State officials: MN students in WI to take a financial hit

Minnesota Office of Higher Education officials seem to agree with the scenario I posted that Minnesotans this fall must pay $1,300 a year more to study in Madison and Milwaukee because of a University of Minnesota restructuring of tuition and fees.

So will students be surprised, and how will the hit affect their ability to attend those University of Wisconsin campuses?

Policy analyst Tricia Grimes said entering freshman probably won't know the difference, because they didn't pay tuition last year. But continuing students should notice, although it's unclear whether the tuition statement will explain the increase.

Grimes told me it shouldn't affect access too much:

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"It’s always challenging to come up with more than a thousand dollars for many families. But the research is that students who cross the state line ... tend to be in the upper half of the income distribution. So it's probably not quite such a big deal for them. ... But I don't want to minimize (that cost)."

Those who receive the Minnesota State Grant financial aid can't use it in other states, so it shouldn't affect them, Grimes said.

I still have calls into the U and Wisconsin.