• T 

To... ?? 

SENATE          

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TUITION FEE STRU CT URE 

FACULTY OF SCIENCE 

JUNE 

MOTION: ? 

"That Senate ask the Board of Governors to reconsider 

the recently approved fee structure since its detailed 

structure has negative academic implications, and 

consider an amendment to the effect that students 

enrolled in courses totalling more than 15 semester 

hours in any one semester be charged no more than 

those enrolled in 15 semester hours." 

To........ H.M....E.v.ans ........................................... ....... .... ................................... . 

?

Webs,t.e.................................................................... 

tary 

?

Senate ? 

.................Dean....of...Science......................................................... 

ct

Tuition 

?

Struure ........... . ........................... 

......... 

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Date................ June ... 1.4.......1.9.7.7 ................................................ .............. 

At the Board of Governors meeting of April 5, 1977 a decision was 

taken to increase undergraduate tuition fees. Simultaneously, it was 

decided to change the fee structure. Some details of this change have 

negative academic implications which were not discussed by appropriate 

university bodies. 

An outcome of this is that, at the Faculty of Science meeting of 

May 19, 1977, the following motion was passed: 

"The Faculty of Science requests that Senate ask the 

Board of Governors to reconsider the recently approved 

fee structure since its detailed structure has nega- 

tive academic implications, and consider an amendment 

to the effect that students enrolled in courses total- 

ling more than 15 semester hours in any one semester be 

charged no more than those enrolled in 15 semester 

hours." 

The previous fee structure was such that students paid $15 per 

credit hour up to a total of 11 while students taking a total of 12 

credits or more paid a fixed amount of $214. The new fee structure is 

now $18 per credit hour. 

The negative academic implications which support this motion 

are outlined on the accompanying memorandum. 

.1 request that the above motion be placed on the agenda of the 

July meeting of Senate. 

J:la 

J..M.....Web.ter ......... 

S.ecr.e.tar.y. ... 

.of. .. Senate ............................................................... 

.... 

....B.. J...F....P.alme.r., ....... Student ... .Senator.................. 

........Tui.tion...Fee...Structure.................................................Date.... ? 

June ? 

.

In support of the motion passed by the Faculty of Science on 19 May 

1977 concerning details of the new fee structure, the following negative 

academic implications have been identified: 

1. Students who are capable of completing their degree programmes 

at a rate of more than 15 credits per semester are discouraged 

from so doing. The benefits in having capable students enrolled 

in more than 15 semester hours include savings to the University 

in fixed costs, savings in the student's own living expenditures, 

and savings to the student in total fees paid. There are addi- 

tional academic benefits arising from intensive application to a 

discipline. 

• ? 

2. The student with ample funding will be able to pay the additional 

cost of high semester loads and complete his/her degree in a 

minimum of time, but the student who cannot afford the additional 

cost of high loads will take longer to complete his/her degree. 

Thus, the less affluent student will incur a much higher total 

cost for his/her education due to the higher living costs 

associated with attending University for additional semesters. 

However, the more wealthy student is able to minimize his/her 

total educational costs and enter the workforce sooner. Financial 

aid is based on a full load of 15 semester hours and will not 

offset the additional cost of tuition over 15 semester hours. 

Therefore, the new fee structure is an additional burden on less 

wealthy students and limits education accessibility. 

3.

Students in heavily structured programmes are currently able to 

add elective courses for their own general interest and to broaden 

their educations. The old fee schedule did not discourage this, 

but the new one does. 

4.

Good students are capable of obtaining an Honors degree in the same 

time that the average student requires to complete a Major and yet 

an SFU Honors degree will cost a student more in total fees paid 

than an SFU Major degree 

($2376 

minimum vs. $2160 minimum). 

.12

.

H. M. Evans 

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- 2 - 

June 14, 1977 

In addition to the negative academic implications given above, the 

new structure is apparently at variance with the fee structures of other 

Canadian universities. I do not know of any Canadian University where 

a four year Honors degree costs the student more than a four year Major 

degree. An SFU Honors degree will cost a student a minimum of $2376 in 

total fees. A similar degree at UBC would cost $2144 in a normal four 

year programme in the Faculties of Arts and Science. The new fee structure 

would tend to discourage the academically excellent student from attending 

SPU instead of, say UBC. At UBC the prospective student would complete 

his Honors degree as a four year package while at SFU he would typically 

take more than 8 semesters. UBC offers more services (eg. library) and 

better financial aid (eg. private scholarships). Yet an SFU Honors degree 

would cost more than the UBC equivalent. SFU must remain academically 

Competitive and encourage, not discourage, the academically better student. 

JMW: la 