LINCOLN – In another step to expand access and flexibility for students and families, University of Nebraska President Ted Carter announced today that the NU system is moving to a single, reduced in-state tuition rate for most online undergraduate courses beginning in the fall 2020 semester.
With the move, most resident, undergraduate online courses will cost a standard $259 per credit hour. Depending on the campus, that represents a reduction of up to 9 percent – critical cost savings for Nebraskans during an uncertain time. The uniform rate across campuses also provides greater simplicity and consistency for students, Carter said.
“Especially in these challenging times, our No. 1 priority is taking care of Nebraskans,” Carter said. “The value of affordable, accessible, outstanding higher education is greater now than it has ever been. We want to make sure every Nebraskan has an opportunity to pursue a university education, no matter their circumstance. Making our online programs even more affordable is another way for us to provide quality, flexible options for the people of our state.”
Carter stressed that the NU system’s campuses are planning for a safe return to in-person, on-campus learning in the fall, part of the university’s ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, online learning is a flexible option for many students who may not be able to come to campus for work, personal or other reasons. Many on-campus students also take online courses to meet their scheduling needs. Expanding affordable access to online courses helps ensure that no student’s academic journey will be interrupted, Carter said.
In all, more than 35,000 students took at least one online course at the University of Nebraska in the last academic year. Of those, 5,000-plus were Nebraskans who were enrolled exclusively in online learning.
UNK offers more than 500 online course and 50 online program options. Collectively, NU campuses offer more than 50 undergraduate degree and certificate options, along with 14 minors. Fields include business, early childhood education, animal science, social sciences and many more.
The new, reduced rate of $259 per credit hour is effective this fall will apply across all NU campuses. Exceptions include University of Nebraska Medical Center online programs and programs in colleges with differential tuition rates.
Like all tuition rates across the University of Nebraska system, online rates will be frozen for two-years, part of an across-the-board measure announced earlier this month by Carter to expand affordability for students and families.
UNK also recently launched its O.N.E. Loper (Online Networking Experience) program, which allows freshmen and first-time students at UNK to take their entire first year of general studies courses online and remotely.
The NU system also created Nebraska Promise, a need-based financial aid initiative that will guarantee full tuition coverage for Nebraska students with family incomes of $60,000 or less.
Since those announcements, applications among first-time freshmen and transfer students have surged by almost 1,600.
