Yonit Shames
Published: April 12, 2006
As in many community colleges across the state, PJC is full of them: the “floaters.” All of us know at least one, if we’re not guilty parties ourselves. These are the community college students who have already completed Associate in Arts degree requirements, but who “float” at PJC, taking advantage of the low tuition, small class sizes and friendly environment.
Let’s face it: community colleges are a commodity nowadays, considering the fact that public university tuition has risen over 10 percent every year for the past decade. So it’s really not that surprising that 97 percent of community college students graduate with “excess hours,” or credit hours in excess of the 60 required to complete an A.A. degree.
But guess what: they’re not the ones paying for it. Community colleges, of course, are heavily subsidized by the state, particularly for in-state tuition, which is only about a quarter of out-of-state. The state of Florida foots the rest of the bill. And considering the $30 million annual cost of excess credit hours to the state, it’s really not surprising- nor is it “cruel and unusual”- that the legislature is currently working on a bill to curb them.
If enacted, the bill would force students with more than 120 percent of their A.A. requirements completed- over 72 credit hours for a typical degree- to pay out-of-state tuition.
The Florida Junior and Community College Student Government Association and other student groups have been vehemently lobbying against the bill, which they say will discourage students from completing degrees because of cost, but there is good reason to enact it.
For once, let’s realize that the bill is simply not about punishing students who have taken too many courses.
The state of Florida is facing an impending funding crisis. According to an Office of Program Policy Analysis report, the number of state residents enrolled in Florida higher education institutions is growing faster than state funding for their tuitions. Translation: the budget tightening, but the need is growing.
Not only do excess credit hours tax a system that is already stretched to the limit, however. They also penalize the students who do complete their A.A. degrees with a reasonable number of courses.
Because community colleges receive funding based on the number of students who graduate without excess credit hours, those that don’t may force the college to acquire funding in other ways- including raising tuition for everyone, even for those who follow the rules.
It’s a common misconception that it is the responsibility of the state to pay for a student’s degree, even when the given student has changed majors several times or has accumulated more than one degree.
But think about it: 72 credit hours means that a student has an entire semester’s worth of extra courses to take without penalty. That should be more than enough to decide whether to change majors.
And if it isn’t? Paying out-of-state tuition is expensive, but it’s simply not the state’s responsibility to pay the bills for indecisiveness- nor is it the floaters’ peers’.