After a Wisconsin university announced it will give tuition breaks to students from Iowa and Illinois, some ISU engineering students said the importance of academic quality outweighs tuition costs, while others said they might think twice.

The University of Wisconsin-Platteville recently introduced the “Tri-State Initiative,” which provides a tuition benefit to Iowa and Illinois students pursuing a degree in engineering, business or liberal arts.

Under the plan, Iowa and Illinois students pay $9,125 per year in tuition and fees, and other out-of-state students pay more than $15,000. The initiative’s goal is to boost Wisconsin-Platteville enrollment by 2,000 students during the next 10 years.

Iowa State’s current undergraduate tuition cost for engineering majors is just less than $6,000 per year, although the price could increase by as much as $1,750 for juniors and seniors, should a differential tuition proposal be approved by administrators and the Iowa Board of Regents.

Ryan Manser, senior in chemical engineering, said Wisconsin-Platteville’s tuition plan would attract students.

“When I was looking at colleges, I looked at the Wisconsin schools,” he said. “I’m glad to see it; I’m sure quite a few people would take advantage of it.”

Rich Schultz, dean of the College of Engineering, Math and Science at Wisconsin-Platteville, said Platteville’s location in southwest Wisconsin is why the school is targeting Iowa and Illinois students.

“Because of where we are physically located, one of the areas we haven’t tapped are students from Iowa and Illinois,” he said. “Because of the high out-of-state tuition, which is similar to what tuition is at Iowa State right now, [out-of-state enrollment] is relatively small.”

Katie Gidlewski, Government of the Student Body College of Engineering senator, said tuition cost should not be the primary factor in students’ decisions.

“Tuition only plays one role – there is also the quality of the school in general,” she said. “If you are looking at engineering, you look at the rating of your school.”

Not all students shared her sentiments, however.

Manser said he would have seriously considered Wisconsin-Platteville because of tuition benefit if it was available before he chose to attend Iowa State.

“$6,000 off tuition is a lot; I’d definitely look twice,” he said. “I don’t know what decision I’d make; I don’t know a lot about [Wisconsin-Platteville], but I know that I’d look twice.”

Thomas Hill, vice president for student affairs, said Iowa State cannot attract all potential engineering students, especially if tuition costs are students’ primary concern.

“If you were solely driven by the cost and you’re not willing to, or choose not to, invest – be it your own resources, be it borrowed resources – to get the better education, that’s the choice you make,” he said. “Not everybody is going to come to Iowa State; obviously we can’t enroll everybody.”

Although students concerned solely about tuition costs may be attracted to UWP, Manser said academic quality holds more importance with him.

“I think the money will siphon some people who are looking at just that aspect,” he said. “I know that I’m not really motivated by that. I would be looking at engineering credentials.”

Hill said the quality of Iowa State’s engineering program outweighs the UWP tuition benefit.

“A person who is seeking a quality engineering education will be able to compare the quality of education in engineering of Platteville and Iowa State University,” he said. “You get what you pay for.”

Although the ISU College of Engineering’s faculty-to-student ratio is 21.7 students per faculty member, the engineering ratio at Wisconsin-Platteville is 33-to-1.

Schultz said UWP engineering faculty members spend less time conducting research than ISU faculty, increasing their availability.

“[Faculty] spend more time teaching at UWP than do faculty at Iowa State,” he said. “Iowa State is an institution that is involved in basic research and those activities, so a major portion of their time is devoted to research.”

Hill said the reward of earning an engineering degree from Iowa State comes at a cost to students.

“You get to a point where you understand that in order to get what you want, you are going to have to pay for it,” he said. “You will not get the quality of an Iowa State engineering education for free – you’re going to have to pay for it.”