s mission and the attributes that establish it as a valuable school with a greater number of students considering AU after the tuition reset.