Regional media: UC is now offering lower tuition for all residents in Kentucky and Indiana

A native of Georgetown, Kentucky, Spencer aspires to someday become a physician. As a high school student she was only half an hour away from the University of Kentucky, but it was UC that captured her attention.

“Money was a big factor for me in choosing my college,” says Spencer, a third-year student majoring in medical laboratory science and pre-medicine.

Spencer was living in a select area of Kentucky that received a special metro tuition rate for residents that allowed her to pay in-state tuition plus a $25 surcharge per credit hour. That special rate was recently expanded and is now available to all residents in Kentucky and  Indiana.

For a student taking 15 credit hours per semester, this would be an estimated savings of $7,367 per semester, or $58,936 over the course of four years. Spencer says those savings are substantial. She’s worked a number of jobs on campus to make ends meet during her time at UC.

“I would not have come if I didn’t have in-state tuition,” says Spencer. “UC was my first choice, and it was the cheapest option, even cheaper than schools in Kentucky.”

News of the special metro tuition rate included mentions in 15 TV segments broadcast in Kentucky and Indiana along with coverage in The Lexington Herald-Leader. The Cincinnati Business Courier also reported on this news.

The University of Cincinnati, now part of the Big 12 conference for football, hit a new milestone this fall with a record shattering enrollment of 50,921 students. Also, UC is ranked Top 5 in the country by U.S. News & World Report for their cooperative education program (similar to internships, where students are paid while gaining experience in their fields). Overall, the student body is its most diverse ever, with students of color representing 26% of the population.

Spencer says UC remains the smart choice.

“Some people that I want to high school with have texted me as they look into the University of Cincinnati,” says Spencer. “ A lot of people in my high school just go to the University of Kentucky because it is right next door, but with UC getting bigger and with more prominence, more people are talking about us."

“UC is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made,” she adds. “I will sell UC 100%. I love UC, and I tell everyone I won’t in a million years change my mind about attending. If I had gone to another school, my entire college experience would be so different.”

Jack Miner, vice provost for enrollment management at UC, says in the past two years, the university has seen its first-year enrollment from Kentucky increase by 30%, and from Indiana, it has doubled.

He hopes to see that trajectory continue. 

"UC has made a commitment to increase access to higher education for this region," he says. "As we look for opportunities to ensure that students and families have a pathway to college, that investment has to include those students throughout the Tristate."

"UC has become a destination school nationally and internationally, but we are seeing that we are the top choice for so many students in Kentucky and Indiana because of the combination of excellence and proximity,” Miner adds. “Having a Research 1 university within driving distance is an incredible opportunity for high school students looking at college. This move makes that world class education affordable."

Featured image at top by Andrew Higley/University of Cincincinnati.