SALT LAKE CITY — In a unanimous vote Friday, the Utah System of Higher Education announced schools it will no longer charge in-state application fees when students apply to state colleges.
The elimination of fees will begin in January and will apply to anyone living in Utah during the time of their application.
The loss in revenue from the decision will be covered by one-time bridge funding while work continues on creating an alternative funding proposal.
“We appreciate the leadership of the Board to remove barriers for our students as they apply to pursue their education,” said Brad Mortensen, president of Weber State University. “We’ve seen the positive impact it has for increasing opportunities for students to pursue their dreams.”
Here were the fees previously charged by schools:
- Weber State University - $30
- University of Utah - $55 for domestic students and $65 for international students.
- Salt Lake Community College - $20
Southern Utah University was the only public school in the state not to charge a fee to applicants.
“USHE has long been laser-focused on increasing access to college and changing the college-going rate,” said Deneece Huftalin, president of Salt Lake Community College. “We know that removing application fees has improved applications in the state before, and we would like to see that trend continue. This is a great step in removing barriers to higher education and a way to ensure that everyone has access without any sort of financial barrier limiting them.”
The schools free for Utah students to apply to will be:
- University of Utah
- Utah State University
- Utah Valley University
- Utah Tech University
- Southern Utah University
- Salt Lake Community College
- Snow College
- Weber State University
