EIU Media Relations

Undergraduate Tuition Rates to Be Same for In-state and Out-of-state Students

Higher tuition rates will no longer be a deterrent for prospective out-of-state students wishing to attend Eastern Illinois University.

The EIU Board of Trustees on Friday approved a tuition rate change for all undergraduate students from the five states bordering Illinois - Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri and Wisconsin - from three times the in-state rate to the in-state rate.

The change will take effect in Fall 2011.

Previously, Eastern assessed undergraduates from any state the in-state rate only if they met Honors College admissions standards.  That policy will continue.

However, in an effort to be more competitive for new students, EIU President Bill Perry on Friday recommended to trustees that the in-state tuition rate also be extended to all undergraduates in the five bordering states.

Similar moves have or are being considered by many other schools - both in and outside of Illinois -- in an effort to recruit more students.  This past year, for example, Indiana State University increased its applicant pool by 1,000 individuals due, in part, to offering Illinois applicants in-state tuition there.

"Clearly, we must do everything we can to increase the number of Illinois residents who apply to Eastern, but with out-of-state institutions becoming very aggressive in recruiting our students, we need to consider doing more," said Blair Lord, provost and vice president for academic affairs.

Fall 2010 figures at EIU reflect an on-campus enrollment of 10,511 and an off-campus count of 1,119 for a total of 11,630.  A year ago, the number of students taking on- and off-campus classes was 10,788 and 1,178, respectively, for a total enrollment of 11,966 -- very near EIU's optimum enrollment of 12,000.

Eastern's current enrollment from the five bordering states includes Indiana, 45; Iowa, 7; Kentucky, 7; Missouri, 26 and Wisconsin, 18.