Attend a forum for graduate program fee proposed increase for new students, Oct. 17

Dear graduate students in the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering:

Since its implementation in 2005, revenue from the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering graduate program fee has helped upgrade, replace and maintain lab equipment that reflects current industry practices; supported a graduate seminar speaker series; supported a graduate research program; supported TAs, lab support staff and safety personnel; provided access to research infrastructure like ASU Nanofab and the Research Computing high-speed computing facility; purchased software and hardware for computer-based instrumentation and control systems in labs; and helped fulfill high-speed networking requirements. In short, the current graduate program fee has allowed the Fulton Schools of Engineering to provide value-added support and access to advanced engineering technologies critical to a high-quality graduate education.

Through conversations with our current graduate students, we recognize that that a first-class graduate education is more than just technology and infrastructure — students need support for their professional development outside of the classroom. In addition to the career guidance by our Fulton Schools Career Center, the knowledge and expertise gained through experiential coursework and entrepreneurial culture set our graduates apart.

The Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering is proposing an increase to the graduate program fee for all new full-immersion graduate students to cover the increased costs of running these enhancement programs and services.  Current graduate students will not be impacted by this increase. These enhanced services would be paid for by raising the program fee from $60 to $65 per credit hour and lifting the maximum fee assessed from $450 to $495 per semester. The fee would be implemented at the increased rate for all NEW graduate students beginning in fall 2024.

The proposed fee increase will allow us to support a range of experiences, services and opportunities for graduate students that augment and substantially add to those experiences acquired through the student’s degree program.  This fee will promote your persistence, marketability and long-term career success through the improved services described below:

• Advanced engineering technology and support staff embedded within the graduate curriculum.

• Specialized instruction derived from faculty-based research and industry best practices.

• Broadened Fulton Schools Career Center offerings to provide customized career guidance.

• Supported development and growth of graduate student organizations and competitions.

• Increased entrepreneurial training and experiences, including special topics and elective courses.

• Enhanced resources and state-of-the-art collaborative workspaces for graduate student use.

We invite you to join us for an open forum to discuss how the expanded program fee revenue will enable the implementation of components of this plan and future opportunities for student input. You will have the opportunity to ask us questions concerning the increased program fee and share your feedback. The forum will be hosted online. The date and time for the forum is:

Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023
2–3 p.m.
Attend online

We hope that you will participate in this session to learn more about the proposed fee increase and to provide your input. 

Sincerely,

Kyle Squires, Ph.D.
Dean

James Collofello, Ph.D.
Vice Dean for Academic and Student Affairs