Are out-of-state students more active on campus?
Mason Watson |
Last Updated:11/28/09 Section: Features
It is well known that out-of-state undergraduates at William and Mary pay nearly three times as much as their in-state counterparts in tuition and fees. For this reason, they figure prominently in the College's financial calculations; a shift in their portion of the student population by one percent means the loss or gain for the College of over half a million dollars.
As out-of-state students, according to the Princeton Review, make up 32% of the William and Mary's 5,850 undergraduates, and as they pay $15,482 in tuition and fees each semester compared to the $5,400 paid by in-state students, they therefore pay a staggering 57% of the College's yearly revenue from tuition and fees - $28,982,304 out of a total of $50,463,504. It is not at all surprising then that William and Mary President Taylor Reveley stated in a recent interview that, "the more out-of-state students we have, the better we're off financially."
But just as out-of-state students contribute disproportionately to William and Mary in tuition and fees, so they also seem to hold a disproportionate number of leadership positions at the College. Student Assembly in particular is weighted with out-of-state students. Among the sixteen undergraduate members of Student Assembly senate, only four claim Virginia residency; and as recently as last spring, SA senate consisted almost entirely of out-of-state students, with only one from in-state. The executive branch of Student Assembly is similarly weighted: of the undergraduate members of the executive branch, including the president and the eight department secretaries, 66% are from out-of-state.
Class Offices are more evenly distributed between in-state and out-of-state students, though out-of-state students are again over-represented, holding 42% of the available positions. Only one of the four class presidents, Kobe Gordon for the class of 2012, is from Virginia.
Other organizations that are weighted towards out-of-state students include the Council for Fraternity Affairs and the Inter Sorority Council. 55% of the executive offices of the CFA, and 54% of the executive offices of the ISC are held by out-of-state students. Of the 53 rising sophomores who were chosen as Monroe Scholars in 2009, 24 of them - or 45% - were from out-of-state. In order to become a Monroe scholar as a sophomore in 2009, a freshman had to attain a GPA of 3.8 or higher during the previous academic year. Monroe Scholars, however, are not always disproportionately non-Virginian. Only fourteen of the 53 freshman Monroe Scholars who completed projects in the summer of 2008 lived outside of Virginia. Not all Monroe Scholars, however, choose to complete summer research projects.
The Undergraduate Honor Council is one major campus organization in which out-of-state students are considerably under-represented. Of 24 members of the Undergraduate Honor Council, only 8 are from out-of-state.
As out-of-state students, according to the Princeton Review, make up 32% of the William and Mary's 5,850 undergraduates, and as they pay $15,482 in tuition and fees each semester compared to the $5,400 paid by in-state students, they therefore pay a staggering 57% of the College's yearly revenue from tuition and fees - $28,982,304 out of a total of $50,463,504. It is not at all surprising then that William and Mary President Taylor Reveley stated in a recent interview that, "the more out-of-state students we have, the better we're off financially."
But just as out-of-state students contribute disproportionately to William and Mary in tuition and fees, so they also seem to hold a disproportionate number of leadership positions at the College. Student Assembly in particular is weighted with out-of-state students. Among the sixteen undergraduate members of Student Assembly senate, only four claim Virginia residency; and as recently as last spring, SA senate consisted almost entirely of out-of-state students, with only one from in-state. The executive branch of Student Assembly is similarly weighted: of the undergraduate members of the executive branch, including the president and the eight department secretaries, 66% are from out-of-state.
Class Offices are more evenly distributed between in-state and out-of-state students, though out-of-state students are again over-represented, holding 42% of the available positions. Only one of the four class presidents, Kobe Gordon for the class of 2012, is from Virginia.
Other organizations that are weighted towards out-of-state students include the Council for Fraternity Affairs and the Inter Sorority Council. 55% of the executive offices of the CFA, and 54% of the executive offices of the ISC are held by out-of-state students. Of the 53 rising sophomores who were chosen as Monroe Scholars in 2009, 24 of them - or 45% - were from out-of-state. In order to become a Monroe scholar as a sophomore in 2009, a freshman had to attain a GPA of 3.8 or higher during the previous academic year. Monroe Scholars, however, are not always disproportionately non-Virginian. Only fourteen of the 53 freshman Monroe Scholars who completed projects in the summer of 2008 lived outside of Virginia. Not all Monroe Scholars, however, choose to complete summer research projects.
The Undergraduate Honor Council is one major campus organization in which out-of-state students are considerably under-represented. Of 24 members of the Undergraduate Honor Council, only 8 are from out-of-state.
Viewing Comments 1 - 3 of 3
Stephanie
posted 11/23/09 @ 2:50 PM EST
Per the usual, the only student groups examined are the SA-related ones and Greek Life organizations. And with Greek Life, it could be something as simple as out of state students are typically wealthier, and therefore more capable of rushing a fraternity or sorority. (Continued…)
freshman at wm
posted 12/28/09 @ 2:26 PM EST
Answer: yes they are. Very interesting article, and timely considering the budget cuts. It's obviously time to start admitting more students from out of state: for financial, academic AND extracurricular reasons. (Continued…)
Van Baak
posted 1/04/10 @ 9:30 PM EST
An absolute majority of student government members are from out of state. An absolute majority of honor council appointees are from in state. Both Monroe scholar stats and incoming acceptance stats indicate an intelligence/performance edge for out of state students. (Continued…)
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