VA May Institute College Slacker Penalty

Parents Forum
1

<p>The General Assembly, your mother and I, we’ve been meaning to have this talk for a while now. You’ve been in college here in Virginia for more than a couple of years. And, well, have you thought about moving out and doing something with your life. Like getting a job?</p>

<p>Besides, now that the House of Delegates is set to vote on SB542 today, it could be pretty expensive for you to continue this professional student lifestyle of yours – going to an in-state college year after year and taking electives without ever earning your degree. What was that last class you took anyway? Softball?</p>

<p>You know, this “slacker bill” penalizes students who have taken 125 percent of the credits needed to graduate.</p>

<p>Of course, it doesn’t count credits earned in high school or remedial classes or transfer credits or if a student switches majors or programs. Still, how many credits have you earned already? Do you even know?</p>

<p>The bottom line is money doesn’t grow on trees, and with those new real estate assessments, things are getting a little tight around here. To continue going to school with all those excess credits, we could have to pay an extra $8,400 per year on average – about the same as the in-state tuition discount. Sure, the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia could waive that fee, but that’s not a chance we’re willing to take.</p>

<p>Look, the folks in Richmond aren’t trying to say you shouldn’t learn. They just want to make sure you’re not taking up a seat at the college someone else could use. Besides, this bill won’t even affect many students. At the University of Virginia, the legislation would increase the bills for fewer than 25 students. At Virginia Tech, about 30.</p>

<p>A job.</p>

<p>Just think about it.</p>

<p>That’s all we ask.</p>

2

<p>What about AP credits? Do they count against a student?</p>

3

<p>The University of Washington insituted such a policy about a year ago. It finally faced the fact more than a few undergraduate students were in that dubious category, including those who either changed their majors several times or never declared a major, despite earning way more than enough credits to graduate.</p>

<p>What motivated the crackdown was the increasing scarce $$ support for the UW, amid the growing number of enrollees.</p>

4

<p>Germany badly needs a policy like that.</p>

5

<p>My brother knew a guy at Cleveland State who ended up with like 180+ semester hours just to keep his job at the radio station where he earned free tuition.</p>

6

<p>If in-state kids thought that they might have to pay OOS tuition once they exceeded a number of credits, slackers would wise up and graduate.</p>