Study calls for 'vigorous debate' about UMass trends
Rapid growth in enrollment and capital spending at the University of Massachusetts may be coming at the expense of the system's mission of serving in-state students, according to a new study that calls for an increase in tuition for out-of-state students and a potential cap on enrollment of students from outside Massachusetts who pay more than in-state students to attend the university.
UMass enrollment increased by 27.3 percent between 2005 and 2014, far surpassing the 1.7 percent increase in enrollment at other New England state universities and the 14.4 percent growth in U.S. public university enrollment rose over that period, the Pioneer Institute concluded in its study, which was led by former state lawmaker and inspector general Gregory Sullivan.
At the same time, UMass has been carrying out a decade-long $3.8 billion capital plan, with $1.38 billion in costs paid by the state and the remainder being financed with university debt, according to the study. The university's overall indebtedness grew from $946.2 million to $2.9 billion between fiscal 2005 and 2016, and annual debt payments grew from $88.5 million to $223.4 million during that time.
Analysts concluded in the study that from 2008 to 2014, international undergraduate enrollment at UMass "skyrocketed" by more than 300 percent, while enrollment of students from Massachusetts at UMass increased by 8.8 percent during that period.
Analysts also determined that getting admitted to UMass Amherst is more competitive - in 1992, the average freshman had a grade point average of 2.92; by 2014, the average had risen to 3.78. The flagship campus has risen in the U.S. News & World Report rankings of the top 100 national universities.
In 2015, UMass Amherst accepted more freshman from outside Massachusetts than it did in-state applicants for the first time, according to the study. "UMass has much to be proud of in recent years," Sullivan, Pioneer's research director, said in a statement. "But there needs to be a vigorous public debate around whether the gains have compromised the university's mission to serve Massachusetts."
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