UA's eVersity to cost $165 per credit hour

BATESVILLE -- Tuition will be $165 per credit hour for the new online-only eVersity, the University of Arkansas System board of trustees decided Thursday.

"I'll point out that that is the total cost of tuition and fees. There is no separation of fees, and the plan is not to have textbooks," said University of Arkansas System President Donald Bobbitt.

The first students are expected to enroll in October, with programs to be offered in business, criminal justice, health care management and information technology.

Target students for eVersity may have completed some college previously but never earned a degree. They will likely be older and may have jobs and families to support, UA System officials have said.

In announcing plans for eVersity last year, officials emphasized that costs would be kept affordable.

Budget documents prepared for the meeting showed the first-ever budget for eVersity. Officials expect to take in $1.53 million in student tuition during the the 12-month period ending June 30, 2016. The eVersity budget anticipates a loss of about $2.8 million in its first year operating.

Earlier, the venture received general-improvement funds from the state in the amount of $3 million and also $1 million from UA System reserves.

Then in November, trustees approved a $5 million loan to eVersity with money to be borrowed from reserve accounts of UA System institutions.

The expected budget shortfall "will be paid from the monies received in earlier years along with loan proceeds from the other campuses as approved by the Board last fall," the eVersity budget-summary document states.

Metro on 05/22/2015

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