UTEP Ranks High Nationally for Affordability

EL PASO, Texas, June 14, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- At a time when people are focused on the cost and value of a college education and degree, data released June 12 by the U.S. Department of Education shows The University of Texas at El Paso as the best value and most affordable emerging research institution of higher education in the country.

UTEP's out-of-pocket cost, or "net price," is $2,066 per academic year for full-time, first-time undergraduate students, making it 12th lowest of all public universities in the country, according to the Education Department's College Affordability and Transparency report. The national average net price for 4-year universities is $10,471 per year.

UTEP's net price, which is the total cost of attendance minus the average amount of government and university grant and scholarship aid, is the lowest among all emerging Tier One universities in Texas and all national research institutions classified by the Carnegie Foundation.

"The U.S. Department of Education report helps underscore the importance of UTEP's mission to provide access to all students and provide them with the quality education of a national research institution," said UTEP President Diana Natalicio. "UTEP is recognized as the new model for higher education in the United States, and we will continue to work hard at keeping our tuition and fee costs as low as possible while growing our research faculty so that students across the Paso del Norte region receive the very best education any university can offer."

The U.S. Department of Education released highest and lowest tuition and net price for 4,165 public and private institutions.

Net price, unlike tuition or total price, calculates what a student will pay out-of-pocket and can be a better measure of how a college education will affect a family financially.

Craig Westman, UTEP's associate vice president for student solutions and outcomes integration, attributes the University's low out-of-pocket cost to a continued focus on making college affordable to motivated students.

"We have taken several important steps to ensure that all students, even those with the lowest family incomes, can attend UTEP," Westman said. "One example is the UTEP Promise, which is our commitment to cover the costs for students who have family incomes of $30,000 or less."

The University has helped about 500 students per year since 2006 by paying their full tuition and mandatory fees.

CONTACT: Veronique Masterson, +1-915-747-7503, [email protected]

SOURCE University of Texas at El Paso