<p>I cross-posted this in the Financial Aid thread as well as here - I think its worth repeating.</p>
<p>This is a network that gives students in 15 western states the ability to get reduced tuition at some (not all) public colleges in neighboring states. Generally the tutions are 1.5 x the in-state tuition -- so if in-state tuition is $4000, WUE tuition will be $6000 -- whereas out of state tuition for the same school might be $12K or more.</p>
<p>For higher stat students, this brings many safety schools into the "financial" safety range as well; for B & C students, this opens up a lot of doors beyond the borders of your home state.</p>
<p>For example, here are some tuitions:</p>
<p>California Maritime Academy:
In State: $3240
Out of State: $13,410
WUE: $4860</p>
<p>Colorado State University:
In State: $3216
Out of State: $14,377
WUE: $4824</p>
<p>This is something I wish I'd known about earlier - I would have perused the list and given my daughter a list of additional safeties to consider - so I'm sharing it now. </p>
<p>Some of these colleges have late application deadlines, so it is not too late for kids who are continuing to shape their college lists. </p>
<p>I would guess there are similar groups for different regions of the country - maybe if parents know of some they can post them here. I feel that this is a huge resource that I was completely unaware of, despite now going through my 2nd round of college admissions. So I want to share it - in some states you have to specifically apply by a priority deadline to get these rates.</p>
<p>Nice catch, calmom. As EK wrote, one thing you have to look out for--not all programs at a state school may be open to WUE enrollees (example, Univ of Utah doesn't allow WUE enrollees to enter into their accounting or art programs).</p>
<p>That's true - and many colleges also limit the slots available, so it isn't automatic. But that's why I'm kicking myself for not knowing this earlier at a time when we could have researched things more thoroughly. There is an extremely wide range of majors covered, so with a little bit of advance planning you could target a college with exactly the program you are looking for.</p>
<p>Cal Maritime is a very cool little school. It was my son's safety school, but he liked it a lot. A ton of options after graduation and some pretty exciting adventures at sea as part of your cirriculum.</p>
<p>This exists in other areas of the country, as well, in case others were note aware. In our area, the exchange at special tuition rates is limited to majors not available at your own state U.</p>
<p>When I looked at it in depth, it turned out to be fairly useless for us. Like others pointed out: limited schools, limited majors, and limited slots within the schools. BUT, if you don't mind a (usually) smaller school, happen to fit one of the majors, and have a good chance at one of the slots, then it's definitely a good thing.</p>
<p>I'd like to point out that while the majors differ from school to school, some offer many majors. I found out about WUE from a mailing from Northern Arizona University, which listed 55 majors -- in all fields (arts, humanities, social sciences, engineering, etc.) </p>
<p>Many of the colleges are fairly large public universities- NAU, for example, has 13,000 undergrads. So again -- there are many options. </p>
<p>The big question I would have is what happens if a student enrolls under WUE and wants to change majors. So I certainly would want to ask the college what are the conditions for maintaining the WUE subsidy.</p>
<p>One more thing: the schools that participate in WUE seem to change from year to year - so it is important to check the latest info on the WUE site.</p>
<p>My kids went to high school on Kauai. WUE is widely used by Hawaii students who want to go to college the mainland. My son is at the University of Oregon on WUE (in-state tuition plus 50%). My niece just graduated from Colorado State paying WUE fees. I know lots of Hawaii kid at UNLV using WUE. (University of Hawaii accepts students from participating WUE states in all majors, by the way.)</p>
<p>The criteria for the program change every year. Each school lists the acceptable majors, how many slots are available, and what GPA must be maintained. When my son applied to UO there were 300 kid vying for only 40 WUE slots, luckily he got one.</p>
<p>I didn't know about this either! Good post, Calmom. </p>
<p>And I completely forgot about the Cal Maritime school. Fascinating school. I tried to get my oldest S interested a few years ago. I still think it would have been a great school for him.</p>
<p>Alas, I must also report that the WUE was fruitless for my niece two years ago. Just not enought option at the schools she had interest in. For example, the impacted nursing major at all California institutions.</p>
<p>Midwest Student Exchange Program: "Since 1994, the MSEP has provided more affordable opportunities for students to attend out-of-state institutions. The MSEP serves as the Midwest's largest multi-state tuition reciprocity program. Over 125 colleges and universities in Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota and Wisconsin have opened their doors to each others' citizens at more affordable rates." <a href="http://msep.mhec.org/%5B/url%5D">http://msep.mhec.org/</a></p>