From student psychological and health services to seismic safety improvements, UCLA student fees go toward much more than simply the cost of classes or administrative salaries.
Although these fees may seem to feed solely into the operating and support budget of the university, student payments support a number of services.
For an undergraduate student that is also a California resident, the total mandatory fees for the 2009-2010 academic year is $9,151.13, according to the UCLA registrar’s Web site.
This total sum is then separated into individual fees that benefit a variety of services on campus.
From the total amount, $900 is used for non-classroom student services, said Steven Olsen, vice chancellor of finance, budget and capital programs.
This university registration fee is uniform for all students, regardless of residency and is used to support programs such as student psychological and health services.
However, Olsen said that this fee does not include student services such as academic counseling or the Office of the Registrar, both of which are included in the university’s general fund.
This fund is supported by both student fees and state funding and is used to support the general operations of the university, Olsen said.
Next, the educational fee, also known as “tuition” at other universities, claims $6,880 from a student’s payments.
This amount goes directly into the general fund.
In addition to the general operations of the university, the general fund is also used to pay for faculty salaries and benefits, as well as for the general administrative upkeep of the university.
Olsen added that a portion of these fees is also used to fund financial aid opportunities for students.
In addition to these general allotments, a portion of the funds goes toward medical insurance for students, also known as the Undergraduate Student Health Insurance Plan.
This makes up a total of $885, although Olsen said that some students choose to waive this fee because they are already covered under their parents’ private insurance plan.
The rest of the funds specifically benefit the UCLA campus and student life, Olsen said.
These fees include $121.38 for the support of the undergraduate student government, $45 for the use of the Wooden Center, $113 to repay bonds taken out by the university to improve the seismic safety of both Ackerman Union and Kerckhoff Hall, and $55.50 for the use of Ackerman Union, according to the registrar’s Web site.
Initiative-based student fees also make up $143.25 of each student’s payment.
This amount results from the passing of measures such as the Green Initiative, which passed in May 2008 and is used to fund environmentally sustainable projects on campus, the PLEDGE referendum, which passed last May and funds various student organizations, and the SPARC fee, which passed in 2000 and is used to pay for improvements in the Student Activities Center, as well as for the construction of the South Campus Student Center.
In regard to the recent decision to raise student fees, Olsen said that the 9.3 percent increase is related to cost increases for the university and a reduction in state funding, not necessarily an increase of funds to any particular program.
“There’s quite a bit that’s unfunded by the state,” he said, adding that the cost of energy and health benefits for faculty and staff has increased. “The 9.3 percent increase represents the Regents’ calculations that fees need to be increased in response to the general fund reduction.”