Attending college during a pandemic means missing out on treasured experiences like going to the big game, performing on stage or diving into the campus social scene.
Pacific Lutheran University is trying to ease some of the loss. The private Tacoma-area school announced on Monday that it will offer a tuition-free bonus year to its current students.
The school’s “PLUS Year” program works like this: Full-time undergraduates will be able to enroll for two extra semesters the year after they’re slated to graduate. Graduate students will be eligible for tuition-free continuing education courses after they finish their degree programs.
When the fall semester begins on Sept. 8, PLU plans to offer a mix of in-person, online and blended courses as well as on-campus housing. In March, the school shifted to a remote-learning format for the remainder of the spring semester.
PLU President Allan Belton said in a release that the school is working hard to ensure students will have a positive academic experience this fall.
“We understand this will not be the college experience they imagined,” he said. “We’re offering this PLUS year to ensure that students still get every opportunity to experience our university at its full, most vibrant capacity.”
The school envisions its students taking advantage of the program in different ways.
“For some, it will mean an extra semester on the field or performing with their music ensemble,” Belton said. “Others will take advantage of the opportunity to study away, complete an additional major or minor or engage in additional research with a favorite faculty member.”
A year of tuition at PLU doesn’t come cheap: The sticker price is $46,850, though students typically pay less than $20,000 once financial support is factored in.
Belton told the Business Journal that PLU doesn’t expect to lose any planned revenue from the free tuition since it will be for classes that students take in addition to their already-paid-for four-year programs. He added that the main challenge will be managing class sizes, though even there the school has enough staff and classroom resources available that it should be able to meet demand.
The response to the announcement of the PLUS Year program has been “off the charts,” Belton said, particularly from parents.
“There’s real beauty in doing the right thing,” he said.
Fall enrollment 2019
| Rank | Prior Rank | University name (prior rank) |
|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | University of Washington Seattle |
2 | 2 | Washington State University |
3 | 3 | Western Washington University |
