Graduate Business Professional Fee Adopted

On May 13, 2009, the California State University Board of Trustees adopted a professional fee for state-supported MBA programs and similar business graduate degrees. Effective, Fall 2009, the fee adds $140 per quarter unit. A portion of the new fee revenue will be set aside for financial aid.

Information on the graduate business professional fee and the 10% general fee increase is available on the CSU web site: http://www.calstate.edu/pa/News/2009/fee-increase-2009.shtml

Graduate Business Professional Fee FAQ's

1. Why is the graduate business professional fee necessary?
   Without the graduate business professional fee, the College of Business and Economics would not be able to continue to maintain, let alone enhance, its current AACSB accredited business programs.
2. Who made the decision to implement the graduate business profession fee?
   
   1. The decision to implement the graduate fee was made by the California State University Board of Trustees on May 13, 2009.
   2. All CSU business schools that are either AACSB accredited or in the accreditation process will be impacted.
3. Which degree programs at CSUEB are impacted?
   
   1. MBA
   2. MS Taxation
   3. MSBA Information Technology Management
   4. Any forthcoming professional degree program (e.g., MS Accounting)
4. How much is the graduate business professional fee?
   
   1. $140 per unit in addition to the various fees
   2. All courses that apply to the completion of the degree program will be subject to the fee
5. For what kinds of courses do these new higher graduate fees apply?
   The new fee applies to all required courses taken by students who are enrolled in fee- authorized graduate professional business programs. The fee also applies to prerequisite courses taken by students conditionally admitted to fee-authorized programs.
6. Is the unit fee charged for students in the fee-authorized programs when those students also enroll in prerequisite courses, undergraduate courses, and graduate courses that are intended to prepare students to achieve classified standing in the fee- authorized programs?
   Yes, the fee will be charged for every course that a conditionally classified or classified student enrolled in a fee-authorized program takes in order to fulfill graduation requirements.
7. Does the fee apply to graduate courses or elective courses taken from outside the requirements of the fee-authorized programs?
   No, the fee only applies to courses required to graduate from the fee-authorized program.
8. What if a concurrent pairing of master’s programs consists of one fee-authorized graduate business program and one program not authorized to assess the fee?
   In the case of concurrent programs in which only one degree program is authorized to assess the higher graduate business professional fee, the courses related to the program that is not authorized to charge the higher Category I fee will not be assessed at the higher per-unit rate. The fee-authorized program will charge the higher per-unit fees for all courses required for its portion of the concurrent degree program.
9. When will this fee take effect?
   The Graduate Business Professional Fee will take effect starting in Fall 2009 quarter.
10. Will the fee be imposed on all students are just students starting in Fall 2009?
    Both new and continuing students will be subject to the fee.
11. Does the fee apply to international and out-of-state students?
    Yes, all students including international, in-state and out-of-state residents are subject to the Graduate Business Professional Fee.
12. How will the revenues generated from this fee be used?
    Some of the ways the fee may be used include:
    1. To maintain AACSB accreditation
    2. To attract and retain much-needed tenure-track faculty members to teach in the graduate program
    3. To support diversity recruitment
    4. To provide financial assistance to eligible students
    5. To offer graduate assistantships
13. How will the fee benefit the students?
    
    1. Receive the continued access to the business programs which meet the quality standard of AACSB with respect to the curriculum, faculty, and services.
    2. Increased availability in financial assistance and student assistantships
    3. Gain additional support in student services
14. What if I can't afford this fee?
    Apply for financial aid using the 2009/2010 FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and list CSUEB's federal school code (001138): http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/. You may also contact the Office of Financial Aid with questions at 510-885-2784, email finaid@csueastbay.edu, or speak to a staff member in person in the Student Information Lobby, 1st Floor Warren Hall. Be sure to complete and submit all financial aid documents by the established deadlines.
15. How does this impact my current financial aid package and what if I have additional questions about the fee?
    At least 25 percent of the fee revenue will be set aside for financial aid. The CSU Chancellors Office will be providing details to CSUEB and other campuses about how students can qualify for financial aid funded by the fee. If you have not already done so, you must file the FAFSA for 2009-10 (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and list CSUEB’s federal school code (001138): http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/. You will need to file this application to be automatically considered for any additional financial aid.